Our History
Local First Arizona launches the Shift Arizona campaign in 2010
In 2003, Kimber Lanning was moved to action by two observations.
First, she saw too many bright young people leaving Arizona for more
vibrant cities like Austin and Portland. An Arizona native, she wanted to
inspire others to stay in state to help build a sense of place and
hometown pride. She knew that local stores and restaurants created the
kind of unique character that made people want to stay, so she set out to
elevate all the great independently owned businesses throughout
the state.
Secondly, she made note of the massive subsidies that were being used
to attract chain stores and the economic void they created. They were a
raw deal for Arizona’s communities and she wanted to see more attention
and resources supporting the state’s home grown companies.
She believed that these locally owned businesses kept more dollars and
jobs right here at home, especially when you factor in the multiplier
effect that happens when the local company hires local graphic designers, website developers or accounts, whereas their chain store competitors do not.
So she got to work, conducting an independent study interviewing over 50 people who had relocated to Phoenix from Chicago, arguably a town with more community pride than any other. What she learned underscored her initial instinct, people love Chicago because of the locally owned businesses.
They loved Chicago because of the chefs and restaurants; the unique neighborhoods, each with distinct flavor and unique shops; and because they knew the owners of their neighborhood businesses. Or, that they’d gone to the same barber for 20 years or banked at the same bank as their great grandparents.
But it all came back to local businesses and feeling rooted in the community.
Now that person has moved from Chicago to Phoenix and their sense of place is gone. They don’t know how to find the locals and it never occurs to them to look. They eat at chain restaurants, shop at big box stores, and get their hair cut by whoever is at the national cutters that week. Their ‘localist’ mentality is out the window. They live here but don’t feel connected.
Kimber had identified the problem. Local First Arizona was her solution - a nonprofit organization committed to connecting people, locally-owned businesses, and communities for meaningful actions that build a diverse, inclusive and prosperous Arizona economy.
Timeline
Local First Arizona's leadership has transformed Arizona's local economy in a drastic way. Local First is now the largest locally owned business coalition in North America with nearly 3,500 business members. The business directory she and her team created gets searched uniquely more than 18,000 times per month on average. Local First has 255,000 social media followers and newsletters that reach 25,000 people each week. But most importantly, communities across Arizona are seeing increased rates of prosperity thanks to the success of local businesses.
2002
First economic study was done by Civic Economics in Austin, which measured the economic impact of a local bookstore and record shop vs a Borders which had received massive incentives (using taxpayer money) to move in across the street. The study showed for the first time that three times more money stays in the local economy when a customer chooses a locally owned business.
2003
Kimber Lanning called two friends - Cindy Dach of Changing Hands Bookstore, and Michael Monti of Monti’s La Casa Vieja - and began discussing strategies to bring locals together and level the playing field for locally owned businesses. Using the phone book for their outreach, several hundred businesses were recruited to be the earliest Local First Arizona (initially called Arizona Chain Reaction) members.
2004
A website was built to showcase members, and the first Small Wonders maps were printed, highlighting cool neighborhoods and the unique businesses that made them shine. Local First participates in National Independent’s Week for the first time, and shines a light on a weeklong celebration of locally owned businesses. The coalition surges to 800 business members..
2005
The first Certified Local Fall Festival (now called Arizona Fall Fest) launches with 27 businesses and 2,500 attendees. The Festival is billed as a ‘Day to Celebrate Arizona’ to build hometown pride that connectspeople to their place, or home.
Local First partners with Wist Office Supplies to do its first economic study, focused on the state of Arizona’s $5M office supply contract. Local First proves the state was losing $500,000 per year in economic leakage by awarding a contract to a company that didn’t bring value to Arizona
2006
Local First Arizona secures its 501c6 nonprofit status and Kimber is named Executive Director. The first Board of Directors is formed with several local business owners and leaders including Cindy Dach of Changing Hands Bookstore, Tod Mettler of Duck and Decanter, Howard Fleishmann of Community Tire and Auto, Stacy Bertinelli of NPR Radio, Jeff Williamson of the Phoenix Zoo, and Clint Hickman of Hickman’s Family Farms.
2007
In an attempt to strengthen the Arizona economy by diversifying its supply chains, Local First introduces its first bill to the Arizona Senate, focused on updating the purchasing process for the state. While it doesn’t pass, it attracts the attention of many Arizona institutions which pledged to change their purchasing to focus more on growing Arizona vendors to build economic resiliency for the state.
2009
Local First Arizona secures its 501c3 nonprofit status and hires its first two full-time employees.
