This winter, the Love Launnie Shopping Passport invited locals to make purchases at 100 CBD retailers throughout May and June for a chance to win prizes. Choosing to support local has had a measurable positive impact. Presented by Launceston Central, a not-for-profit organisation funded by City of Launceston to promote local businesses and events, the Shopping Passport was designed to incentivise and reward shoppers for choosing to shop local. Over the course of the promotion, 2,976 entries were submitted, showing $369,103 in purchases logged through the Shopping Passport. Launceston Central selected eight weekly winners, plus one grand prize winner who received a $2,500 shopping spree in the CBD.

Grand prize winner Sharon H. is a Burnie local who entered the competition after making a qualifying purchase from Petrarch’s Bookshop at 89 Brisbane Street. “When I visit Launceston, I always try to support local. We come into Launnie for the football, and always visit the local stores,” she said upon learning she was the grand prize winner. Sharon wasn’t the only consumer from outside of Launceston to use the Shopping Passport. Data from entries revealed that residents from every postcode in Tasmania, and from every Australian state and territory, joined the competition. “The target audience for Love Launnie was the locals, but as entries rolled in, we quickly learned that visitors like to support local too,” says Gab Dicarlantonio, Chief Executive Officer of Launceston Central.