Cumberland’s Green Grocer, Seeds Food Market, received an extra boost in spirit and cash on Oct. 30 when community members gathered and organized a ‘cash mob.’
A relatively new trend, a cash mob is when a group of people intentionally assemble at a local business to make purchases. The purpose is to support local businesses and the community. They are like a flash mob, but instead of singing and dancing, the community spends money as a group.
The spark for the event came when community members noticed prolonged construction was affecting the store. The road in front of Seeds has been under construction since the beginning of August, a project that went six weeks over schedule, and created road and sidewalk closures that affected access.
“We were completely overwhelmed with this,” says Seeds owner Tina Willard-Stepan. “We’ve been feeling pretty challenged over the past 2 ½ months and to have the community come out and show their support was very emotional. Cumberland is an extraordinary place.
“This is a pretty tight business community. Events like this really raise awareness about the importance of shopping locally and the impact this kind of focused spending can make.”
Cash mobs are intended for local economic stimulus, an issue near and dear to many Comox Valley residents.
Seeds Food Market is located at Third and Dunsmuir in Cumberland.
