Owners of independent businesses who want to tell their stories in the inaugural Indie Owned business directory for Wellesley need to get moving: Registration and payment is due by Nov. 6. The directory will go online in December and also ship that month.
Indie Owned, based in Brookline, has published a series of colorful business directories like the one shown here for local communities over the past couple of years. The publications feature self-created business bios, including logos and photos. The first directory was published in Brookline in 2007, and since then directories have been added in Allston/Brighton, Concord and Newton.
Debbie Raisner Thompson, who along with Hank Eskin publishes the directories, says she was drawn to Wellesley because of the large number of independently-owned businesses here and their customers’ dedication to supporting local businesses. Thompson acknowledges that it’s been a challenging year to start up the new directory in town but says owners who plan to participate “certainly appreciate the value of telling their story and the story of their business to residents — keeping their name in the forefront of people’s minds. Even the ones who have been in Wellesley for a long time are excited to reintroduce themselves to residents.”
We asked Thompson what Indie Owned offers above and beyond what a business could get via the growing list of traditional and new media options for publicity. “The bio-based format seems to be the strongest differentiator,” she says. “The residents love the stories and they act as an ice-breaker for the business owners. Indie Owned is something people keep and use throughout the year. I received feedback from previous participants that they got business long after I mailed to homes. With all the online opportunities, I wanted to give residents something they could touch and take with them.”
To get your business listed in the directory, visit the Indie Owned website, call 617 264 0594 or email Thompson here. It costs $395 to get your business bio listed in the directory and on the website. Mention that you heard about it from The Swellesley Report and we’ll get a referral fee that we’ll donate to a local charity.
