Buying Locally Benefits You and Sonoma County

Your local purchases benefit Sonoma County much more compared to buying from a big-box retailer. Here are some of the biggest ways that shopping locally from locally owned vendors like Oliver’s Market benefits Sonoma County as a whole: 

• When you spend $100 at Oliver’s, $186 is recirculated in the Sonoma County economy (Eyler 1). 

• 68% more revenue is recirculated in the Sonoma County economy by Oliver’s compared to non-local grocer/retailers (Eyler 1). 

•  Oliver’s provides about 61% more jobs than a non-local grocer/retailer (Eyler 1).

• When you spend $100 on locally-sourced goods at a local grocer, $48 of additional, local money is generated. When you purchase from a non-local grocer, the same $100 of goods only creates $16 of local money (Eyler 7).

• Oliver’s generates 60.9% more in state and local tax benefits compared to a non-local grocer/retailer. It’s important to note that these revenue and tax benefits repeat each year that Oliver’s is in business—and increase as Oliver’s grows—unlike non-local grocers/retailers (Eyler 11-12). 

• “Oliver’s affects the local economy by providing revenue to local businesses, workers, and governments” (Eyler 6).

Oliver’s is a great example to demonstrate the effects of local spending in Sonoma County, because it locally sources its products from regional supply chains, which reduces income leakage. Income leakage is when, “...grocers and retailers source the goods they sell from vendors outside the local area” (Eyler 2). According to a 2020 study published by Economic Forensics and Analytics, this is the key difference between being a completely local vendor and a vendor who is local but sells non-local products, which then contributes less to the Local Multiplier Effect. 

A Note from Local Economists 

Supporting small/local businesses or startups increases Sonoma County’s job creation rate. This is vital since, Robert Eyler, a professor of economics at Sonoma State University, states that job growth in our county is at, “…‘poor levels of net new job creation, compared to other Bay Area counties”’ (Quackenbush). 

The best move economically for Sonoma County residents is to shop locally and invest in your own community rather than fostering mega-retailers that won’t contribute as much to local job creation or the Local Multiplier Effect. Zachary Kushel, a founder and managing partner at Marin Sonoma Impact Ventures, says, “We have a local economy almost entirely reliant on wine, tourism and agribusiness…If there’s anything that three fires and a global pandemic have taught us over the last decade, is that a local economy entirely reliant on those industries is not sufficiently insulated from the ravages of climate change and from disruption…What I am saying is that we need to diversify” (Kushel). Kushel also spoke at the 2025 North Bay Business Journal Economic Outlook Summit and said that the future for the North Bay economy lies in supporting small businesses.

Invest in your Community, Environment, and Entrepreneurs 

Shopping locally also means reducing your carbon footprint, supporting entrepreneurs who contribute to Sonoma County’s unique community spirit, and creating diverse local job opportunities. Take a look at GO LOCAL’s “Five Reasons to GO LOCAL” webpage for more in-depth information. All in all, spending locally means your dollars circulate back to you and your community through economic activity and make your purchases more meaningful. 

Works Cited

Eyler, Robert. “The Economics of Going Local: Oliver’s Market.” Economic Forensics and Analytics, Aug. 2020.

Quackenbush, Jeff. “What’s Ahead for the North Bay Economy in 2025 and Beyond.” The North Bay Business Journal, North Bay Business Journal, 3 Mar. 2025, www.northbaybusinessjournal.com/article/article/sonoma-napa-marin-economy-2025/?artslide=2.

Kushel, Zachary. North Bay Business Journal Economic Outlook Summit 2025, 27 Feb. 2025, Sonoma State University, Rohnert Park. Keynote Address.