Why the UK Needs Small Independent Businesses

At Loyalzoo, we love small businesses; in fact, our digital loyalty app was designed to encourage people to embrace the small and independent businesses in their neighbourhood, and to get small local business owners to build a stronger sense of community.

Support your local businesses

We know the decades of heavy marketing from big corporate conglomerates may have instilled a lasting sense of loyalty for some of the bigger brands out there, but you should seriously consider swapping your favourite Starbucks coffee for a brew from your local neighbourhood café — not just because it’s important to support local entrepreneurs, but because small independent businesses are the lifeblood of the UK’s economy.

Sustaining the economy

Did you know that small businesses provide 67 per cent of the UK’s private sector jobs and contribute over half of the GDP? That means the independent shops, pubs, restaurants and cafés you see all around you are responsible for the majority of gross job creation in our country.

Furthermore, small businesses are often more resilient to financial crises than their multi-national or large-scale competitors—some even prosper in recessions, unlike bigger companies and medium-sized businesses that usually need to release high numbers of employees in tough economic times.

Saving you money

For consumers, turning to small businesses for your daily needs is also a great way of protecting your pocket. With much lower overheads than large companies, small businesses often offer the exact same products and services for a much lower cost.

Small businesses also respond to local demands by making products and services more accessible; for example, there can’t be huge shopping centres on every corner, so independent retailers allow customers to shop right in their own neighbourhood.

Discover your neighbourhood shops

If you’d like to make the effort to show some appreciation to the independent businesses in your area, the Loyalzoo app will help you earn loyalty points and brilliant rewards that will keep you going back for more. So keep showing your local shops some love and do your bit to help the economy thrive while saving yourself some cash at the same time.