Locamazon!

Lots of attention has been showered on big e-commerce retailers lighting up the Internet with "web sales". Unfortunately, most of the big retailers doing this business present the same problems for our locality as big box stores. In fact, the lack of any taxed infrastructure (i.e. buildings) or local employment make the electronic retailers worse at drying up our vital local economy than the conventional supermarts . By pressing the "add to my shopping cart" button on Amazon.com's web site, you've jettisoned every single penny of your purchase out of the Charlottesville area for good. No part of that purchase will be used to pay a local employee. No part will find it's way into the UVA Credit Union. Not a cent will be recycled into other Charlottesville businesses. And nothing will come back to help whatever your own business may be.

This is not to imply that all electronic commerce is bad. But it will take local merchants longer to find their place on the internet. In the mean time, many worthwhile local efforts have benefited tremendously from the Internet. You just have to dig a bit to find them, proving there still isn't any substitute for old fashioned hard work. Luckily, the work of finding local products is getting a little easier. Just how does one go about finding these products? Well, the most common method seems to be word of mouth. Ask your friends where they shop. You'll be surprised when they clue you in to a fantastic little store that you'd never noticed. Other methods for finding your neighborhood producer are on the way. TradeLocal has launched a web site (www.tradelocal.org) and matching telephone service (760-8628) that helps you find local people offering the goods or services you need. Many of these folks have concentrated on a niche where they can outshine the competition. Hardware stores offer a good example. Need to do some plumbing work around the house? Pantops Hardware specializes in plumbing supplies and offer many items you just can't find at a big box. Plus, their 10% discount program for loyal customers make them more than competitive in price. What if you're painting? Head to Meadowbrook Hardware at the corner of Emmet and Barracks Road. They've specialized in paint supplies that cannot be found anywhere else nearby, no matter what size the store.

Many other sectors of our economy offer the same hidden local treasures. Use the Internet to seek them out instead of lining the pockets of a far away electronic big box.