‘Shopping with the Saints’ campaign encourages local purchasing

Two cities in St. Charles County have teamed up with a seasonal celebrity to promote Shopping With the Saints: St. Charles, St. Peters, and St. Nicholas. The Greater St. Charles Chamber of Commerce is also a partner in the campaign to promote local shopping.

St. Charles Mayor Sally Faith said her city and St. Peters partnered in the shopping promotion “due to the fact that we have two unique retail opportunities between our two cities — Mid Rivers Mall in St. Peters and historic Main Street in St. Charles.”

The campaign is partly a response to the closure of the westbound span of Blanchette Bridge on I-70 while the span is rebuilt.

“Given the bridge project and price of gas,” Faith said the promotion informs residents that they “could save money and traffic congestion by shopping closer to home.”

St. Peters has had its own Shop St. Peters campaign for several years to encourage residents to use local businesses. However, the Shopping With the Saints promotion supports one of St. Peters Mayor Len Pagano’s recent goals to increase “cooperation with our neighboring communities…to promote shopping St. Charles County because the stronger our local economy, the better for all of us.”

“You can pave your roads with shopping bags,” Pagano said. “When you buy local your sales tax dollars go to work in your community, support local businesses, and help our local economy.”

Faith added, “Between 50 and 60 percent of direct, indirect, and induced dollars stay in the city where goods and services are purchased.”

To encourage local shopping for the holiday season, the Greater St. Charles County Chamber of Commerce is giving away two $500 cash prizes for shopping in either city. More information about the cash giveaway and shopping campaign is available on the chamber’s Web site at www.shoppingwiththesaints.com.