That's the message behind Isle of Man Newspapers' Island United campaign, which was launched on Friday.

In the wake of the UK's raid on our VAT revenues, our campaign encourages consumers to help keep Manx money in the Manx economy and protect local jobs in the process.

We are warning consumers that if less money is circulating in the Isle of Man, there will be less money going for public services, which will lead to either tax rises or cuts to services.

The first sector we are looking at as part of our campaign is retail, which traditionally enjoys its busiest time of the year during the festive season.

Reporter Fergus McEwan asked shoppers in Strand Street, Douglas — the centre of shopping in the Island — where they spend their money and what they thought about the aims of our campaign

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Sarah Quine, 16, from Tromode, Grace Brown, 17, from Union Mills and Sammy Quinn, 16, from Willaston

'We usually shop across or online, although we'll buy stuff here if we're in a hurry. There's just not enough good shops, especially for people our age. We go away quite often to gigs but we'll pick up things while we're there because we can go to better shops and there's a lot more choice.
'People our age are really not affected by the economy so I don't think what's happening will make them spend more in the Island.
'It doesn't mean there's any better stuff to buy.'

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Gareth Leece, 21 of Union Mills and Terry Halpin, 18, of Douglas
GL: 'I do most of my shopping here because it's so expensive going away to do it. I know I can find things cheaper and more easily online but I actually like going round the shops.'
TH: 'Shopping online is really anti-social. I'd rather shop with friends, it's much more fun because you can go for a coffee afterwards and compare what you've all bought.'
GL: 'I think it's important to keep local businesses going, especially in light of the VAT crisis. There's precious little shopping here anyway, so we've got to protect it.'
TH: 'If it helps the economy then I'm happy to keep shopping in the Island.'

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Peter, 68, and Andrea, 61, Lawler, from Onchan

'We always try to buy locally because we live here and we want to support the Island. It would be nice to see more Manx meat and veg in the shops because there's not enough. When you look at farmers' markets across on TV, it makes you think "what are we missing?'' You used to be able to buy sheeps' heads and pigs' trotters, but you can't any more. It's important to support the economy, but those on limited incomes will shop where they can get the best deals. It's not just competition from across and online that's the problem. There's not as much choice here and the quality of goods sold locally is not as good. Plus, the overheads are too high for businesses to operate. Strand Street is becoming a charity shop area.'

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Andy Isaac, 17, from Douglas and Fay Latham, 17, from Douglas

AI: 'I shop in the Island because it's easier to walk to the shops and have a look around, but your options are limited here and you're bound to see someone wearing the same thing.'
FL: 'Our Topshop is small so you do see girls in the same clothes. But it's easier to take items back and swap them in a shop than it is if you bought them on the internet.'
AI: 'I think it's a good idea to get more people shopping in the Island to help the economy.'
FL: 'But people won't buy stuff just because it's here — local shops need to offer a wider selection to get more customers in.'
AI: 'I buy from a shop that orders items in from across for me. I don't know why other shops don't do that.'

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Oli Bennett, 21, of Douglas and Scott Smith , 22, of Onchan

SS: 'I buy clothes across or online because there's much less chance of seeing someone else wearing the same thing. I just bought something on HMV's website for £6.99 that costs £17 in the shop. I want to support local shops, but when there's that much of a difference I'm going to shop online. If the economic climate was better and people had more disposable income, then I think they would spend an extra couple of pounds buying here. But it's dog-eat-dog right now.'
OB: 'People moan about the lack of shopping, but they don't shop enough to attract new businesses. Shoppers like bargains, so shops need to match prices online and across. Everyone buys the same stuff here, but there's more choice across. Money you save shopping makes up for the cost of the travel, plus you get a day trip out of it.'

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Janet Clarkson, 36, from Mount Murray and Linda Taubman, 59, from Douglas

JC: 'I spend mainly in the Island, but there are some things I cannot get here, so I look online.
'I can understand why people choose to buy on the internet because it can be cheaper.
'But I try to support the local community and businesses here because I think it's important to protect jobs and boost the economy.
LT: 'I'll always try to find something here first, to support the economy, before I look online.
'I don't work full-time so I have the opportunity to go shopping, but I could see the benefit of online shopping for someone who works six days a week. Even if people made limited changes to their shopping habits, for example spending half here and half online, I think it would still make a big difference to the economy.'

