Local restaurant owners disappeared a few years ago to be replaced by the likes of Applebee’s, Chile’s, and Olive Garden. I’m happy to say local restaurant entrepreneurs have brightened up the scene and now we have a vigorous local dining selection in our area. Drugstores; alas, have gone the way of the dodo bird. We now have Walgreen’s and CVS duking it out on every street corner with hardly an independent pharmacy to be seen. Ditto local clothing and shoe stores.

Newspapers have been taking a big hit of late; the Internet, radio, and TV have made serious inroads into their raison d’être. Our major local paper, The Worcester Telegram has been cutting local news coverage, and its sibling The Boston Globe (both owned by The New York Times!) has also been thrashing about trying to maintain fiscal stability. It’s obvious the recession hasn’t helped.

Having noted this - (and also observed why consolidation and mergers don’t always work!) I have to tell you about a local business success story. We’ve started advertising in a local paper called the Worcester Magazine – and as a result received a very nice letter from the publisher, a fellow named Gareth Charter. Never did I receive anything remotely like this from the Worcester Telegram when we advertised with them for years.

I’ll let Gareth’s words (abridged somewhat) speak for themselves.

“Thank you for including us in your advertising investment and for supporting community publishing. We are not immune to the challenges of this economy. In recent months we have been forced to find operational savings and even eliminate a few jobs. What hasn’t changed is the heart of our business – a never-ending focus on local news, local people, and local events. … Yes, the Internet offers free, immediate access to national headlines, sports, weather, stocks, and a host of ‘commentary’ but we believe quality reporting and story telling about your community, your neighbors, your school, and your friends will always be valued. Simply put, we believe quality community newspapers operate with a vastly different and sustainable business model. Our belief is that if we stand by our communities, they’ll stand by us. That philosophy has served us well and will for years to come.”

Isn’t that refreshing given all the doom and gloom raining down from every side and doesn’t it ring true to us independent optical shop operators? With our giant chain store competitors engaging in ruthless price under-cutting, it’s going to take a lot of local involvement for us to navigate through the wilderness of this recession!