Christmas, for me, is a sort of bittersweet holiday. I enjoy the family aspects of the holiday and giving gifts to my loved ones. But on the other end of the spectrum, I hate the actual buying of said gifts. I hate the crowds. And I hate buying someone yet another DVD or gift card.
So this past Christmas season, I tried to do things just a little bit differently. I decided to avoid the big box stores and only shop at local Lansing businesses.
Easier said than done. But, always up for a challenge and a way to make Christmas shopping more interesting, I decided to go for it, and I was happy I did. I came up with a mental list of places I wanted to check out, mainly shops in downtown Lansing that I could visit during my lunch break.
First on my list was Michigania, a shop that specializes in Michigan products. I visited the wine section of the store and ended up grabbing a few bottles of blueberry wine. It was something different and unique—another of my goals with this endeavor. Trolling through the food section, I also bought some cherry salsa and chai tea. As I checked out, I told the clerk that I was trying to shop local for Christmas, and he thanked me.
Next, I hit up Clem’s Collectibles to look for games. I noticed a card game which I remembered playing somewhere and enjoying. Taking a chance, I bought it. As before, I informed the clerk of what I was trying to do and was once again thanked.
After work, I made a couple more stops on Lansing’s Westside, near the Lansing Mall. Needing another game for my sister and brother-in-law, I stopped by Evolution Games, which had a great selection. Finding a game to my liking, I finished and paid a visit next door to Pages in Time, a scrapbooking shop. Knowing next to nothing about scrap booking, I asked an employee for suggestions and mentioned a gadget my mom owned. I bought one of the accessories the employee suggested along with some holiday stickers.
A few days later, and still needing gifts for my girlfriend, I went back to Downtown Lansing. I wanted to get her a bracelet of some kind, so I visited the Lansing Art Gallery first. Not having any luck there, I went back to Michigania where I found her a nice bracelet made with Lake Superior beach glass. I also got her a copy of the book, Weird Michigan (which was on her list).
Days before Christmas, I visited Legends Sports & Games in the Lansing Mall and picked up a Red Wings photo for my dad. After that, I visited Horrocks Farm Market for chocolates, a jar of pickled eggs and more Michigan wine.
My final purchases were made at the Everybody Reads Bookstore, where I found some Michigan apple salsa and a bag of chocolate covered cherries. Afterwards, I enjoyed a nice lunch at Gone Wired Café next door.
I told every one ahead of time I was trying to shop localand to keep that in mind when they opened their gifts. Thankfully, all of my gifts were a success and everyone appreciated my efforts to support local businesses.
What I took away from this exercise was that it is possible to shop locally for gifts and avoid the crowds at the big box stores.
The adventure in commerce also led to me enjoy Christmas shopping for the first time ever. Part of my enjoyment came from knowing that I was helping support local small businesses own by Lansing residents, instead of nationwide big box stores.