John Cobb (Calare, National Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise today to speak about the importance of shopping small and supporting small businesses, especially in the lead-up to Christmas. As most of you would be aware, November is Shop Small month in Australia. If you are not familiar with this fantastic campaign, it is basically a movement dedicated to supporting our small businesses and our retailers locally. It is a fantastic initiative, as I am sure you will all agree, and one we should all be right behind for the sake of our community, our electorates and the whole fabric of our local society.

I would like to take a moment to talk about some figures that were brought to my attention last week. Some of them were a real shock. According to the Australian attitudes to small business report, three-quarters of small business owners in Australia say it is getting harder to run a small business. This is something which many businesses in my electorate of Calare often bring to my attention. What I found most alarming is the fact that two in five small businesses admit that they are not sure if they will be around in five years' time.

Those are alarming statistics and I think no-one here would not be concerned about them. I consider small business to be the backbone of my electorate in Calare and to be the backbone of society. They are just something that, if we did not have them then, we just would not realise what we had lost until we lost them. They offer so much in the way of employment opportunities, community input and support. They are the heart and soul of every local team and every local event that our communities are involved in.

After speaking with some of them in Calare, I was delighted to learn that they are not going to just bow down to the huge internet overseas traders. They are getting on the front foot and implementing a raft of new strategies to ensure they remain competitive. The strategies that they are looking at include investing in an online or social media presence; price discounting; increasing marketing and advertising; negotiating better deals with suppliers, individually or by getting together; increasing the range of products sold; forming alliances with other businesses; investing in new technology; and considering longer opening hours.

They are all great ideas, but they can be quite wearing too. I am sure you will agree that it is simply not enough. These small businesses need us, and everyone in our electorates, get behind them and support them. Those of us living in small towns—as do the majority of people in my electorate of Calare and the majority of people in western New South Wales—need to shop locally. I am urging everyone to think twice next time they are looking at buying something online, especially in this lead-up to Christmas. You may save a little bit of money buying overseas or online but you are missing out on great customer service. You are missing out on a chance to catch-up on everything that happens in your region. And every dollar spent locally goes into the local community and benefits everybody. It benefits your friends. It benefits your neighbours and their families.

Finally, in a bid to kick-along the Shop Small Month campaign in Calare, for the last few weeks I have run a social media campaign urging residents of Calare to vote for their favourite small businesses. I must admit, I was unsure what support the campaign would get at first, but it has been an overwhelming success. Local business chambers and associations, local councils and businesses have got right behind the idea and so has the public, with lots of public votes still coming in now. Once voting closes at the end of the month, I plan to visit those businesses that receive the most votes and make a special presentation.

I felt this competition was a good addition to the Shop Small Month, and the feedback we got from around the region has been fantastic, because when people know something like this is happening suddenly they realise how well they are treated and the service they get locally. It takes them a minute to get online and vote. They go out in the morning and suddenly think, 'Yes, I was terribly well treated. You can't get treated like that online.'

We really need the community's support. The last thing we want is small business to disappear because if it does, Calare is gone too. I have got to tell you, I am proud of my small business.