Shop Local campaign takes off in Maricopa

The city of Maricopa’s annual Shop Local campaign is back, and city officials hope to build on last year’s success in 2014.

Maricopa’s economic development specialist Denyse Airheart said the 2013 initiative, which encouraged residents to turn in receipts of local purchases to the city, generated about $295,000 in receipts in four months, almost triple the $100,000 goal.

Airheart thinks the program contributed to the city seeing a 3.17 percent increase in year-over-year retail and restaurant sales tax collection September through December and a 12.28 percent increase during the campaign’s heavy promotional push in November.

The Economic Development Department decided to help local business promote the “Shop Local” message instead of collecting receipts this year.

“We want each business to have their own creative ideas to help leverage the message,” said Micah Miranda, the city’s director of economic development. “The message we have is that there are a lot of great businesses in the community, you just have to reach out to them and find them.”

Miranda said people leave stories on the Maricopa Matters Facebook page all the time about local businesses they found that they never knew existed in Maricopa.

“People don’t have to leave the community as much. There are a lot of great businesses here. About 60 percent of them are home-based, so it might be your neighbor who owns the business you’re looking for,” Miranda said. “We want to retain as much money in the community as possible to help Maricopa have a successful economy.”

There is an informational session for businesses at 5 p.m. on Sept. 18 at City Hall.

Airheart said business owners and operators will learn how to promote their businesses as part of the Shop Local campaign and receive promotional materials such as stickers and reusable canvas tote bags.