The Devour Coalition is formed to highlight Arizona’s culinary scene and introduces the Devour Culinary Classic.
Local First introduces its second Senate Bill, proposing to change the procurement process for the state of Arizona. The Bill passes the House but fails to be heard in the Senate.
2008
Local First opens an office in Tucson, hiring a part-time person to grow membership in the area to strengthen local business voices and influence local economic policy.
2010
Kimber is appointed by then-Mayor Phil Gordon to the Development Advisory Board for the City of Phoenix and begins working on policies related to building code and the Adaptive Reuse of Existing Buildings.
2011
Good Food Finder website is launched, expanding Local First’s reach into local agriculture in order to build relations between chefs and farmers while elevating farmers markets and healthy food access.
2012
Local First launches the statewide campaign ‘Shift the Way you Shop’. With help from Arizona-based advertising and PR agency EB Lane, the Phoenix light rail was transformed into a moving ad encouraging local buying and a press conference convened five regional Mayors to talk about their commitment to Arizona companies.
The Knight Foundation’s “Soul of the Community" study identifies a significant correlation between “connection to place” and economic growth- something Local First had been elevating for eight years.
2013
Local First Arizona becomes the first business organization to sign ONE Community's UNITY Pledge to advance workplace equality and equal treatment in housing and public accommodations for LGBTQ+ individuals and their allies.
Fuerza Local, the state’s first Spanish language business accelerator, is launched with a savings program aimed at helping participants earn a credit score and enter mainstream banking.
Local First merges with the Arizona Rural Development Council, and takes over the annual Rural Policy Forum. Previously hosted in Phoenix, Local First immediately announces the forum will be in rural Arizona going forward with Globe-Miami as the first location.
2014
The annual Move your Money campaign is launched encouraging folks to shift their banking deposits from global banks to local banks and credit unions where local control improves lending opportunities for Arizona’s small businesses.
2015
Source AZ, a program to develop local supply chains for Arizona’s large companies and anchor institutions, is launched. The initiative aims to keep local dollars recirculating in the state’s economy, fostering economic growth and creating more Arizona jobs.
2016
Local First shapes and launches a Green Business Certification Program to elevate environmentally focused small businesses.
FOR(u)M, a program aimed at the Development Community in the urban areas of Phoenix, Tempe and Mesa, is launched urging developments that are focused on sustainable transit, affordability, and community health.
2017
Local First opens its first Community Kitchen at the El Rancho del Sol affordable housing development in Mesa. The kitchen incubates food entrepreneurs, acts as a food pantry, and trains kids and families about cooking and nutrition.
A micro-loan fund is launched in Graham and Greenlee Counties to offer low-interest micro-loans to small businesses to help them stay competitive. Arizona now has 8 counties with no local banking options and little small business lending. The loans instigate small business expansion that immediately creates 14 new jobs.
2018
The pilot is launched for Local First’s Green Business Boot Camp, a program aimed at developing small business projects that lower environmental impacts. Planning begins for the launch of a green loan fund to support more projects.
2019
Local First becomes the Fiscal Sponsor for the Native Women Entrepreneurs of Arizona, a group of women representing 16 Tribes. This opens doors for partnership and begins the intentional work of launching the Local First’s Tribal Community Connections work.
2020
During the COVID crisis, Local First is tapped to distribute small business relief aid throughout Arizona, ultimately disturbing more than $52M in aid to small business owners across every county.
Local First Arizona launches the We Rise Business Accelerator offering business education and mentorship for Black entrepreneurs.
2021
Local First Arizona’s Economic Recovery Center is launched to enable more qualified Arizona cities, towns, counties, Tribal communities and nonprofits to win competitive federal, state and foundation grants – surpassing $4.6 million in secured grants in its first six months.
Local First acquires Keep Arizona Beautiful, a program implementing community cleanups through thoughtful collaborations that keep the state’s natural landscapes clean.
The kitchen incubator program expands to meet the needs of South Phoenix with the opening of Local First’s second community kitchen at the Brooks Academy, a defunct elementary school serving as a non-profit campus.
Local First creates and produces the Good Food film series, an effort to address the challenges and inequities in Arizona’s local food system, highlight how we grow and process the food we eat and explore how the climate will change the future of food.
Feed Phoenix, a collaboration between Local First Arizona and City of Phoenix, deploys the city’s ARPA funding to pair local farms with restaurants that prepare healthy meals with Phoenix-grown produce to serve COVID-impacted residents. Facilitated by Local First, the program saves 13 farms and 45 restaurants with a weekly cash injection, protecting more than 200 jobs and serving more than 400,000 healthy meals.
