I am a big proponent of shopping local. As a local business owner, why wouldn’t I be. Last week I had to attend a family funeral in Portland Maine so I found myself there on Black Friday. Following are some of my observations.
We got to the border mid-afternoon on Thursday and we were the only vehicle in sight. Once the grumpy border guard let us through we headed south, all by ourselves. Hardly another car on the road until we got to Bangor.
We got up on Black Friday morning and headed to the shopping mecca of Freeport. We arrived at 9:30 expecting to have a long walk ahead of us. However, the parking garage was only half full. We actually went into a few stores where we were the only shoppers. Truthfully, with the exchange rate, the deals were just not that great. It did however, get busier by noon hour.
During the entire trip, we only saw three other New Brunswick cars. We returned to the border mid evening on Saturday and I think I woke up the guy working at the Duty Free store. He looked surprised to see someone in his store. And again, we were the only car at the border.
It sure hit home why shopping local is so much better. By the time you pay for gas, food, hotel and get dinged by the hefty exchange rate, you end up paying way, way more than you would at home. If I didn’t have to go down there, I wouldn’t have, and certainly, won’t again for a while. Support your local businesses. Your bank account, and the local businesses, will thank you.