Myth:  The price will be lower at a Chain or Big Box Store.

Fact: When it comes to home appliances, according to Consumer Reports: In a survey of more than 6,000 Consumer Reports readers published in the September 2005 issue of the magazine, detailed that independent, locally owned appliance dealers not only offered better customer service and better trained sales staff, but also had a better selection and price than comparable chain stores.  It’s also a well known fact that chain store prices will go up when local competition is eliminated

Myth:  Chain Stores will bring economic growth to an area.

Fact: It is no secret that profits from a chain store go outside of the community whereas profits from your locally owned store, stay local. What you may not know is the net result of chain stores on employment typically results in a net loss of retail jobs along with lower wages for the chain store employees. (Institute of Industrial relations, Working Papers, 2005).  

Local Payroll – A locally owned independent business spends more of their revenue on local labor (29% vs. 23%), since all management are on site and not in a corporate headquarters outside the community.*

Procurement – Locally owned businesses spend more than twice as much buying goods and services from other local businesses.*  Haywood Appliance banks locally, hires local accountants, attorneys, printers and so on.  This creates a ripple effect through the community.

Profits – While dollars spent at locally owned stores stimulate the local economy, dollars spent at chains are siphoned out of the community. Haywood Appliance is a family owned business, and the majority of our profits stay in Western North Carolina.

  *Source Civic Economics, The Andersonville Study of Retail Economics, Oct.2004

The key is for you, our customer, is to see yourself as citizens and stewards of Western North Carolina. This stewardship goes beyond just a matter of shopping options because your local homegrown economy matters, and there is a real cost when local businesses close giving way to a chain economy. There are many that believe the Chain Store movement is simply the future model for American business.  Although it is the current trend, it need not be our destiny. If you spend a little bit of time in a city that resembles Asheville, which is  Austin, Texas, it is not long before you notice the message everywhere you go. From bumper stickers “Think Independently, Shop Locally Owned” to posters “Break the Chain Habit”, the message is being heard.

Breaking the Chain Habit embraces the feeling that where you live has a local flavor that makes it an interesting place to live and that local character matters.  Breaking the chain habit means you care about the well being of your community and about doing business with your neighbors.  We at Haywood Appliance care about our community, because we live here and feel the impact of our decisions.  We hope you will give us the opportunity to earn your trust, and we look forward to meeting you