I have always been in favor of local shopping and in giving our own Albert Lea businesses and stores in our community my business. If we want to have a good selection of stores to do business with locally we need to support them. With the closing of Bath & Body Works coming soon, Starbucks and Cato store it makes me wonder what will go next. We need to all strengthen and support our own community before other businesses, like the ones above, are affected as well. Our stores here in Albert Lea have always had what I’ve been looking for when purchasing things. For being a smaller town our local stores do a good job of carrying a good selection of things to choose from. If we don’t support them we shouldn’t be surprised or have a right to feel bad if they close.

The way the economy is right now it makes sense to save on gas, save on postage, shop locally and keep our own community businesses strong.

Jody Johnson

Albert Lea