I own a Eco Friendly Jewelry company. We make jewelry from "resuscitating" unused vintage components from jewelry companies of decades past as well as other clever sustainable materials such as peach pit beads, for example. We never mass produce and ALWAYS avoid buying materials from places like China. We pay fair living wages, while charging reasonable prices for our goods. All this while manufacturing and keeping jobs in the USA. Even our packaging and shipping boxes are eco friendly.  All these things are altruistic and a mandate from the very beginning of our company before "Green" was the trend.

But, no amount of altruism is going to bring in customers at a time like this. People are NOT shopping for Christmas. We face layoffs. Our boutique clientele are going out of business, left and right. Times are indeed ugly. The only way we can see our way through this is to haunch down and await the impending storm and hope that we are still here when it passes. As a small business owner, this all seems like the perfect storm.

Since we never used credit to build our inventories or buy our equipment, I think we are better off than those that rely on these things to operate. Our lean times in the formative stages of our business have trained us to be savvy in the absence of cash flow. Still, I fear for those retailers that are doomed to close their doors.

We will make it through this one. Even if I have freelance to make ends meet. The only bright side is that there may be less competition when the storm is over. But that will mean nothing if there is no one left to wholesale to.

My suggestion is this: Choose a handful of retailers or small businesses that you would like to see survive the storm, and continue to give them your business. Skip Walmart and go to the local Ma and Pa establishment. With out you the consumer, we will all surely perish. We are the American Manufacturers that grease the wheels of the economic engine we all rely on. Support us as you would our troops. We need you in this difficult time.  And when it's over, our country may just be better for it.

by INtooDeep24 (0 articles, 0 quicklinks, 0 diaries, 7 comments) on Monday, Nov 17, 2008 at 1:03:45 PM

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Many of us are old enough to remember when ordinary items lasted, and even could be fixed.  My first iron lasted more than 15 years. Today I'm lucky to get two years out of one, no matter how much I spend.

Rather than go to Walmart, we should demand quality locally made products with more than a momentary shelf life.

Rather than "shopping,"  we should be making quality goods needed by our neighbors.

The basis of a sound economy is skilled labor and quality materials, not funny money printed in the Treasury basement during the dark of night.

by Laudyms (0 articles, 1142 quicklinks, 10 diaries, 708 comments [138 recommended, 0 rejected]) on Monday, Nov 17, 2008 at 4:00:22 PM

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I have been a second hand store junkie since the 70’s when I used to get the 40’s suits in the good will thrift shop for a few bucks.   I got a real alligator skin wallet for a buck once and some Johnny Walker shoes.    / The only time I ever buy new is if I need something that I don’t have the time to flea market, yard sale, or thrift store shop.    / I buy my produce at the flea markets as much as I can and use the library for my books.  With the economy as it has become in the last year the Pickens is slim.    / America will have to trim down on its credit binge if we are ever to see our way out of this mess and we will have to become a nation that makes things again.  I remember with all the world would import American goods now American goods are considered second class.   /

by Michael Chavers (53 articles, 0 quicklinks, 15 diaries, 198 comments [5 recommended, 0 rejected]) on Monday, Nov 17, 2008 at 5:00:01 PM

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I am so grateful that I grew up poor during the Great Depression and so learned early how to cope with money problems and to make do.  Rather sudden;y, I found myself at the end of my working years and alone with little sustenance beyond Social Security.  Having recently lost my husband, I have filled several charity bins with work clothes, shirts, shoes,  and suits only to find them all empty again a few days later.  I find that I have enough clothes to last as long as I will need them, even after I sort them out and take the ones I will no longer wear to the free clothes closet at the local church.  I have only to buy shoes, since my feet are intolerant of internal irregularities.  When they hurt my feet, I clean and polish them until they look like new and they, too, go to church where they are happily adopted by appreciative owners.  Even though I can no longer practice much philanthropy, I can enjoy the wonderful feeling of contributing to the well-being of others.

by Mary Pitt (77 articles, 0 quicklinks, 2 diaries, 282 comments [11 recommended, 0 rejected]) on Monday, Nov 17, 2008 at 7:47:36 PM

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In times like these the lessons I learned from my parents come in handy.  My parents were both immigrants.  They struggled there whole lives and were always on the poor side of middle class.  They worked long hours for meager wages and yet the managed to buy a modest home in an area with good schools.  My brothers and I benefited from that one wise choice and we are eternally greatful.

But more than that, they never bought anything on credit.  If they did not have it, they did not buy it.  They built up an emergency savings account for the unexpected.  They were handy and could repair things around the house.  They kept the washer/dryer going for years.  When something needed to be replaced, we saved the installation fees and did it ourselves.  

