No matter what community you live in, shopping local has never been more important than it is this year.

Whether you prefer retail gift cards, or you love to buy handmade artisan wares, Weyburn has everything to offer those who want to buy local.

The Weyburn Arts Council's Gifted holiday art sale has gone completely virtual this year. Local artist Regan Lanning is one of the vendors participating in this year's sale.

"2020 has shown us that local is what matters," Lanning stated. "It's great to have a wealth of opportunities available online, but we need our local businesses, and we need to be supporting them right now if we're going to be able to keep them in the future."

She said local creators appreciate you buying that mug from them.

"It's not going into the pot of millions as it does if you buy from Amazon," she said. "It means you're helping a person feed their kids."

"Every time you buy local from a local artist, that money goes directly back into the local economy, because artists eat food, and we pay rent, and we do all the things that normal people do. This is just how we afford to do them."

"So find your local creatives and support them, because there are some amazing local artists."

Twila Walkeden, Executive Director with the Weyburn Chamber of Commerce, said Gifted is one example of how trade shows have morphed in 2020 to adapt to the times.

"I really appreciate the work that went into [Gifted], because you don't necessarily need to have a storefront in order to be a small business in Weyburn, and there's a lot of very talented artisans," she echoed.

"I know, personally, I love getting gifts that have a story to tell, or that are handmade," Walkeden shared. "I think that that's a real valuable thing to remember, especially at this time of year, is that someone's heart and soul went into that item that you were just gifted, and it means so much."

She said there's nothing like word of mouth marketing.

"If I have purchased something that I love from a local artisan, I put it on [my] social media page, tag those people, because really, that is the simplest form of marketing and it's word of mouth," Walkeden said.

"I trust someone's opinion of something, and if I'm going to recommend a product or a service, I don't do that lightly, I do it because I believe in it, and I think other people are going to get value in it."

She said word of mouth advertising is the highest form of marketing, and people in Weyburn should be aware of what's available.

"You know, whether it's someone that's got a side business, or a multi-level marketing business, or is a painter, or an artist, or a poet."

"Just walk through the Open Air Market on a Saturday, right? You look at the amount of vendors there, and the unique things, and everything from masks to pottery and everything in between," she mused.

"Let's support everyone during this season. But it's not just Christmas. It's 365 days of the year."

In addition to the handmade local options, there are also plenty of retailers in Weyburn whose goal is to ensure Weyburn does have it all, and that you can easily check off every name on your list for holiday shopping, while also supporting your neighbours and friends.

Find more details about the Gifted sale HERE.