That's why Somerville
Local First and Cambridge Local First launched the "Shift Your
Shopping" holiday campaign, asking people to make the 10 percent shift
by shopping at local, independently-owned businesses from November 29
to December 31.

"This is an opportunity to get people to think
about their shopping, and to make it a purposeful attempt to buy from
local independents," said Kanter, the owner of Cambridge Naturals and a
Cambridge Local First executive committee member. "People need to
better understand that doing so can build strong, local economies."

Both
the Somerville and the Cambridge Local First will hold a press
conference this Friday at 10:30 a.m. in front of 253 Washington Street
in Union Square (the former Hope & Glory shop) to officially
divulge more details.

As for a sense of community, spending time
with local business owners gives people more of an awareness of the
people around them, he said. One will probably conduct a more
meaningful conversation with a business owner and experience better
customer service, rather than trying to find help at a mall super store.

"People
appreciate the more thoughtful gifts that local shops can create,
rather than just mass-produced items," Kanter said. "The appeal of the
local movement means that at the end of the day, what people really
need are other people and to have others support them and to not feel
alone."

The month-long Shift Your Shopping effort is an
extension of the annual buy local week that occurs the first week of
December, said Joe Grafton, the executive director of Somerville Local
First. Somerville and Cambridge, as well as Portsmouth, NH and
Portland, ME are trying out the month-long movement, to capitalize on
the shopping focus that the holiday seasons bring.

Somerville
and Cambridge Local Firsts will hold a series of events during the
Shift Your Shopping month. On Monday, Dec. 7 at 7:30 p.m. at the
Somerville Theater, there will be a panel discussion and talk about the
New Orleans study, "Thinking Outside the Box," by Civic Economics that
shows that local retailers have twice the local economic impact of big
box stores, while taking up a fraction of the land area. WBUR's Robin
Young will be the moderator and the panelists include Kanter, Alderman
Rebekah Gewirtz, and Grafton.

The businesses that sponsor
Somerville and Cambridge Local Firsts will hold special sales and
events throughout the season, including casual photos with Santa,
sing-alongs and tastings, Grafton said. Shift Your Shopping sponsors
include Ball Square Fine Wines and Spirits, Downtown Wine and Spirits,
GRAND, Kickass Cupcakes, and Poor Little Rich Girl. Sponsors A complete
list of Shift Your Shopping events and participants can be found at www.shiftyourshopping.org

Rachel
Solem, the owner of Irving House and Harding House in Cambridge, and an
executive committee member of the Cambridge Local First, is excited
about the Shift Your Shopping program. She added it will be a long,
slow process to get people to think about buying at local, independent
businesses as it's about a shift in thinking.

Many busy people
prefer the ease of the Internet or dashing to a department store for
something like lingerie, for example. Chances are they will find
something in their size. At a smaller, local store they may not. But,
often times they can order something, and they will also receive a more
personalized and quality shopping experience.

"The main reason
to do this is that you are in an independent shop dealing with the
person in charge who makes the decisions, so that you as a customer are
not part of the random world of shopping," Solem said. "You have a
better quality experience, which is what we want people to know."