My parents worked with their hands.  My mom could mend socks, knit scarves and sew.  My Dad, while not a carpenter, did the home repairs and only called in a pro for the occasional really tough plumbing or electrical repairs.  

And as far as food goods.  We always had the staples.  Potatoes, rice, vegetables.  Rarely ate out.  Healthy home cooked meals and sack lunches.  

I still cringe at an overpriced cup of coffee with the green logo on it.

I've gone to college, with student loans and working and had much better paying jobs than my parents.  Opportunity was opened.

I live well within my means.  Do not use credit (except for travel arrangements immediately paid off) and only have a reasonable pre-boom mortgage.  (Didn't trade up, stayed in a modest home in a nice part of town).

We have been recycling and reusing long before they were green buzz words.

And during a period of time my Dad was out of work, we learned to survive and stretch what we had.  Brushing up on surviving on very little... 

by August Adams (11 articles, 0 quicklinks, 1 diaries, 585 comments [12 recommended, 0 rejected]) on Monday, Nov 17, 2008 at 11:44:16 PM

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I have been a proponent of re-use/re-circulate for years.  I pass on things in good condition that I no longer need, no longer can use to those who need and cannot afford to buy them.

 We as a society have become so wasteful.  We also have allowed the market to sell us goods that often do not even last until the warranty expires. Shoddy workmanship, shoddy products, less for more, chasing the "immediate self-gratification fairy" has become the norm not the unusual.  People by in large no longer grow gardens, sew missing buttons on clothing or mend a split seam. Re-wiring a lamp or replacing a washer in a leaky faucet, repairing a refrigerator, stove, washer, dryer -- well my goodness, Why should I?,  throwing it out is so much easier, seems to be the mind set.

Well we are going to see some changes occur, and we are also going to see some very unhappy people.  This economic mess is a long way from being solved.  Buckle up, Batten down the hatches because the ride has just begun.  Either people are going to have to learn how to re-assess their priorities or they are not going to survive.

by Wazi (0 articles, 0 quicklinks, 0 diaries, 6 comments) on Tuesday, Nov 18, 2008 at 12:39:23 PM

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American's are now being forced to give up credit cards, buying bling, and basically supporting the American economy on their shoulders. We are being forced to pay down our credit card bills, and live within our means. This is a tough concept for us to embrace. Can American's give up credit cards "cold turkey?" I think we have no option. We must ask ourselves, do I really need to make this purchase? Do I have the cash to pay for it? If not, then save up for it. Saving up to buy something, what a concept. With less credit card bills to pay for, trading down your car, so your car payment is lower, not buying on impluse, maybe, just maybe, you can really relax and enjoy what you do have. With more cash on hand you can ride out the rough times ahead, and have no doubts that you will survive this economic down turn.

by Stephen Hull (0 articles, 0 quicklinks, 0 diaries, 1 comments) on Tuesday, Nov 18, 2008 at 1:06:12 PM

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Another aspect to all of this is the positive one of recovering a sense of community by creating a Local Energy/Economy Trading Scheme, or LETS system, whereby people/neighbors exchange their services with each other, for units/credits in a local exchange network, rather than in the international currency exchange system, which can go belly-up, but people can still continue to support one another regardless.  People over here in the UK are already starting to create their own local exchange systems, and are getting to know each other better in the process.  May be important, in times to come....(You can even get people on the High Street to accept the local currency, to some extent.  I'm sure if you Google LETS system, you'll come across info on such a barter system.)       

by kibitzer2 (0 articles, 0 quicklinks, 0 diaries, 49 comments) on Wednesday, Nov 19, 2008 at 5:09:16 PM

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I've already hinted to family that we'd rather receive second-hand items than anything from Mall-Wart. Something homemade is always welcome.

At our town dump...er, -Recycling Center- we have a "Free store" where still-usable things are left for others to take as needed. I had the distinct pleasure of returning myWal-Mart purchased coffee maker to them after finding one still in very good shape at the "Store". Asked why I was returning it, I told them I got a MUCH better price locally!

WE also do a lot of trading of services among some friends here, and there is a group who started a "Time Bank", (which sounds similar to your deal in the UK) where people can "bank" time and withdraw it for services needed.

This does not help the tax base, of course, but until they start using our taxes for something besides mostly WAR,  that's entirely justifiable!

by Bia Winter (6 articles, 2 quicklinks, 14 diaries, 760 comments [119 recommended, 0 rejected]) on Thursday, Nov 20, 2008 at 9:41:18 AM

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