By Roy Madden
Executive Director,
Henryetta Chamber of Commerce

The Henryetta Chamber of Commerce encourages area residents to keep their shopping dollars at home.  Small rural communities experience what is known as retail leakage or simply put; locals spend money out of town.  
When this occurs, the dollars spent supports that specific community and not the town they call home and depend on for services.  In turn, the home community suffers from the lack of tax revenue to support the city‚Äôs basic functions; quality of life programs are stressed, jobs are lost, local business cannot expand products/services offerings, property values decrease, the workforce is diminished, and the overall ability of the community to attract new businesses declines.
 As an example of the impacts of out-of- town shopping, let‚Äôs look at a study conducted on rural communities by Ray Stone & Associates, a Dallas, Texas based firm:  They found that rural communities across the U.S. spend on the average of $5,000 in the neighboring lager communities, purchasing items and/or services available in the hometown. A community with a population of 5,000 typically represents 1,640 households in a community.  Apply the 1,640 households against the $5,000 per household spent out of town, totals $8, 200,000 that rightfully could be spent in their own community.  
Based on this study, Henryetta with a population of just less than 6,000 and approximately 2,200 households would benefit significantly from locals shopping at home.  Whether this study is 100% accurate is not the point; communities are losing tax revenue daily that could contribute to the communities needs.  The City of Henryetta is not funded by the state or federal government; it is funded by sales tax revenue and water/sewage fees.
If Henryettans expect improvements in the community, as they rightfully should, community loyalty must occur. The Chamber also realizes that the city government must manage tax revenue properly and that Henryetta based businesses have a responsibility to reinvest in the community, provide quality products/services, and establish operating hours that meet their customer‚Äôs needs.  
If residents, businesses, and city government work together, Henryetta can prosper and fulfill the expectation levels of the community.  As we experience greater challenges to our economy, increasing energy prices, ongoing quality of life needs, greater regulatory requirements, and an aging city infrastructure, more online shopping, we encourage Henryettans to think twice when they spend their money out of town ‚Äì you can make a positive difference in your community; but it requires investing in your local businesses at every opportunity.  
Just ask yourself; when was the last time Lowe‚Äôs Home Improvement Store or Amazon.com sponsored a school program or donated to other community programs.  In fact your Henryetta businesses not only financially contribute to local programs they actually volunteer their time and expertise to work or organize many events.
Your Chamber of Commerce fully understands the desire for that occasional out of town shopping trip or the need to purchase an online item; we just want you to give your local businesses the first opportunity to serve your daily needs - it directly benefits the community.