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We recently finished a complete renovation of a 27 year old condo on the Pemi River in Lincoln, NH.

See photos of the completed project HERE.

The scope of the project was the renovation of a kitchen and 2 bathrooms, new paint throughout, new carpeting in the bedrooms, furniture, lighting, window treatments, accessories, new stone hearth, and a new fireplace.

For this 1200 sq. ft. condo, we directly supported approximately 15 local businesses, and 30 or so local people, all living and working around a 15-20 mile radius of the condo. These included painters, electricians, plumbers, carpet and tile installers, home furnishings stores, hardware stores, counter-top suppliers, cabinet maker, appliances, finish carpenters, stone masons, moving company, and a cleaning company.

These 15 businesses in turn support other local manufacturers, who themselves support suppliers and partners for their materials and services, and these 30 or so people support other local businesses within the community who have their own network for goods and services.

Take the fireplace renovation section of the project for example. A local stone mason was employed to complete the hearth. He employed 3 people for the job using local stone, supplies purchased locally, and bought the fireplace insert, blower, and other materials from a small local fireplace dealer.

Going further, and tracking all the materials back to their original manufacturers who literally dug the stone, forged the iron parts, assembled the blower components, and the shippers who drove the products here to name just a few, the amount of people and business that saw benefit from this 5 day stone/fireplace project is endless. The money stayed within the communities, helped people and business pay rent, buy food, enjoy entertainment, etc.

Using this same logic for each of the other components of the project, we can see how important it is to be conscious of how much support can be given to communities, towns, cities, and the entire country.

Many large businesses today carry cheap, foreign goods (usually produced by a workforce making pennies a day), send most of their money away from the towns straight to corporate headquarters, and although they employ local people, they rarely use local suppliers, vendors, or materials.

See this brief list of some of the professionals and materials that went into this renovation project, keeping in mind all the businesses behind them, and the benefit they can have on a local economy.

Painting: Painters / Hardware Store / Paint Store / Paint / Brushes & Rollers / Dropcloths / Ladders / Misc. Supplies / etc.

Electrical: Electricians / Electrical Supply Store / Hardware Store / Tools / Electrical Components / etc.

Carpeting: Carpet Layers / Carpet Manufacturer / Carpet / Pad / Tools / Vacuum / etc.

Tile: Tile Layers / Tile Manufacturer / Tile / Sub-flooring / Grout / Tools / etc.

Kitchen Renovation: Cabinet Makers / Hardware / Counter-top / Appliances / Installers / Delivery / etc.

Home Furnishings: Furniture / Lighting / Window Treatments / Mattresses / Upholstery / Manufacturers / Installation / Shipping  / Accessories / Designers / etc.

Hearth / Fireplace: Masons / Manufacturers / Stone suppliers / Equipment Suppliers / Tools / Shipping

Plumbing: Plumber / Faucets / Sinks / Toilets / Manufacturers / Pipe / Fittings / Tools / Supplies / etc.

Cleaning: Cleaners / Supplies / etc.

All this support to a small town in Lincoln, New Hampshire and for a 1200 sq. ft. condo. Imagine all the condo and home renovations in this ski town alone, and all the money, support, jobs, and camaraderie that is created when we make a strong effort to shop, buy, and invest locally.