ORO VALLEY, Ariz. (KGUN) — KGUN 9 has brought you several stories about the town of Oro Valley gearing up for its 50th anniversary this April, and to continue those celebrations, they're about to kick off one of their largest shop local campaigns ever.
"We're excited. We could always use more business; we have a pretty steady following," said the general manager of Saffron Indian Bistro, Sam Nalli.
They're one of the first three local businesses to be featured in the "50 Businesses for 50 Years" shop program beginning February 5.
The large-scale campaign aims at encouraging residents to support locally-owned businesses like Saffron’s Indian Bistro.
"Anything local just helps businesses around us as well. Someone gets a paycheck, goes to the bike store next door, and spends their money there," Nalli said. "It’s not going to some big corporate company."
Oro Valley holds similar campaigns in the summer when many places see a decline in traffic. This year, town leaders are going all out, featuring 2 to 3 businesses every two weeks throughout 2024.
"The benefit of keeping dollars local is that we're supporting the individuals within our own community," said Makenna Markley, the events and communications director for the Oro Valley Chamber of Commerce.
Other businesses kicking off the campaign on Monday include the local florist Posh Petals and SpaWell near the El Conquistador Resort.
All three will be featured from February 5 through February 18. Residents supporting any given business will have chances to enter raffles for various prizes.
While speaking about the Chamber of Commerce's role, Markley said, "That’s why the chamber exists as well — to say, ‘How can we support this business and, in turn, support all of the other businesses.'"
The owner of Fork & Fire, Josh Bishop, whose restaurant will also be highlighted in the coming weeks, said efforts like these from the town, residents and other business owners are what generate and maintain a healthy local economy.
"Bringing jobs and bringing people, bringing services," he said. "All the great things leadership can bring. The more they can do to keep those kinds of things around is really important."
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Kenny Darr is a reporter for KGUN 9. He joined the team in January 2023. Before arriving in Arizona he was an Anchor and Reporter at KADN in Lafayette, LA. Share your story ideas with Kenny by emailing kenny.darr@kgun9.com or by connecting on Facebook, Instagram or Twitter.
