The city’s Buy Local Orlando program runs off into the sunset by Billy Manes for the Orlando Weekly

Back in 2009, the city caught some local heat when the mayor announced Buy Local Orlando, a window-sticker and membership-card merchant promotion intended to encourage Orlando consumers to patronize local businesses, as many were suffering the effects of the recent recession. The problem was that the city wasn’t able (or, possibly, willing) to distinguish between … More The city’s Buy Local Orlando program runs off into the sunset by Billy Manes for the Orlando Weekly

The Local Lie: How Big Stores are Pretending to be the Little Guy by Stacy Mitchell for Jackson Free Press

When billboards proclaiming “Buy Local Orlando” first appeared in Orlando, Fla., Julie Norris, a café owner who last year co-founded Ourlando, an initiative to support indie businesses, was excited to see the concept getting such visibility. But she soon realized that the city-funded program, which provides businesses who join with a “Buy Local” decal, seminars … More The Local Lie: How Big Stores are Pretending to be the Little Guy by Stacy Mitchell for Jackson Free Press