Dear Editor,

As the holiday season rapidly approaches, the members of the Columbiana Merchants and Professionals Association would like to remind you of the importance of not only shopping locally for your holiday needs, but also all year long.

The greatest benefit to shopping locally is that you are not only supporting the local businesses but you are also supporting the local economy as well.

We should want to support our local economy. With approximately 10,000 people living in the immediate area, if each person spent just $100 more in a local business this season, that would mean that an additional $1 million would be funneled directly back into our local economy.

The local taxes paid on those revenues could also be used to supplement local city jobs and services versus shopping outside the Columbiana area and paying taxes to other municipalities.

Please also remember that the members of the Columbiana Merchants and Professionals Association work numerous long hours behind the scenes to bring you many of the events that happen around town all year long.

Furthermore, please know that if you are a supporter of non-profit organizations, national statistics show that non-profit organizations receive an average of 350 percent greater support from locally owned businesses than from non-locally owned businesses.

The members of the Columbiana Merchants and Professionals Association would like to wish each of you a happy holiday season and invite you to come in and visit us and see what we have to offer.