Shopping locally has been more important than ever this past year. While COVID-19 and related public health restrictions sent many businesses in the Saskatoon Region into survival mode, the community also stepped up to support them. In this climate, the local businesses whose operations most support other local businesses and entrepreneurs have been crucial. Dollars spent at a local establishment flow on to suppliers, packagers, employees and other connected operations. Through the Local Link program, SREDA has worked with several businesses who are great examples of this connectivity and local impact:
SaskMade Marketplace
SaskMade Marketplace is a Saskatoon-based retail store that partners with more than 250 Saskatchewan vendors, ranging from local farmers to processors and artisans, in order to provide a wide range of unique, locally produced food and non-food products. SaskMade aims to promote understanding between consumers and producers about agriculture and sustainable production; they care about where food comes from and want to take customers on a journey that illustrates the story each product they carry has to tell. Thanks to their hardworking vendors and supportive customers, they’ve earned a reputation as the premier destination for high quality, local products.
Visit SaskMade Marketplace here: https://www.saskmade.ca/
Your Home Foods
Your Home Foods is a specialty grocer focused on locally produced foods. Founded in 2020, Your Home Foods provides three convenient shopping options: in-store at 1232 Ontario Ave in Saskatoon, online with pick-up and delivery options or through the Pre-Order and Pay app. Shoppers can set up a subscription for staples, get text notifications and change their subscription any time. Your Home Foods has built relationships with local suppliers, sourcing meats and local farmers’ market products and placing them alongside convenient daily necessities. Your Home Foods’ goal is to make shopping local easy and convenient. Their mission is to connect local producers and consumers, so they let you know right on your order bag how many local businesses, farmers, producers and processors your purchase supports.
Shop Your Home Foods here: https://www.yourhomefoods.ca/
The Little Market Box
The Little Market Box is an online retailer that offers customers accessible, fresh local food without the time constraints or parking complaints of a traditional farmers’ market. The Little Market Box is deeply invested in fostering the success of local producers who are doing what they love to do, like feeding their animals, planting & harvesting their crops, or getting up at the crack of dawn to bake fresh bread. They want to support local producers in maintaining their livelihoods and seek to connect the community with locally produced goods.
Of Local Link, The Little Market Box co-owner Julianna Tan said:
“We applied to the Local Link program because it is our mission to ensure our local food producers and artisans can thrive here in Saskatoon- and the Local Link program provides a metric to help both us and our customers understand how big of an impact our business is making in the local food economy.”
Browse The Little Market Box here: https://www.thelittlemarketbox.com/
Does your business shop locally?
If your business sources products from local suppliers, consider applying to SREDA’s Local Link program. Local Link measures the local economic impact of Saskatoon Region companies, examining business activities such as ownership, employees, contractors, suppliers and community support. After assessing how locally a company operates, SREDA awards certification to a business based on their end score. Differentiate your business and demonstrate your local support with Local Link certification.