Independent retailers, family-run shops, and micro-businesses don’t just sell products - they create jobs, keep money circulating locally, and give our towns their unique character.

Here’s the reality: over 90% of Buckinghamshire’s circa 30,500 businesses are micro - meaning they have fewer than 10 employees. Yet last year, their numbers declined. That’s a warning sign. If we don’t actively support these businesses, we risk losing them, and with them, the vibrant high streets and town centres that we love.

Government plans and strategies from the Labour government’s Industrial Strategy and Plan for Small Businesses to Buckinghamshire Council’s Growth Plan - not to mention the Autumn Budget - are all aimed at boosting economic growth. But no plan works without us. Every pound you spend locally is a vote for thriving communities, stronger employment, and a future where our high streets don’t just survive, they flourish.

Breaking the online habit

Small businesses work hard to be attractive to customers, especially when disposable incomes are squeezed. We know the temptation: online giants offer convenience and sometimes lower prices. But every time we choose them over local shops, we chip away at the foundations of our local economy. A habit is hard to break out of when we become too accustomed to next-day deliveries ordered from our sofas, but if that habit becomes permanent, the result could be empty high streets and lost jobs.

The benefits of shopping local are clear: Your money stays in the community, you help create and sustain local jobs, and you preserve the character and identity of our towns.

So, as we head into 2026, let’s make a commitment: Choose local whenever you can. Visit that independent shop. Buy from the local café. Support the businesses that support us.

You don’t know what you’ve got until it’s gone, but together we can keep Buckinghamshire thriving - one purchase at a time.

If you’re looking for a local business to visit, you can find thousands of them on the Buckinghamshire Business Directory.

Written by Philippa Batting, CEO, Buckinghamshire Business First