Last night was the annual meeting of “buy local” advocacy group, Local First Milwaukee. Local First Milwaukee works hard to inform the 5-county, metro-Milwaukee area about the value that comes from supporting locally-owned businesses! It’s been shown through studies that locally-owned businesses keep a city’s economy “healthier”, make for more vibrant neighborhoods and shopping districts, and even give more back in the form of charitable donations.
You can learn more about LFM’s mission here! Please, if you haven’t already, please consider signing up for LFM’s email newsletter. If you’re a business owner and would like to join this group, look HERE.
I’ve been a member of Local First Milwaukee for three years now and in my second year serving on the board of directors. It’s been a fulfilling experience and I’m proud to say that I’ve done work with a few different LFM members, like Heritage Printing, Charles Allis Museum, Burke Candy, Loneshoe Graphics, and INK Designs.
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The classic Charles Allis Museum hosted the Local First Milwaukee annual meeting last night. Besides networking, the members present heard reports detailing what LFM has been up to in the past year – our successes, our goals, and what we’re all excited about! Outpost Co-op provided the catering, and the museum’s recently-opened “FORWARD: A Survey of Wisconsin Art Now” was also open for the members to view.
(it should be noted that the Charles Allis is going to be hosting some real swell events and you would do good to check them out: Mad Hatter’s Tea, Movie Time, Chair-ity, and FORWARD!!)
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Here is a partial list of the businesses I saw in attendance last night:
Laacke & Joys, Outpost Co-op, A.J. Ugent Furs, Kashou Carpets, Tall Guy and a Grill, John Bleidorn CPA, My Radiant Skin, Brewery Credit Union, HANmade, Bolzano Meats, SHOP, Companion Art Gallery, Terry Rice CPA, WI Public Radio, Stone Creek Coffee, Beans and Barley, Open Leaf Excursions, Fair Trade For All, Milwaukee Community Acupuncture, Lakefront Brewery, Eco-Hatchery, The Cabinetmaker, Hunger Task Force, Made In Milwaukee, WMSE, Creative Landscape Design, Stephanie Bartz Photography, Heritage Printing, P&N Promotions, Turner Hall/Riverside/Pabst Theater, The Lowlands Restaurant Group, Creative Employment Opportunities, Sweet Water Organics, Buelow Vetter, SwipeWorks, and Milwaukee Pulse.
To learn more about ALL our great member businesses, and to find links to everyone’s websites, check out the Directory!
To see more photos from last night, check out the LFM Flickr page!
