Caroline Weaver, creator of the Locavore Guide, says shopping local ensures a future for cultures and communities. On a June afternoon, she helped a new Brooklyn resident find essentials like dinnerware and an air conditioner at Manhattan stores.
Why shopping local matters
Weaver, who has run local stores since 2014, started the Locavore Guide in 2023 to help New Yorkers find independent shops. She noted that TikTok often repeats the same 20 recommendations, and she wanted a wider, unbiased range. “A lot of people treat shops as something nice to walk past, but those shops can’t exist if we’re not patronizing them,” she said.
Finding everyday items
The first stop was S Feldman Housewares on the Upper East Side, operating since 1929. It sells chandelier cleaner and silver polish, but also everyday items like food storage containers and drinking glasses. Prices were slightly higher than online, but Weaver said “it all evens out” because local stores don’t use algorithmic pricing. They also offer actual customer service: shopkeepers can order items for free if not in stock.
Next was Nuthouse, New York’s only 24-hour hardware store, where the shopper bought kitchen tools and painter’s tape. At Fishs Eddy, a home goods store, she purchased two plates and a set of cutlery, plus a martini glass for an inaugural apartment drink.
Custom orders and community
The final stop was Win Depot, a SoHo restaurant supply store, where manager Cindy Loo helped customize a stainless steel worktable to precise measurements. When the table arrived and fit perfectly, Loo shared the shopper’s excitement. Weaver has seen small businesses struggle with tariffs, rising rents, and post-Covid online shopping defaults.
Boycotts of large online retailers have grown due to low worker pay, union suppression, and CEO pay. “If you have the means and privilege to choose where you buy goods, it is our social and civic responsibility to think from an ethics perspective,” Weaver said. “Shopping local ensures a future for our culture and communities.”
Friction-maxxing and fulfillment
The shopper reflected on the concept of “friction-maxxing,” intentionally choosing inconvenience. While ordering online would have been easier, she met Cindy and explored new neighborhoods, making her excited to call New York home. The experience highlighted the value of local shopping beyond transactions.
