In small towns, businesses often form the backbone of the community, providing essential goods, services, and social hubs. However, the arrival of new competitors can sometimes feel like a threat to long-standing establishments. Instead of fearing competition, small-town business owners can learn to embrace it—and even thrive because of it.

Here’s how competition can be an asset and a motivator for growth rather than a cause for concern.

1. Competition Fuels Innovation

When businesses face competition, they are more likely to innovate. Whether it’s upgrading your products, improving customer service, or refining your operations, the presence of competitors can inspire you to stay ahead of the curve. For example:

• A local restaurant might experiment with seasonal menus or new cuisine styles.
• A retail shop could adopt e-commerce platforms to expand its reach.

Innovation keeps your business relevant and shows customers that you’re dedicated to meeting their needs.

2. Competition Expands the Market

In small towns, competition often increases overall consumer interest. When businesses cluster around similar industries, they create a magnet for customers. For example:

• A new boutique opening near your clothing store might attract more shoppers to the area, some of whom could become your customers.
• Multiple restaurants in a small town can turn it into a dining destination, benefiting everyone.

The key is to see competitors as partners in building a vibrant local economy rather than threats.

3. Collaboration Can Lead to Growth

In small towns, collaboration with competitors can result in mutual success. Consider these examples:

• Hosting joint events: Partnering with a competitor to host a farmers’ market or holiday fair can draw larger crowds than either of you could alone.
• Sharing resources: Pooling advertising budgets for collective campaigns can create greater visibility for all participating businesses.

Collaboration fosters goodwill and strengthens the sense of community that small towns are known for.

4. Competition Highlights Your Strengths

When competitors enter the scene, it’s an opportunity to identify and emphasize what makes your business unique. Ask yourself:

• What do I do better than anyone else?
• What aspects of my business are most appreciated by my customers?

Focus on your unique selling points (USPs) and lean into your brand’s story, whether it’s exceptional customer service, locally sourced products, or a deep connection to the community.

5. Customers Benefit, and So Do You

Healthy competition often leads to better options for customers, which, in turn, creates a more dynamic market. When businesses strive to improve their offerings:

• Customers are happier, leading to increased loyalty and word-of-mouth referrals.
• Businesses gain insights into customer preferences, which helps them adapt and grow.

A competitive environment keeps everyone on their toes, ensuring that your town remains an attractive place to shop and live.

6. Change the Mindset: Compete with Yourself

Rather than constantly comparing yourself to others, focus on self-improvement:

• Are you better today than you were a year ago?
• Have you achieved personal and professional growth?

By competing with yourself, you shift the focus to continuous improvement rather than fear of others’ success.

7. Build Relationships, Not Rivalries

In small towns, relationships matter. Even if you’re competing for the same customers, maintaining friendly relations with other business owners can open unexpected doors. Who knows? Your “competitor” today could become a collaborator, mentor, or even customer tomorrow.

Turning Fear into Opportunity

Competition is not a threat—it’s an opportunity to learn, adapt, and grow. By embracing competition, small-town business owners can ensure their long-term success while contributing to the overall prosperity of their community.

Instead of fearing the new bakery down the street or the tech-savvy startup next door, ask yourself: How can I stand out? How can we work together to make our town thrive? With the right mindset, competition becomes a driving force for progress, not a reason for anxiety.

Imagine if there were a store where all the items on the shelves were free—where you could get that toaster you’ve been needing, or a desk for your child, or a business suit, all without handing over a dime. Sounds unlikely, right? Well, in Fostoria, OH, and several other locations across the country, you can indeed go shopping without forking over any of your hard-earned cash.

The concept is called a “free store,” and it provides a unique way for people to responsibly get rid of things they no longer need by putting them into the hands of others who can use them, free of charge, in a way that also builds community. Sound good?

Free stores are popping up all around the world. From a box on a street corner where people can leave items they no longer want to an open-air market to an actual brick-and-mortar store, free stores can take many forms.

The Fostoria Free Store

Free stores don’t need fancy spaces—and some of them get quite creative. Opened in October of 2009, the free store in Portland, OR, operates out of a painted school bus in the southeast quadrant of the city.

Sarah’s Traded Treasures Facebook group is currently helping 25 individuals per week in the tri-county area. 80% of requests for help comes from Fostoria, 15% Tiffin, 5% Findlay. On average, Cooper receives 2-3 requests for food assistance per day in Fostoria.

“Last summer emptied my cupboards to give food to people. I was hungry at times.” – Cooper.

Since Fall of 2022 Sara has helped 900-1,000 people with clothing & food assistance. Although, kitchen, bathroom, toys, and household items are also donated on a regular basis. According to Sara there are several avid donors in the Traded Treasures group always passing items along for rehoming.

Beginnings of a Free Store Movement

The free-store movement began in the United States in the 1960s in San Francisco and experienced a resurgence during the global pandemic. All share a common philosophy: that there are more than enough goods to go around; scarcity should not be an issue.