Local First hires first ever Development Director to focus on individual giving and donor cultivation.
2022
Local First launches the Northern Arizona Good Jobs Network. More than 40 organizations across five northern Arizona counties partner to improve economic opportunities for employers and job seekers alike.
The Fuerza Local Business Accelerator graduates its first Spanish-prefered class in rural Arizona. Focused on the Verde Valley, graduates include locally owned businesses in Cottonwood, Sedona and Camp Verde.
Expands green business programs across rural Arizona, including the Green Business Boot Camp into the Verde Valley.
“Rural Areas in Transition: Meeting Challenges and Making Opportunities,” a book outlining innovative efforts to increase community resilience and economic opportunity across rural America, is published featuring chapter by Local First Founder and CEO Kimber Lanning about building a rural entrepreneurial ecosystem based on 15 years of successful economic development experience in rural Arizona.
Local First’s AZNavigator helps nearly 2,000 small businesses from under-resourced communities achieve their goals in the program’s first full year. The partnership between 10 nonprofits — including StartUp Tucson, U.S.VETS Prescott, the Arizona Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, StartUp Unidos, and One Community — assisted more than 60 military veterans, 200 rural entrepreneurs, 560 entrepreneurs of color and 800 women business owners.
The Local First led Coalition for Farmland Preservation – in collaboration with the City of Phoenix, Central Arizona Land Trust, and other partners – successfully creates a first-of-its-kind urban agricultural conservation easement to prevent residential development of Maya’s Farm and preserve the urban farmland.
Local First launches the state’s first Green Loan Fund, in partnership with Vitalyst Health Foundation and Growth Partners AZ, offering up to $25,000 in financing at 3% interest for sustainability projects that reduce energy and water usage by at least 20%. Loan amounts are based on the businesses’ projected monthly savings, thereby eliminating any need to disrupt cashflow.
2023
Arizona Governor Hobbs proclaims November 4 “Local First Arizona Day” in recognition of 20 years of service to the state.
Local First is now capable of serving more than 3,300 small businesses per year with 1:1 technical assistance and business education, including incubators, accelerators, boot camps and a digital Local Learning Lab providing on-demand resources.
Local First expands staff in Tucson, the Verde Valley and Flagstaff.
Starts a retail incubator at Proper Shops in Tucson by securing short-term, special-rate leases that allow early-stage businesses to test their products.
Hosts the first We Rise Demo Day pitch competition offering $17,500 in seed money to past We Rise graduates courtesy of Growth Partners Arizona.
Local First opens two new community kitchens in Maryvale and Eastlake Phoenix. Each kitchen incubates between 20-25 food entrepreneurs in under-resourced areas.
Local First Arizona teams up with the University of Arizona, Tucson City of Gastronomy and the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum to form the Arizona Alliance for Climate-Smart Food Crops, a three-year USDA project to help farmers reduce water consumption and carbon emissions by transitioning to regenerative, organic conservation practices and climate-smart crop varieties. The Organic Trade Association will connect buyers from across the country to purchase the climate-smart foods produced by the farmers.
Local First collaborates with Arizona-based SOURCE Global to deliver cutting-edge hydro panels at no cost to more than 3,400 people across Tribal Arizona who lack access to reliable water sources or clean drinking water. The panels produce up to 10 gallons of clean water per day.
In partnership with the composting company R. City and the City of Tempe, Local First develops the Tempe Circular Economy program – converting waste regenerated by participants into compost that is used to grow fruits and vegetables that restaurants then purchase. In one month, Cocina Chiwas diverted nearly 1.5 tons of food scraps, generating 900 pounds of compost.
Celebrates 1,000 Fuerza Local Business Accelerator graduates and $1M directly invested into the program participants.
2024
Now, with more than 60 full time staff, Local First continues to expand with team members in Yuma, Safford and San Carlos Apache.
Aiming to increase access to capital and financial power, additional loan funds are launched, including the Rooted Relative Fund, which provides character-based low interest loans to Indigenous entrepreneurs.
Local First spearheads the Southwest Regional Food Business Center for the state. The USDA-funded Center includes the Arizona Department of Agriculture and the University of Arizona ag-extension. Along with 8 subcontractors, Local First embarks on a journey to deliver technical assistance and connection to markets for small and mid-sized farms across Arizona. Additionally, the Good Food Fund takes shape to offer much needed capital to support food processing and distribution that will expand opportunities for locally grown foods to reach diverse markets.
Local First launches the Rural Energy for America Program (REAP), assisting small businesses with the process of securing funding through rebates and low-interest loans to implement clean energy and energy efficiency projects.
