With another local business forced to close its doors this week, it’s now more important than ever that the whole community bands together to support our local shops and restaurants.
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A quick walk down Baylis Street is enough to show that more and more vacant shopfronts have been popping up all year long.
While there are so many factors that come into play to determine a business’ success – rent, staffing costs, visibility – without the support of its community, how much of a chance does a new business really have?
Earlier this week, representatives from Wagga’s Business Chamber challenged Wagga to not be so quick to judge when it comes to new businesses.
That sentiment came only five months into a year that has already seen some local favourites close their doors, including the Wagga Rollderdome, Jump’n’Putt, and Carv’n It Up.
Perhaps more interestingly, amid all the negativity thrown at Wagga’s business community already this year, a brand new business opened its doors for the very first time on Thursday morning.
The Laboratory, a boutique ladies clothing store, moved into a vacant shopfront on Baylis Street.
Despite the current business climate, the energetic team at The Laboratory are determined to make their business successful.
Can you think of a better opportunity for Wagga’s residents to show their commitment to supporting local business than this?
Instead of feeding multinational clothing chains, or buying online to save a few dollars, it’s time for Wagga to start showing our locally-owned businesses some love.
With The Laboratory’s commitment to stocking ethically produced garments, there’s no doubt that Baylis Street’s latest tenants certainly are deserving of that support.
When we don’t support our local businesses, it’s not only our local business owners who suffer.
If more and more stores, restaurants, and activity centres continue to collapse under the pressures piling up on local businesses, Wagga will lose something a lot harder to replace.
The question we need to reflect on is this: what makes Wagga different to Sydney or Melbourne?
Local businesses are the reason we have the friendly, familiar faces that make Wagga less of a city and more of a community.