These days, everyone and their mother is into clipping coupons—and why not, the conscientious shopper can get some great deals! But what about savings from our hometown favorites? The mom-n-pop shops are being squeezed out by the cheaper prices that big box stores are able to offer. Since we’re all trying to watch our household bottom lines, the politically correct philosophy of shopping local often hits us where it hurts. Ow.
A few years ago, area residents Brett and Martha Bogart started making a real effort to shop locally. They joined a CSA at a local farm, moved their bank accounts to a local bank and tried to frequent locally-owned businesses before shopping at a big box store. It took them a while to find underwear and toothbrushes at local stores, but they believed that the more they helped the local community, the more the local community could help them.
“We started to really get to know the people who owned the places where we shopped and ate,” Brett said recently. “Not only was shopping then a more pleasant experience, but we also began to understand that our choices were really having a positive economic impact in our community.”
It’s for this reason that Brett and Martha founded Full Circle Coupons, a website that contains thousands of dollars in savings to the locally-owned businesses on the Seacoast. Memberships to the site are sold through schools and local fundraising organizations, who keep a large portion of each membership fee to put toward their fundraising goal—talk about a feel-good purchase. Not only does a membership save you money and help you shift your shopping to more local sources, but you donate to a worthy cause in the process.
Support local businesses AND save money!
Full Circle Coupons contains over $15,000 in coupons from nearly 300 Seacoast businesses, and they’re growing to soon include Southern Maine and Northern Massachusetts. You’ll find coupons for family entertainment, a night on the town, and even a car inspection – they’ve got it all. You can read about participating businesses, print out your coupons, and start shopping!
Try before you buy! When you compare the cost of the 12-month membership ($25) to the insane amount of savings you can get from the hundreds of coupons the website offers, it’s really a no-brainer! Whether you love the rush of saving money every day or the idea of supporting some great community fundraisers, one thing is for certain—you will love being a part of the Full Circle Community. Ready to test it out? Sign up for FREE 7-day trial! Nothing better than that!
Interested in learning more about membership benefits? Visit the Full Circle website for a list of participating businesses and sample coupons. It *is* possible to save money and stay local. ;)
