Do you ever feel wistful for the old days, when there was a sense of prosperity, and community in Honiton? That pride of place is the ethos behind Honiton’s new Totally Locally movement, launched in October with an energetic “Fiver Fest” in which independent businesses offered £5 bargains to promote shopping locally.

Pushing the £5 theme, the Totally Locally campaign poses a simple mathematical question to shoppers:  If the number of adults living in Honiton is around 9,000, and each adult spent £5/week at genuinely independent local companies how much business would that worth to Honiton?”

The answer is a staggering £2.3 million every year. The reality is that shopping online, at chains and outside the town is a huge multiple of £5 per week, but the Fiver Fest campaign isn’t asking any one individual to make big changes. The challenge is for micro-actions taken by everyone to add up to a new people-powered local prosperity.

Fiona Hanratty at The Lacemaker Café, co-founder of the Honiton Fiver Fest, says the solution to keeping prosperity in the town is all about habits, “for all human beings, once people have got into a habit it’s very difficult to break. What I’d like to ask people in Honiton is to not go to the chains, but to use the independents more.”

Fiver Fest co-founder Helen Newman at Honiton Sports says the more you shop in Honiton the better shops you’re going to get. “The community is great, and we do feel quite supported.” “What I’d say is just try us first and you’ve not lost anything. If we haven’t got it, or if you don’t like the price fair enough, but give us a chance.” As well as sports supplies, they offer teamwear and bulk discounts for schools, and their free quotes.

The shoppers taking advantage of the Fiver Fest have been a mixture of those coming specially to buy the £5 deal and realising what else is in stock at good prices, and regular shoppers taking advantage of the surprise offer.

Kate Dixon at the Photography Shop, which opened just 3 months before lockdown, is another co-founder, “The Fiver Fest has been incredible for my business, because everyone is shopping for Christmas now in case there’s another lockdown before December.” People now know about her photo gifts – mugs, bags and canvasses – which are competitively priced and ready to pick up within an hour.

Fiona at the Lacemaker has been hosting business breakfasts for the Chamber of Commerce for years, and is now supporting Honiton’s Parent Plus Support Hub, a peer support group for people who are supporting family members with mental health. She is also looking to form a group of small businesses to tap into the government’s apprenticeship scheme to help the town’s young people. The café has a bright, fresh new look, planned during the slow COVID period, and designed and fitted by independent local craftspeople using local suppliers.

Kate at the Photography Shop says the sense of community helped her mentally and emotionally during the lockdown. To give back she offered free photo shoots for businesses on the High Street to help them survive COVID, giving that extra boost to get their marketing out.

Helen says when people don’t use the High Street “you lose the community, and you lose those all important chats. I can tell some people who come in haven’t seen anybody.” They started an online shop since lockdown, but everyone benefits from human interaction and a more personal service.

Kate reflecting on the Fiver Fest on behalf of the group’s founders– herself, Jason Hannay, Fiona Hanratty, Helen Newman, Liz Pole and Bev Stamp – says “This year because we’ve all put in much as we possibly could into the Fiver Fest with door to door conversations, the website, the Facebook page, the press and social media, next year it’s going to be incredible.”

For more information see:

https://www.totallylocallyhoniton.co.uk

https://www.facebook.com/totallylocallyhoniton

Contact Liz Pole at 07485 194 779