Independents Days will once again be celebrated in downtown Lincolnton July 1 - 14. Hot on the heels of being named "Best Downtown Special Event 2008" by the North Carolina Main Street Center, this year's Independents Days will include the Shop Local Challenge, the Find Your Independents scavenger hunt, a 4th of July window decorating contest, and the 3/50 project.
The initiative was begun by the American Independent Business Alliance (AMIBA) as "Independents Week," but the Downtown Development Association's Promotions Work Group put its own spin on the event by starting Independents Days, a two week long celebration of downtown Lincolnton's locally owned independent businesses, in 2008.
The Shop Local Challenge encourages the public to shop locally owned businesses first, and to keep track of items that are not available from such establishments. Lists of those items may be turned in to the DDA at the Business & Community Development office, 114 East Main Street, to help the organization in identifying products and services that could benefit the downtown community. Similarly, the 3/50 Project asks citizens to identify the three independently owned businesses that they would miss most if they were to close. Citizens are then encouraged to stop by those businesses - to pick up a small gift for a friend or even just to say hello - as a way of showing their support. The project also encourages people to spend $50 each month at an independent business. If half of the employed population of the U.S. did this, their purchases would generate more than $42.6 billion in revenue. For more information on the 3/50 Project, visit
www.the350project.net.
Perhaps one of the more unique activities of Independents Days is the Find Your Independents scavenger hunt. To play the game, participants will pick up game cards at the Business & Community Development Office or other participating businesses. They will then scour locally owned businesses in the downtown area in search of the unique items listed on the game cards. Clerks in each business will mark the card with a special sticker acknowledging that the items have been found. Once participants find all of the items, they will then turn their game cards in to the Business & Community Development office where one will be randomly drawn on July15 for a prize package filled with goodies from each of the participating businesses.
The DDA is also sponsoring a window decorating contest for downtown Lincolnton businesses. Windows will be judged on Saturday, July 4th. Winners will be announced on
The Inside Wire Monday, July 6th.
