Throughout 2009 scores of people will rate businesses on CitySquares.com and we invite you to rate your favorite destinations! Each season there will be a different All Star campaign, with Beauty & Wellness being the first, Dining & Entertainment being the second and Shopping starting in October.

Whether it’s the bicycle shop who helped you find some new wheels, or that local clothing retailer around the corner who had the perfect jacket, this is your chance to say thanks and give them some recognition. All Star winners will be picked according to your votes, there are no editorial picks. And hey, while you’re at it, why not share your experiences with these businesses as well? To add your review simply create a free CitySquares.com user account and add as many reviews as you’d like.

Thank you for supporting your local community on CitySquares.com!

CitySquares’ customer, Model Ace Hardware in Allston, MA is celebrating their 50th Anniversary of family ownership! Owner, Bob Webber grew up in the Allston/ Brighton area and remains a staple in the community not only through owning a local business but also through his involvement with the Allston Board of Trade and Allston Village Main Streets. Below you’ll see the story behind 50 years of service. Congrats Bob and the Model Ace Hardware team from your friends at CitySquares!

My father, “Ike” Webber, bought Model Ace Hardware in 1959 from the original owner, Abraham Rome. Ike had worked for Mr. Rome from 1938 on, with time out for WWII. I was 11 years old when our family got the exciting news that dad had bought the store. I was hooked as soon as I walked in. The smells, the people, the atmosphere all got to me. I rode the MBTA to the store to work part time whenever I could; after school, vacations, Saturdays (in those days stores were closed on Sunday.) Model Hardware was a tenant then, occupying only the middle section of the ground floor. Around us were a meat market, a clothing store (our landlord’s), and down stairs a pool hall/bookie joint. It was all very exciting for me and I met some very “colorful” people. I should mention that Mom worked in the store, along with my sister and brother.

Gradually we rented more space as our immediate neighbors either retired or “retired.” Finally in 1995, I bought the property and was able to develop long range plans. Oddly, I got the news about the purchase of 22 Harvard Avenue around the same time that Dad was dying. I think about that as my fathers last of many gifts to me.

I can tell you that through the years, we made plenty of mistakes in business. However, we were able to thrive in diverse economic and business scenarios. I believe that the main component of our success is the approach that Ike took and passed down to me: treat people with respect, with the best customer service possible and with fairness.

The year 2009 makes the 50th anniversary of family ownership and operation of Model Hardware. My goals are to continue to run the store as efficiently as possible and to make our customers’ shopping experience as pleasant and memorable as possible. I pledge to remain part of the Allston community and to give back to the community as much as possible.

- Bob Webber, President – Model Ace Hardware

Model Ace Hardware is Allston’s premier locally owned hardware store. Unlike mega-store chains, where size and volume make a poor substitute for quality and experience, at Model Ace you’ll be welcomed by helpful experts who know you personally. Their service professionals are trained on an extensive line of products, and can help you every step of the way with any job you have. Model Ace carries quality products including everything from Benjamin Moore Paint to Ice Melt for these cold winter days. Head in and experience the difference shopping at an independently-owned store makes.

• Habit – Best Boutique and Overall Shopping All Star Winner
• Stained Glass Works – Best Repair and Restoration
• Clothes Call – Best Stylist
• Ku De Ta – Best Women’s fashion
• French Dressing – Best Lingerie Boutique
• Chinook – Best Outdoor Clothing
• Twilight – Best Party Dress Boutique
• in-jean-ius – Best Denim Selection
• Dream on Futon – Best Furniture Store
• Brookline Booksmith – Best Bookstore

Congratulations to all the winners from the CitySquares Team and be on the look out for their All Star Winner decals in their windows, and their awards on their walls!

Boston Buying Power is an energy buying group designed to allow small businesses to purchase energy at a long-term fixed price through access to the deregulated energy market. Boston Buying Power puts small businesses on a level playing field with the largest of commercial accounts and enables them to take advantage of benefits that until now have been unavailable to the small business community.

“Boston is committed to encouraging and supporting strong business communities. One of the ways we can do this is by advocating for small businesses and providing resources during difficult economic times,” Mayor Menino explained.

“Boston Buying Power is designed to give our hard working small business sector the peace of mind that comes from long-term price certainty and budget stability.”

Enrollment is easy and not only will Boston Buying Power begin saving you money today but they can lock-in that lower price for up to five years providing long term price certainty and budget stability for small businesses. More information can be found at www.bostonbuyingpower.com.

– Julie Edwards

CitySquares

To nominate a business as an All Star, just log on to CitySquares.com and either search for the business or browse to any retail business and just click on the button. Also be sure to visit the All Star page for vote tallies and top 10 leaders!