“The purpose of a free store is for everyone to rethink their shopping habits, spending habits, and general addiction to ‘newer-bigger-better,’” says Bonnie Nordvedt, administrator of the Baltimore Free Store. “Our vision statement explains this a little more: ‘We envision communities forged through relationships based on mutual aid and cooperation. We use the distribution of free items as a catalyst for change and to demonstrate what can be done when communities work together.’”

Nordvedt began volunteering with the free store in 2007, when she was only 21, and ended up running the store shortly thereafter. Originally, a handful of volunteers collected and stored donations at a warehouse and then set up markets in different neighborhoods twice a month.

In 2010, the free store opened a new, permanent location. Sixty-three people came to donate items and about 150 came to shop during that grand opening. Now, about 25 active volunteers help Nordvedt run the store, which is financed mainly through grants.

The store has been given everything from the mundane to the luxurious. In addition to clothing and household items ranging from gently used to like new, Nordvedt says, “We get some interesting artwork. We’ve gotten pieces of jewelry and pottery that are worth a lot of money.”

Nordvedt and her team of volunteers either sell the valuable items to help support the store, or raffle them off to shoppers so that everyone has a fair chance of getting the item. Everything else, from shirts and jackets to toys and furniture, is free.

Free Stores are a Service to the Community

Free store operators across the country have noted that the model works well; people don’t seem to greedily take everything they can get their hands on. Instead, they tend to walk away with a handful of items that they truly need, leaving the rest for others.

Perhaps that’s due to an overall mindfulness that free stores can be of particular help to low income families. Ben Aubin, founder and owner of the Portland Free Store, recalls how his store was able to help a woman who had recently found a room to rent after a bout of homelessness but had no furniture. She came to the store looking for an air mattress, but left empty-handed. The next day, a community member donated two air mattresses, and the store notified the woman immediately.

“She was fighting to hold back the tears,” says Aubin. “[She said] it restored her faith in humanity.”

However, Nordvedt wants people to know that free stores are for everyone, regardless of income.

“We have seen a lot of people who think the free items are just for those who can’t otherwise afford them,” she says. “While that is definitely a part of why we do this, it is not the main reason. We want to bring people together, not continue to segregate them into the ‘haves’ and the ‘have-nots.’ Every single person should be reusing, repurposing, giving, and taking.”

The Really Really Free Market

A similar idea to a free store is a Really Really Free Market, which offer free services as well as goods. In addition to picking up a used paperback you’ve been meaning to read or a pair of hiking boots you need, you might also be able to get your hair cut, your laptop fixed, or your child’s face painted. These markets are mostly outdoors and are often one-day events.

The first Really Really Free Markets took place in Miami, FL, and Raleigh, NC, in 2004 as part of anti-globalization protests against the Free Trade Agreement of the Americas (FTAA). They were meant to be a “positive” outcome—what the groups stand for, rather than what they were against. In the years since, Really Really Free Markets have sprung up in dozens of cities across the country.

Start Your Own!

Here are some tips to start your own free store, Really Really Free Market, or swap:

• Find a location. Finding a central location where everyone will feel comfortable, such as a community center, house of worship, school yard, public park, or empty city lot. You might have to pay a permit fee to hold them in city-owned lots, but you can creatively fundraise to cover the cost.
• Attract volunteers. Colleges and universities are great recruiting grounds for volunteers. Don’t be afraid to approach religious congregations, given that many houses of worship focus on helping the poor. And reach out to any local groups that support the creation of an economy based on sharing and reuse, such as BuyNothing groups, Free Pantry organizers, and FreeCycle communities.
• Advertise in the community. Passing out flyers and hanging posters is a good start, but also visit your neighbors personally and canvass local apartment buildings. Hang banners at major intersections and in community hangouts like libraries and fitness centers. Consider printing materials in more than one language to help non-English speakers.
• Get items to “sell.” Post “wanted” notices in every local gathering place, from libraries to supermarkets to local shops. Take advantage of the changing seasons when many people are cleaning out their closets and drawers preparing to make room for their summer or winter clothes. Offer to pick up items or have one drop-off location to make it easy for people to donate their stuff. You might even accept drop-offs on the same day as the market. Make sure the goods you are “selling” are of good quality. New York’s Really Really Free Market has a group of volunteers to screen items.
• Attract attention. If your market is going to be outdoors, ask volunteers to set up activities and entertainment that may pique the interest of passersby. Music, dancing, juggling, activities for children— you’d be surprised at the talents that people in your community can showcase. You might also ask volunteers to make deliveries by bike or have someone on standby who can deliver large items in a van.
• Have a plan for leftover items. Talk to your local Goodwill or charity shop in advance to see if it would like leftover donations. Or, volunteers may be willing to store items for the next market.

Give It Away, Give It Away Now

Even if it’s just a one-time event, a free store or swap can bring community members together in a unique way, while giving unwanted items a second life. Consider holding your own—the rewards may surprise you.