The city of Patterson is introducing an innovative program called “Shop Patterson” beginning next month to promote local businesses. Holden Murray from the City of Patterson explained, “Shop Paterson is the city of Paterson’s first loyalty-based reward system. We want to encourage citizens and the surrounding areas to shop local because when you shop local, it pumps life into your city and helps it grow.”
The initiative is a partnership between the city, the National League of Cities, and Stamp Me, a reward app. The program will work by rewarding customers who shop at participating businesses with stamps that can be redeemed for prizes like gift cards, t-shirts, bags, and vouchers.
Although named “Shop Patterson,” the program is not restricted to just Patterson businesses; Bayou Vista or other local businesses are also eligible. Murray mentioned how cities need to partner with surrounding municipalities or unincorporated areas for greater success.
Participating businesses will not incur any expenses when enrolling in the program. The National League of Cities has provided the grant money used for expenses like setup fees and discounts offered through vouchers.
“Shop Patterson” will launch on September 1st. For more information about the program, call Holden at City Hall 985-395-5205 or visit their Facebook page or website. As an incentive, the first 50 people to register for the program will be entered into a drawing for a $100 gift card. Notifications about events related to “Shop Patterson” and community business spotlight days will be sent through the Stamp Me app.
Holden Murray emphasizes the importance of supporting local businesses: “We really want to bring more businesses in. This has been a year and a half journey trying to find the right program to say, hey, the City of Patterson is here. We love our local businesses and want to support them as well as those in surrounding areas.”