SyracuseFirst launches 10 percent ‘Shift’ campaign

SYRACUSE — SyracuseFirst, a group encouraging citizens to “think local” in their purchasing habits, on Tuesday unveiled its “10% Shift” campaign.

Formed in 2009, SyracuseFirst is a nonprofit network of “locally owned, independent businesses and organizations dedicated to building a sustainable community by encouraging citizens to ‘Think Local First,’” according to its website.

Supporters of the movement gathered at the Hotel Skyler to learn more about the campaign that aims to encourage consumers to shift 10 percent of their spending to locally owned, independent businesses, the organization said in a news release.

“By doing so, we can strengthen the region, and we can do it now. The community support we saw today demonstrates the timing is right for this effort. This dynamic initiative can transform the local economy more rapidly than we ever thought possible,” Chris Fowler, executive director of SyracuseFirst, said in the news release.

The group also detailed what it believes would happen if all 450,000 people in Onondaga County shift 10 percent of their annual budget to purchases at local independents.

The results would include 1,200 new jobs; $130 million in new economic activity; $24 million in new tax revenue; new entrepreneurial ventures; and the elimination of “thousands of tons” of greenhouse-gas emissions, SyracuseFirst contends.

Admission to Tuesday night’s event included $10 enrollment in Team 10 for 10, in which members are pledging their support for the campaign.

Community members who take the 10% Shift pledge and join Team 10 for 10 will receive special offers and discounts from locally owned businesses, SyracuseFirst said.

SyracuseFirst, an affiliate of CenterState CEO has a goal of 2,000 people taking the pledge and joining Team 10 for 10, the organization said.

More details are available at http://shift.syracusefirst.org

Contact Reinhardt at ereinhardt@cnybj.com