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WHAT DO YOU THINK?
Send your comments to newsviews@newsiom.co.im

YOUR COMMENTS

People saying "shop local" and "don't buy online this Christmas" obviously have a lot more disposable income than I do! Why on earth would anyone spend up to 40% more on the same product they can have delivered to their door (often for free or a very minimal charge).
If local shops want to encourage more people to purchase items locally, perhaps they should reduce their costs and stop ripping off the general public. Money is tight for families right now, people are being laid off. We need to save where we can, and if that means my money goes off island to keep more money in the bank for my family, then overcharging local businesses can whistle as far as I am concerned. Plus, the choice over here is usually pretty poor anyway!
IT GUY

@ IT GUY: well said!!!!!
AS

Simple problem here is that Manx customer service is shocking. People are happy to spend more time and money when they feel welcome. Sort out your service = people spend more
PS

Perhaps IT GUY would be good enough to let us all know which product he can get 40% off rather than buying locally as it might be something we are all looking for!
JOHN

As much as I would like to support the Manx Economy, I just can't afford to! I'm a full time working Mum and need to save every penny I can. I went into Waterstones to buy a book as a christmas present the other day and it was £18.99, I then went home and got it for £9.99 with free p&p on-line! If I can save that kind of money, I will. The Island will have to up it's game when it comes to prices and choice. If I'm looking for an outfit for a night out, I'm going to get something cheaper and that no-one else has on-line! It's a shame but reality!
HAYLEY, Castletown

Hi John – I'm not IT guy but I bought a digital camera 45% cheaper online from a well known U.K. electrical store, compared to a well known local camera shop in the middle of Strand street. I'll buy local if local shops are realistic and customer service improves.
M.M.

Oh, another thing! The irony of the Govt asking us to spend our money locally, yet we paid a UK company to design the "shopiom" website when many manx businesses could have done it for 10% of the price and done a damn site better job as well. The stench of government hypocrisy burns my nostrils.
IT GUY

The problem with shopping local is the price,limited choice and customer service.I presume the prices are so high because of high rental the shops have to pay to greedy landlords.Also alot of the stuff in shops over here seems to be the cast offs from the mainland shops and the generally the customer service is shocking.I recently asked a assistant if they were getting a certain toy in befor christmas and she told me she weren't sure.She told me to come back next week and I might be in then, well thats not good enough so i just went home and ordered it online with a 2 day delivery date. The world of the high street is changing fast, with online shopping and blocking the likes of tesco wanting to expand to give us more choice is good for the island, not bad. You can't force people to shop local and penilising shops for expanding because it may effect smaller stores is unfair.
LIAM

Christmas shopping done & dusted at home within an hour by shopping online just this weekend gone by. All without leaving the comfort of my own home and saving money in the process. Widely known fact that local is 9 times out of 10 more expensive than online due to less over heads.
So why bother? Perhaps they could reduce the rent on Strand Street stores which might enable them to sell to us cheaper? Only time I shop local is for groceries (thanks Tesco), Cards or something I want right now.
LEE

I buy pretty much everything I can online. The biggest drawback for me is the condition of the shops on the Island. Strand Street is an eye-sore, the shops are generally in an awful condition and the service in the service driven establishments (e.g. coffee and sandwich shops) is appalling. Douglas is currently in need of desperate development. I agree with all of the above comments in that you can save over 50% on many goods by purchasing online. Given the highly inflated prices on the Island, I would like to see more investment from the shops and Government to make local shopping a more modern and customer friendly experience. Until that happens, my VAT will be going to the UK government.
LOCAL

As a local retail business owner (not in Strand Street) I feel it is very unfair to generalise about the prices and customer service of every local shop. I feel our team strive to give exceptional and personal customer service and we regularly check that our prices are no more expensive than UK shops selling the same product and that very often includes us swallowing the ridiculously expensive transport costs onto the island. Aftercare is paramount to our continued success as we feel if customers have been loyal enough to buy with us then the very least they can expect is for us to promise to correct anything that may go wrong with anything they purchase from us. I have heard many sad tales from people who have bought similar goods off-island and have received absolutely no backup whatsoever. If we all shop online assuming wrongly that everything on the island is over priced then we will end up with the choice we deserve!
LOCAL SHOP OWNER

Further to previous comments about price savings online v local....try this one for size....Samsung 46 inch LCD TV....local price: 1199....Amazon price £797.....same model & free delivery to Isle of Man. Ordered on Thursday evening 3/12/09 and received Tuesday 8/12/09 morning. Same guarantee as local etc etc etc....I would love to buy local for 'major' purchases....just cant afford it.
PHIL, Laxey

If you don't use it, lose it! The sad state of shops on Strand Street is destined to become even worse as more an more people shop online. The comments about there being little choice are true and I don't know what the solution is. In the current climate it is important to try and keep money on Island as the knock on effect is catastropic! More shops closing, more redundancies and even less choice for the consumer! I do try and buy local but it does come down to cost and choice, especially at Christmas when the purse strings are tight! There are some lovely shops around the Island - Shakti Man in Ramsey is great for gifts, infact there are quite a lot of gift shops in Ramsey to choose from (living in Douglas it's a bit of a trek!!!). But trying to find an outfit for a night out - nigh on impossible! As I said before I don't know what the solution is but hope that in a few years time we still have high street shopping and that the only way to buy things is not sat at home on the computer!
NH