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Featured Article filed under Independent Business | Written by Stacy Mitchell | No Comments | Updated on May 13, 2013

After 20 Years, Congress May Finally Pass Internet Sales Tax. Is it Too Late?

The content that follows was originally published on the Institute for Local Self-Reliance website at http://www.ilsr.org/20-years-congress-finally-pass-internet-sales-tax-late/

Not having to charge sales tax fueled Amazon’s growth for nearly 20 years. While it’s impossible not to see the company as a horse that’s already out the barn door, there’s still good reason to believe that the Marketplace Fairness Act will slow Amazon’s consolidation of retailing and provide benefit to independent businesses. Continue reading

Business Open Sign
Featured Article, ILSR Press Room, Resource filed under Independent Business | Written by Stacy Mitchell | No Comments | Updated on Feb 6, 2013

Survey Finds Independent Businesses Benefit from “Buy Local First” Campaigns, But Challenges Loom

The content that follows was originally published on the Institute for Local Self-Reliance website at http://www.ilsr.org/2013-independent-business-survey/

ILSR’s annual survey has found that independent businesses experienced solid revenue growth in 2012, buoyed in part by “buy local first” initiatives. But the survey also documented challenges facing independent businesses, most notably an increase in “showrooming” and competition from online retailers, tax and subsidy policies that favor their big competitors, difficulty obtaining loans, and a customer base still reeling from the recession. Continue reading

Small Business Owners Photo
Resource filed under Independent Business | Written by Stacy Mitchell | No Comments | Updated on Feb 3, 2013

ILSR’s Annual Independent Business Survey

The content that follows was originally published on the Institute for Local Self-Reliance website at http://www.ilsr.org/surveys/

ILSR’s annual Independent Business Survey gathers data from thousands of locally owned, independent businesses across the country. Continue reading

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Featured Article, Resource filed under Independent Business | Written by Stacy Mitchell | 9 Comments | Updated on Dec 1, 2012

Why We Can’t Shop Our Way to a Better Economy: Stacy Mitchell’s TEDx Talk

The content that follows was originally published on the Institute for Local Self-Reliance website at http://www.ilsr.org/ted/

In this TEDx talk, delivered on October 20, 2012 at TEDxDirigo‘s Villages conference at Bates College in Lewiston, Maine,  conference, ILSR Senior Researcher Stacy Mitchell argues for a new phase in the local economy movement. She notes that there’s been a resurgence of support for small farms, local businesses, and community banks, but argues: “As remarkable… Continue reading

San Francisco's Cole Valley Neighborhood
Featured Article filed under Independent Business | Written by Stacy Mitchell | 7 Comments | Updated on Aug 30, 2012

How San Francisco is Dealing With Chains

The content that follows was originally published on the Institute for Local Self-Reliance website at http://www.ilsr.org/san-francisco-dealing-chains/

San Francisco is home to more independent businesses than other big cities, thanks in part to a 2006 law than gives neighborhoods the power to reject “formula” retail stores and restaurants. But the policy has major gaps, which have opened the way for chains to slip into the city. City leaders are now looking to beef up the law. Continue reading

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Resource filed under Independent Business | Written by Stacy Mitchell | No Comments | Updated on Aug 22, 2012

Presentation: What Happens to Local Businesses When Walmart Moves In?

The content that follows was originally published on the Institute for Local Self-Reliance website at http://www.ilsr.org/what-happens-local-businesses-walmart/

This brief presentation looks at how Walmart could impact local businesses if it’s allowed to expand into urban areas.

Continue reading

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Featured Article filed under Independent Business | Written by Stacy Mitchell | 12 Comments | Updated on Aug 16, 2012

Independent Businesses Deliver Bigger Economic Benefit, Study Finds

The content that follows was originally published on the Institute for Local Self-Reliance website at http://www.ilsr.org/independent-businesse-deliver-bigger-economic-benefit/

Choosing a locally owned business generates almost four times as much economic benefit for the surrounding community as shopping at a chain, a new study has concluded. Continue reading

urban-steet-biz
Featured Article filed under Independent Business | Written by Stacy Mitchell | 14 Comments | Updated on Jul 18, 2012

Local Ownership Makes Communities Healthier, Wealthier and Wiser

The content that follows was originally published on the Institute for Local Self-Reliance website at http://www.ilsr.org/local-ownership-healthier-wealthier-wiser/

Most policymakers don’t imagine that their economic development decisions will affect such things as voter turnout or the prevalence of chronic disease. But a growing body of research is finding that scale and ownership of business matter in ways that extend far beyond economic outcomes. Continue reading

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Featured Article filed under Independent Business | Written by Stacy Mitchell | No Comments | Updated on Jul 13, 2012

Walmart Claims Its Stores are Magnets for Small Businesses; Not So, Research Finds

The content that follows was originally published on the Institute for Local Self-Reliance website at http://www.ilsr.org/walmart-claims-stores-magnets-small-businesses-so-research-finds/

In its push to get into urban areas, Walmart is claiming that its stores are actually good for nearby small businesses, at least those that do not compete in the same product lines. But the empirical evidence — including a extensive study published recently in the Journal of Urban Economics — indicates otherwise. Continue reading

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Featured Article filed under Independent Business | Written by Stacy Mitchell | 2 Comments | Updated on Jul 5, 2012

Walmart: 50 Years of Gutting America’s Middle Class

The content that follows was originally published on the Institute for Local Self-Reliance website at http://www.ilsr.org/walmart-50-years-gutting-americas-middle-class/

Walmart’s history is the story of what has gone wrong in the American economy. Wages have stagnated. The middle class has shrunk. The ranks of the working poor have swelled. Whatever we may have saved shopping at Walmart, we’ve more than paid for it in diminished opportunities and declining income. Continue reading