Inspired by Cindy Filipenko’s column this week, here are her top 3 reasons to shop locally this season.

1. Save time.

If you make, say, $20 dollars an hour and a round trip to Park Royal takes four hours (allotting a scant hour for shopping), and somewhere in the neighbourhood of 20 litres of gas, throw in a smoothie for the road, you’re in for over $100 dollars. Suddenly the products that might be even $40 cheaper when bought there aren’t such a deal.

2. Ensure jobs for locals.

Locals with jobs support other local business. If we commit to spending even a tenth of our budgets near our homes, we will infuse literally hundreds of thousands of dollars into the local community. And these will be dollars that circulate in the community up to seven times.

3. Connect with your community.

There’s something great about unexpectedly running into a friend while grabbing the last of your stocking stuffers and heading off together for a warm beverage and a catch up.