Perhaps we’re not doomed to an economy controlled by a few giant corporations after all. A growing number of signs suggest that local, independent businesses might just be making a comeback.
Inspired by the Harper’s Index, we’ve compiled a list of key indicators of a return to the local. Continue reading
An overflow crowd of hundreds turned out yesterday at a New York City Council hearing on the impact Wal-Mart would have if allowed to expand into the city. ILSR’s New Rules Project was invited by the Council to testify as part of the first panel of speakers. Here’s what we said about the impact Wal-Mart would have on New York. Continue reading
For the fourth year in a row, a national survey of independent businesses has found that those in communities with an active "buy local" campaign have experienced markedly stronger revenue growth compared to those located in areas without such a campaign. Continue reading
A groundbreaking new study, the Indie City Index, ranks all 363 metropolitan areas in the U. S. according to the vitality of their independent retail sectors. Continue reading
The good news is that overall sales at independent retailers grew by about 4 percent. The bad news is that chains grew faster and independents still lost market share, falling from 31 to 28 percent of retail spending. That decline in market share, however, was considerably slower in this five-year period than the preceding 20 years. Digging deeper into the new data, we found a number of interesting trends. Continue reading
A couple of weeks ago I was invited to spend a day in Detroit meeting with local entrepreneurs and sharing ideas for spurring small business development. I came away feeling that Detroit has quite a bit to teach the rest of us about how to build a local economy from the ground up. Continue reading
The U.S. Chamber of Commerce describes itself as "the voice of business." But a growing number of small independent businesses and even local chambers are challenging that notion, arguing that the Chamber’s real allegiance is to the giant corporations that fund it. Continue reading
The two groups that have traditionally spoken for small business in Washington often push an agenda that only big business could love, writes ILSR’s Stacy Mitchell in this commentary for Business Week.
Just as CSAs have played a key role in the rebirth of small-scale farms, so too are new community-supported enterprise models helping to launch a new generation of independent grocers, bookstores, and other neighborhood businesses. Continue reading
A growing number of big corporations are using offshore tax havens to escape paying U.S. taxes. A recent estimate suggests big companies are dodging at least $37 billion a year — and, in so doing, gaining a significant competitive advantage over small businesses. Continue reading
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