“Even though I was apprehensive about only buying local, I actually really stuck to it aside from this past week in California…I mean lets be serious I had to try Inn and Out Burger’s secret menu and dine amongst the stars at Mr. Chows. That aside, when in Boston I got the majority of my groceries from a local store called Symphony Market and on the way back from the beach in Rhode Island on the weekends I would stop at the farm stands and buy my fruits and veggies for the week. I stopped going to Starbucks all together and now go to Espresso Royale. Even though I really enjoyed the local markets, now that the challenge is over I will probably start going back to the larger super markets, simply because they are more affordable and convenient.”  – Caitlin

“Buying local was easy in the dining out and bar scene since I live in a city. The biggest upset is that I wanted to buy flowers locally and didn’t know where a local florist was. Since I was out of town, and driving, I used GPS to find one but it was 15 miles away. I ended up going to a Shaws and spending a fortune on a floral arrangement that I probably could have gotten cheaper from a local florist.“  – Alexandra

“I am buying entirely local more successfully. I’m eating at local establishments, buying at only local businesses including Tags Hardware and Porter Square Books, I’m even buying local beers. I’m starting to really enjoy it and the more I practice this kind of Buy Local behavior the more I find myself objecting to non-local purchasing/commerce. It’s starting to just become routine. I’m not finding myself purposefully working at it as much now, it’s just sort of happening on its own.”  – Ben

“Coffee is my thing. I need to have GOOD coffee in the morning, afternoon and some evenings. I felt this was the best way to test the local waters.  Buying local meant that Starbucks was out of the picture. Enter Greenlight. The Pete’s Iced Coffee is self-poured and the cups are prefilled with ice. No frills, just coffee.  In just about any other setting this would come off as kind of a pain. However, once you take your simple coffee to the register you are greeted by  a smiling and friendly, non-uniform wearing fella who knew my name after my first visit. My morning coffee became more like what a morning coffee used to be, a daily social activity, not just a caffeine binge. The coffee was half the price as Starbucks and frankly just as strong as my Venti Iced Black Eye (One big coffee with two shots of espresso).  I won’t lie, it will be hard to completely nix the Starbucks, but Greenlight has a new loyal customer.”    - Steve

Overall, this Buy Local challenge was a success. Buying locally is something that’s really baked into CitySquares’ DNA. Because we work with locally owned businesses all day long, every day, it’s a constant reminder. And what’s fun about working at CitySquares too, is that it really puts a spotlight on the communities we work with, and the local businesses within them. Even so, we need a reminder sometimes. Buying things like toothpaste, flowers, greeting cards, groceries, things like that are all matters of convenience. We’re consumers, and we tend to not think about our consumer behaviors. But when we do, when we intentionally monitor those behaviors and try to be a bit more socially responsible with them, we find ourselves enjoying our consumer lifestyles a bit more. As Steve pointed out above, he found his morning cups of coffee to be more social and friendly, and as Ben realized, the more he altered and practiced his consumer behaviors the easier it became.

When we first discussed doing this challenge there was a lot of debate about where to buy certain products. Some of us didn’t realize how much opportunity there really was to buy locally. Ultimately, we all learned some lessons here and we’re better consumers because of it.

– Julie

The easiest part of this challenge has been the restaurants. From Pescatore and Redbones BBQ in Somerville, Union Oyster House in Faneuil Hall, even all the way to Barnacle Billy’s in Maine, we’ve had an unlimited supply of local spots to dine. Downtown Wine and Spirits and local bars like The Draft (which just opened their new outdoor patio, by the way) and The Fours next to the Garden (Go Celts!) were obvious choices for entertainment. Groceries have been relatively easy as well with markets like Foodies in the South End. Farmer’s Markets like the Union Square Farmer’s Market have also been a big help during our buy local challenge.

Aside from a few blunders; a flat screen from Best Buy, a window air conditioner from Home Depot and some last minute Father’s Day cards at CVS we’ve made some major improvements. We’ve kicked our Dunkin Donuts habit and in exchange we’ve been frequenting places like the Buttery. We’ve replaced our Exxon Stations for neighborhood gas stations like Teele Square Auto. One of us even went so far as to drive to Hampstead New Hampshire to buy a power tool from East Coast Lumber! It hasn’t been an easy few weeks, but it’s definitely been a learning experience. We’ve got two more weeks to go and many more lessons to learn. Be sure to check back for more updates this month.

How about you? Do you feel like you try to shop locally when you have the choice? If so, why and if not, why? There’s no right or wrong answer either, so please, be candid!

– Julie

So while we all do try to buy local we’ve decided to make it an official company-wide challenge for the month of June. This month, starting last week, everyone on staff here (14 of us) is participating in what we call the “Buy Local Challenge.” (This effort is partly inspired by our friend Joe Grafton, Executive Director for Somerville Local First, and his “Lokavore Experiment.”) Sure some things will be easy, but we understand there will be challenges along the way, like buying gasoline, grocery shopping, and in some cases we may have to pay a premium. We also know we’ll have some slip-ups but what we’re mainly aiming for is the lessons learned along the way. Below are the guidelines we will follow. Be sure to check back for weekly updates.

Rule 1) If we spend money, it must be at a locally owned business.

Rule 2) When given the option, we will favor locally made products.

Rule 3) As usual we will try to give our business to CitySquares customers.

Rule 4) Take notes! Throughout the week we will all be noting our successes and our struggles in trying to buy only locally. We will update the blog weekly on what we’ve learned.

What do you think of this? Have you tried something similar?