What is SHOP UNION COUNTY?

Shop Union County is a Chamber initiative to raise the awareness of Union County residents about the importance of shopping locally whenever possible.

Sales tax dollars are very important to our children and families. Many people don't realize just how important. The campaign hopes to change that.

Key factors to be used by the campaign include:

• More than $25 million in sales tax dollars leave Union County each year.
• These sales tax dollars, if spent in Union County, would have supported local schools, enhanced services such as emergency services and helped keep property taxes low (property taxes have increased for past two years).
• Many products cost less in Union County due to lower retail rents and wages.
• Union County's sales tax rate is 1 % lower than in neighboring Mecklenburg County so you end up paying less for an item purchased at the same retail price.
• Paying sales tax on products bought in Mecklenburg actually help support schools in Mecklenburg rather than here at home.
• Shopping with local merchants enhances their ability to grow their businesses and diversity their inventories to better serve you. Shopping locally uses less gas and helps our environment by helping reduce air pollution. Continued air pollution in our region is putting federal highway funds used for road improvements in jeopardy.

Who is Involved in Shop Union?
A Shop Union Committee has worked to develop strategies to increase the public's awareness of these key factors. Christa Boggs serves as chair of Shop Union. The Union County Public School System has played a key role in planning and carrying out the strategies. The schools have agreed to be a major distributor of information through their students who stand to be a major beneficiary of increased sales tax dollars spent in Union County. Representatives of local media have stepped forward to support the effort, including The Enquirer Journal, The Union Observer, WIXE, WDEX and Time Warner Cable. Representatives of Adams Outdoor Advertising, Belk, Union Power Cooperative and the Town of Weddington have also served. The committee is on-going and invites other interested parties to participate by contacting the Chamber at 704-289-4567.

What does Shop Union County Do?
Shop Union County is a public awareness campaign. During phase one of the campaign, the following activities and strategies will be implemented.

• Shop Union County logo will be used widely to promote the program.
• Shop Union County stickers (50,000) will be distributed for use by schools and participating merchants (example: Mills Cleaners and the Shops at Nottingham will place stickers on bags)
• Refrigerator magnets with school calendar and Shop Union logo will be distributed through the school system for families to be continually reminded of the importance of shopping locally to help fund local schools (distribution to families of approximately 27,000 students)
• School personnel handbook will include Shop Union logo and message in its Educator Passport List of Participating Businesses (distribution to approximately 3500 school personnel)
• WIXE will provide bonus ads for local advertisers using the Shop Union theme and distribute posters
• WKRE will use Shop Union logo on all of its billboards in Union County
• Participating businesses will publicize on marquises, envelope stuffers, mailers, display posters, etc.
• Letters to the Editor and other coverage in the media