Starbucks not the only thing worth saving

I got a phone call from a nice woman a few days ago about Starbucks. Echoing a recent letter to the editor on the same topic, she suggested that the citizens of our community ought to make a show of support for the coffeehouse over the coming weeks, in hopes that corporate muckety-mucks might have a change of heart when it comes to plans to shut the restaurant down, along with about 600 others across the country.

I suggested she write a letter to the editor, but she didn’t want her name in the paper, suggesting that the save-Starbucks call to arms should come from me.

So if you think it will help, by all means, rush out to Starbucks and by your grande skinny cinnamon dolce lattes by the dozens.

But my gut tells me it’s a lost cause. The closure of 600 Starbucks restaurants looks, smells and walks like a “corporate strategy” decision, and those things don’t often change just because sales of grande skinny cinnamon dolce lattes increase 30 percent during the month of August in some little town in the Arkansas Delta.

Besides that, I have an inherent problem with a “save-Starbucks” campaign. It’s not that I’m happy the store in closing; on the contrary — I see it as a huge disappointment. My issue is that I don’t think Starbucks is the only thing around here worth saving.

It seems, sometimes, that as eager as Blytheville citizens are about getting new shopping options in the community, we aren't always as eager to do the kind of shopping those local businesses need to survive. And that goes for the chain establishments that have been the subject of high interest lately, as well as the family-owned, small-town businesses that are scattered all over the community.

The bottom line is, if you don’t use it, you’re going to lose it.

For instance, if you like the idea of living in a community with an independent bookstore, make sure you visit That Bookstore in Blytheville once in a while.

If you want to live in a town with its own hospital, you better make sure you take advantage of Great River Medical Center when you can.

If you like having a daily newspaper in your community, be sure to buy the Courier News. Better yet, buy an ad or two while you’re at it.

If you want to be able to shop at a large home improvement superstore, be sure to do some business at the one we have. If you want to be able to shop at locally-owned hardware stores, be sure to do some business at those.

If you like the idea of a vibrant Main Street district, make an effort to visit the various shops and stores along Main Street Blytheville every now and then.

If you want there to be neighborhood grocery stores where you can buy your family’s food, do some of your shopping at Blytheville’s neighborhood grocery stores.

If you think it’s cool that our community has a comic book store, don’t miss a chance to walk into Arkham Comics and Used Books, and maybe grab some new reading material.

The point is, retailers in our community need business in order to survive. It’s not enough to be happy that a retailer is here. We’ve got to give them business.

That’s why I’m less than enthusiastic about any “save-Starbucks” campaign. Sure, I'd like to see Starbucks stick around for a while, too. But I’m thinking bigger than that. After all, there are scores of businesses that are worthy of our patronage.

If we're going to come together as a community to save something, I say, let’s save everything.