More about supporting local businesses
I’ve talked about efforts to support local businesses before, and waxed poetic about local companies like New Deal Distillery and Stumptown Coffee, among others.
But I realize it’s not always sweetness and light - last week, The O’s new InPortland supplement looked at the dithering others have done before when deciding whether or not to support local businesses, focusing on Typhoon!, Powell’s, and Calendula Cafe. And a recent Craigslist Rants & Raves post castigated Stumptown for the attitude displayed by their staff…
You dont really like us. We,the customer, represent nothing but potential money for your tip jar and thats it. Customer service has been replaced with bored indifference
… concluding
I do love your coffee though. Great stuff. But I’ll be spending my money elsewhere from now on thank you very much.
Well, I’ve a contradictory Stumptown story - from an out-of-towner who got converted to the coffee while here, no less. He’d tried to re-order the stuff he’d gotten here, couldn’t find it on the website, and fired off an email. To his surprise, he got a great response, and is now getting a shipment of even better stuff instead - and as he said on his own blog, Stumptown’s just won a customer for life as a result.
Other local firms I heartily endorse?
- Helen Bernhard’s Bakery - otherwise named by my daughter as “my favorite bakery ever.” While we’ve been neighbors for years, we never did realize that everything in the store (save specially-marked items) sells for half-price on Sundays. Hmmm…I see many more Maple Bar purchases in our family’s future…
- Gabriel’s Bakery - available at places like Fred Meyer, New Seasons & Wild Oats, not to mention farmer’s markets around town. Great cheese bagels (although they’re nothing like NYC bagels, to be fair, they’re decent in their own right.)
- Claire Luna soaps - sure, Claire’s my friend, and another local blogger. But she also makes incredible soap, from goat milk her sister supplies her with from her own goat farm. Catch her at Saturday Market most weekends, or peruse her offerings here
What local businesses do you stand behind, rain or shine? And - what places need an attitude adjustment (or more) to keep you coming back?
Related posts:
Word is that Helen Bernhard’s Bakery was a big supporter, and vocally so, of Yes on 36 campaign. No more Helen Bernhard’s for me!
Hmmm…didn’t know that. Will try to find out more - any pointers?
I do love Stumptown coffee. The Holler Mountain blend is heaven. The attitude does suck, though. Maybe it’s because I’m not a bike messenger, I don’t wear glasses with black rims, and I spend less time on my hair than my wife. Either way, I just get a bad vibe every time I go in there.
Also, when I buy a pound of coffee and order a large coffee to go with it (instead of the free shot glass sized cup they try to offer you) is it free, a dollar, or full price? Figgure it out, because it’s different every time I go in there. Even if you just make it full price all the time, I’ll pay, it’s good coffee. But let’s work on some consistency here.
The mistake with “Buy Local” or “Buy America” campaigns is when they’re based on emotional, rather than substantive grounds. Tell me that Stumptown’s coffee kicks the ass of Starbucks and I begin to listen. Tell me that the produce at the Portland Farmers Market is fresher and better tasting and sometimes cheaper than that at the supermarket and maybe I stop by.
Too often, though, chains and corporations are better — in every way — than “local”. Better benefits, better pay, better products, better service, etc. The best local places, the places that survive, find a niche where they excel in some or all of these areas.
btw, you need to get around more. Gabriel’s bakery is mediocre stuff. Try Criollo, Baker & Spice, or the patisseries.
I agree with Nick that it’s got to be about the product as much as it does values or other intangibles - and I’d add that price ought to factor in there as well. Produce a superior product, give me great service - and have it cost less than (or at least equal to) what I can grab easily in any supermarket? I’m so there - and I wouldn’t be the only one…
And - as I said to Nick - I’m particularly fond of dense whole grain breads for my sandwiches, for starters. Where can I find that - preferably locally-produced - here in PDX? (Other than Nature Bake, of course - which I also know and love….)
I didn’t even think about their breads. I was thinking about their lousy pastries. The breads are better. btw, if you like dense breads have you tried Fressen’s? They’re available at several of the farmers markets, plus the People’s Coop, I think. Very tasty — sweet, dense, and nutty German breads. Delphina’s also makes some nice German style breads.