FAIRHOPE, Ala. — Independent business owners will kick off the inaugural 2014 “Fairhope Local” campaign with a workshop beginning at 8:30 a.m. on June 23 at The Venue, located at 105 South Section Street in downtown Fairhope.

Fairhope’s longstanding independently-owned bookstore Page and Palette is the main sponsor, along with American Express OPEN. The program will be facilitated by Lily Brislen, founding director of “Think Local Umpqua” in Douglas County, Oregon, one of the most successful smaller-town Independent Business Alliances (IBA) in the country. She also serves on the board of the American Independent Business Alliance (AMIBA).

Brislen will discuss and illustrate the economic and civic importance of sustaining a strong base of local, independently-owned businesses. She will also offer practical strategic tools used in her own work, and from other successful IBAs around the country, that Fairhope business owners can implement to thrive and maintain a vital, sustainable community.

“In the strongest local economies, most dollars are spent at locally-owned businesses, where they recirculate several times in the community. This multiplier effect is a critical, but often overlooked factor in creating community wealth,” said Karin Wilson, owner of Page and Palette bookstore. “Sustaining local ownership isn’t just important for maintaining our community character, it is key to building the long-term economic vitality of downtown Fairhope.”

Attendees are invited to engage in a planning session following Brislen’s presentation to help develop a strategy for carrying out the new “Fairhope Local” campaign — the first AMIBA in the state of Alabama.

“Everyone who cares about maintaining Fairhope’s unique character, regardless of whether they are directly involved in a local business, is encouraged to participate,” said Wilson. “We’ll see some powerful examples of how independent businesses and communities can succeed by uniting and building strength in numbers. We look forward to employing many of these models here in Fairhope.”

Terry Beasley, principal of Fairhope Elementary School, has also spoken out in support of the “Fairhope Local” IBA as a key factor in ensuring the success of local entrepreneurs and the vitality of the Fairhope community.

“Having been born and reared in a very small community, I have witnessed first-hand the value of independently-owned business in sustaining that community,” Beasley said. “I have seen how the disintegration of small businesses changes a community completely. I hope the Fairhope independent businesses can and will be sustained for decades to come; for when they’re gone…they’re gone forever.”

The event is free and refreshments will be provided. An RSVP is appreciated for planning purposes. To RSVP or for more information about the “Fairhope Local” Independent Business Alliance, contact Karin Wilson at karin@pageandpalette.com or 251-928-5295.