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Carlos Aulestia, owner of Toy Kingdom in Rockville Town Square, embraces the city's "buy local" campaign that began late last year.

His fellow merchant across the street, Deborah Simon, owner of The Waygoose fine crafts gallery, which also has a shop in Bethesda, has yet to sign up as a paid sponsor. She cited the extra cost — $25 for individuals who want to sponsor the program and starting at $250 for businesses with fewer than 10 employees — while saying the initiative is a bit too narrowly focused for her company's needs.

As similar buy local campaigns spread throughout Maryland and the nation, with advocates saying they can help retailers who are struggling to survive during continued sour economic times, the two Rockville merchants' differences underscore a lingering challenge of such programs.

Despite the recession, Rockville's campaign hasn't had too much trouble raising $28,000 in the community to match the city's contribution this year, said Jeff Miller, board president of the Rockville Chamber of Commerce and president of the Coalition to Preserve Rockville Neighborhood Businesses. That coalition, comprising business people, property owners, city officials and residents, oversees the Buy Rockville program. The group has raised some $33,000 from private sources, and the campaign is up to 68 paid sponsors, he said.

"We've had fantastic support," said Miller, who owns a Rockville Action Coach franchise. "In the beginning, we had less of a presence. But since we got the Web site up in June, that has been one of the deliverables we can bring forth. For a relatively small contribution, a business can benefit from a $60,000 marketing campaign."

Other Maryland communities, including Annapolis, Baltimore, Frederick, Silver Spring and Wheaton — have launched similar programs in recent years, or plan to. Campaigns in Silver Spring and Wheaton are managed by the nonprofit Latino Economic Development Corp., whose mission includes aiding small businesses.

Buy local a trend

Such campaigns are useful to retailers, said Janet Wagner, associate chairwoman of marketing and an associate professor at the University of Maryland, College Park.

"However, retailers have to be sensitive to the fact that buy local is a trend," Wagner said. "When it's time, they have to be ready to move on to the next trend."

While advocates cite studies that point to concrete financial benefits for merchants, the jury is likely still out on just how helpful the programs are, said Thomas S. Saquella, president of the Maryland Retailers Association, which supports the local campaigns.

"A number of them popped up last holiday season," Saquella said. "Most of them are an attempt by chambers of commerce and other business groups to help local merchants in a tough situation. … Rockville has one of the more ambitious ones that I am aware of."

Some in the buy local movement view it as a campaign against big-box retailers such as Wal-Mart, though most steer clear of mentioning the big boys. Others note that the campaigns can backfire and prompt out-of-towners to stop frequenting stores in a buy local community.

Taking a broader view

The Waygoose owner Simon said she likes the broader focus of The 3/50 Project, a national initiative begun early this year by Minneapolis retail consultant Cinda Baxter. That program encourages shoppers to pick three independently owned businesses and spend $50 a month at them.

"It's been growing by leaps and bounds," Simon said, noting that it is free to join the program.

The Buy Rockville campaign is free to join and be listed in the directory, said Charles Maier, a partner of Maier & Warner Public Relations. The Rockville firm was hired to direct the program's marketing and creative components, which include not just media advertising and the Internet site, but ads on buses, street banners and marketing at festivals. The Waygoose is among more than 800 retailers, restaurants and other businesses listed on the campaign's extensive Web directory.

But advertising in Rockville is like preaching to the choir, Simon said. A better slogan would be "Celebrate Rockville," she said.

"Alexandria, Virginia, has a very active campaign, but they are not advertising much in Alexandria," Simon said. "People who live there are already sold on it."

The Waygoose started on Washington Street in downtown Rockville in 1993, but closed in 2004 to make way for the Rockville Town Square development. Simon moved the store to Bethesda and reopened another store in Rockville in 2007. But the Bethesda site has done better than the Rockville store, she said.

Gaining support for Buy Rockville among merchants has been easier than Eric Siegel thought it would be. Siegel is executive vice president of The Cohen Cos. and has helped solicit sponsors. His company owns Phillips Seafood Restaurant and The Legacy Hotel & Meeting Centre, both paid sponsors.

"We've been seeing a good impact," Siegel said.

The Rockville campaign has spurred local contacting opportunities among supporters, Miller said. Rockville Printing & Graphics, a founding member of Buy Rockville, provided the campaign with discounted printed services, and other members started giving the printer more business, Maier said. One business switched from its usual out-of-state printer to the local company and saved money, he said.

"It's helped create an environment where more Rockville businesses are getting orders from other Rockville businesses," Miller said.

This report originally appeared in The Business Gazette.