When the going gets tough…

For as long as I can remember Mosman Village shops has been an eclectic mix of locally owned businesses, great cafe's, fruit and veg, fashion, beauty, homewares.  Friendly shopkeepers who knew you by name and always asked after your mum and dad too. You never needed to venture to a shopping mall or centre if you didn't want to.  Everything you needed was right here.  The choice and quality was that good, people would travel from all over Sydney on a weekend to walk the strip and shop, eat, drink and enjoy all that Mosman has to offer.

Fast forward to 2023 and there's no denying the last few years have been tough on small and local businesses...it's also been tough for mortgage holders, renters and life in general has just become more expensive. Period.

But as locals, our priorities are all wrong when the first thing we do when we're told to "tighten our belts" is cancel our membership at the local fitness studio and cut back on buying coffees from the local cafe.  To abandon the local businesses who've supported our community for so long in the pursuit of a cheaper price or to save a few dollars. 

I get it, you gotta do what you gotta do but here's the thing...if you're looking to cut back or cut out, you're looking in the wrong place.

Comm Bank posted a 5% rise in profits this year, reaching a record $10.2 billion in full-year net profit after tax. NAB posted a profit growth of 25.5%, VISA made $8.123 billion in profit, Woolworths $1.62 billion.  Great news for shareholders, not so much for everyone else.

Nevertheless, it's no secret big business is booming and they're making billions in profits....large chain stores or online retailers backed by billionaires like Amazon have the bandwidth to withstand fluctuating profit margins, small businesses don't.

Small business is quite literally the backbone of the Australian economy.  Small businesses are run by local families whose kids go to the local schools.  They employ local people in local jobs.  They sponsor the local footy and netball clubs, donate to the school fundraisers and know their customers by heart and by name.

Yet, when push comes to shove, (hello, cost-of-living crisis), local businesses seem to be the first to feel the blow.

I want to ask you to CHANGE that.

Here's 5 Ways You Can Support Local and Independently owned Businesses:

1. Shop local: groceries, fashion, beauty products, hair, beauty spas, restaurants, cafes, everything!

2. Support independently owned businesses over chain stores

3. Give them a great Google review

4. Tell your friends!

5. Don't ask small businesses to price match large offshore competitors like Amazon...they simply cannot compete!

And lastly please give these local, long-serving businesses your heartfelt support in their last few weeks operating in Mosman before they close for good:

Brunskills Pharmacy - 40 plus years in Mosman!

Oracle Books - 30 years in Mosman

Don Adan Cafe, Clifford St - 23 years in Mosman (2nd location still open in Vista St!)

Shane's Butchery - 20 years in Mosman

Savoir Faire - 30 years in Mosman

I would personally like to thank each and every one of these businesses for their loyalty and incredible contribution to the community over the years.

You will be sorely missed.

Anthony