BUSINESS PROGRESS : Shopping SWO
Shopping local . Shopping small .
Shopping SWO .
Every holiday season comes with reminders to “ shop local ” and “ shop small .”
The push to shop locally goes a little deeper than marketing . In Oklahoma especially , municipalities are funded through sales tax . City Manager Norman McNickle pointed this out when the City successfully worked to get sales tax remitted from online shopping .
“ Oklahoma is the only state where municipalities ’ general fund relies almost entirely on sales tax and receives no ad valorem ( or property ) tax , which is why the Stillwater City Council and myself are advocating for changes in the sales tax laws ,” McNickle said in 2017 .
The City of Stillwater and Visit Stillwater launched an effort in 2021 called # ShopSWO as a hashtag for social media . That effort now goes beyond the holidays . SWO is a shorthand for Stillwater Oklahoma — it ’ s also how Stillwater Regional Airport is nationally identified .
“ We are excited to continue our partnerships with local businesses by sharing and enhancing their marketing of special events and promotions with residents and potential visitors ,” Visit Stillwater CEO Cristy Morrison said in November .
Last year it was a hashtag . Now , it ’ s a real movement . ShopSWO launched several events in June , including a promotion to stay open a bit later on Fridays called “ Shop Until Dark .”
According to a 2021 report by the U . S . Small Business Administration Office of Advocacy , Oklahoma had 362,364 small businesses with 715,603 employees . That ’ s 99 percent of all Oklahoma businesses and accounts for 51.7 percent of all Oklahoma employees . Small businesses were defined in the report as firms with fewer than 500 employees .
Other benefits to shopping local , according to KeepItLocalOK :
• 68 % percent of the money spent locally stays locally , compared to 43 % for corporate chains
• Local businesses are more likely to use other local businesses for things like marketing , financing and accounting
• Local stores are more likely to special order or carry unique brands
BY Beau Simmons EDITOR , STILLWATER OKLAHOMA MAGAZINE
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STILLWATER OKLAHOMA MAGAZINE