Since the outbreak of the corona crisis, consumers have turned to local businesses more often. 'Because of the crisis, we realise that shopping and eating out is also possible in our own neighbourhood,’ Frank van Oort, Professor of Urban & Regional Economics at Erasmus School of Economics, says in an article by Dutch newspaper Trouw.
More than half of the Dutch population bought more from local businesses last year, according to research commissioned by RegioBank. A majority of the people indicated that corona makes them appreciate local entrepreneurs more. Young people in particular say they find it necessary to support local businesses.
‘Shopping is a social activity, in combination with leisure and restaurants,' says van Oort. He believes this trend will return again. ‘With a population with high purchasing power and high-quality facilities such as restaurants and theatres, inner cities in particular are a driving force behind the local economy. Organising events such as a big concert from Beyonce requires a much larger scale. But shopping and eating out might be more local, and we now realise that with corona.’ Places with high-quality local amenities are often more expensive, he assumes. ‘We have to be careful not to force the poorer people to go somewhere else.’
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The full article from Trouw, 24 November 2020, can be downloaded above (in Dutch).