Rural and remote businesses encourage residents to support local economy this Christmas

ABC NEWS (Australia)

Businesses in Alice Springs are encouraging residents to support their communities and buy local this Christmas season. And while there’s some anecdotal evidence sales have risen thanks to the government's tough-on-crime approach, some say business is still down overall and will need time to recover.

Transcript

00:00It's beginning to look, and sound, a lot like Christmas in Alice Springs.

00:10But local business owners have a message for shoppers.

00:13Hey, everybody in Alice Springs, get out there, spend a little bit of your money,

00:17whether it's small or large, and if you can, and support the small businesses around here.

00:21Justin Pengilly is encouraging residents to look local first when buying gifts.

00:26You don't need to spend your money with Timu and Sheen all the time,

00:29because they don't contribute to the Australian economy or the local economy.

00:33Lyndall Connell, who runs a wildflower jewellery business, agrees.

00:37Well, it keeps the local economy alive. It keeps local people here.

00:41People who have local businesses are putting a lot of their own blood, sweat and tears into their business.

00:49She says without local sales, her business wouldn't survive, and neither would the town.

00:55So without that support for local businesses in rural or remote towns, they would turn into ghost towns.

01:05Alice Springs retailers have been hit hard by crime in recent years, but there's cautious optimism that business is improving.

01:14People are showing more confidence in wanting to come out because they feel a little bit safer.

01:18Justin says sales have lifted slightly, but there's still a way to go.

01:23Just another reason to buy local this festive season.

01:27This is to Sunday.

01:28All right.

01:33We've been doing something...

01:37We've been doing something well.

01:38How are we doing?

01:39We're getting to see more people in the summer.

01:40We're looking for this place.

01:41We're gonna get on track of the desktop.

01:42Now, let's get to it.

01:43We're looking for some people in the summer.

01:45You might want to see more people in the past.

01:47We're getting to see more people in the summer.

01:48We're dealing with the same people here.

01:49So we're looking for the phone.

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