She's the Local Champ of Buying Local

Did you know that about 70¢ of every dollar spent locally stays close to home?

On the flip side, only about 40¢ of every dollar spent at national chains stays within the community.

Ester Venouziou has been a journalist for quite some time and currently works for the St. Petersburg Times. A few years back, what started out as a hobby proved to hold much more potential than Venouziou had ever imagined.

It all started when Venouziou's family would come visit her; while she was working, they would frequent chain restaurants and shops. "Their explanation was that they just didn't know where to go," said Venouziou.

This prompted her idea to bring attention to local establishments so visitors and neighbors could make informed choices when they shopped and spent money.

Now, instead of local business owners having to search high and low for a legitimate social networking and marketing plan, Venouziou brings the game plan to their doorstep – or rather their inbox.

LocalShops1 is an online local directory on where to eat, shop and play. There are currently about 160 lbusinesses listed with LocalShops1, while the 300 shopper members are steadily increasing. Venouziou prides herself on connecting independent businesses with "community-minded" shoppers.

LocalShops1 offers its services to St. Petersburg and communities throughout Tampa Bay.

Here's the LocalShops1 pitch on Facebook: "LocalShops1 is the most complete directory of independents. Know a store that's not in there? Let us know, and we'll add it ... it's absolutely free."

Cardholders receive discounts at all participating businesses, access to weekly contests and half off on 1Cards, which make great gifts.

Venouziou is on a mission to inform people about the benefits of keeping their purchasing local. "In the long run, local businesses offer more jobs than big box stores," she explained. She said that a town with multiple, smaller local businesses employ more people than a place with a big box store, like a Wal-Mart or Target.

"I know it's not possible to always shop at independents, but it's more or less about getting people to pay attention to what is offered locally," Venouziou said.

Here's how LocalShops1 works:

• To become a shopper member, people pay a $10 per year fee that keeps the discounts coming.
• Businesses also can join. They pay an annual $75 fee that gets them promoted through LocalShops1, through Facebook and Twitter. They also get free listings online and a free printed listing in a directory that LocalShops1 publishes twice a year.

For more information on LocalShops1, go to http://www.localshops1.com/