By Sandra J. Pennecke It’s no secret new businesses face tough odds. Fifty percent of new businesses fail within the first 12 months of operation, said Ray Mattes, president and CEO of the Retail Alliance. Nationwide, he expects more than 8,500 storefronts to close in 2017. The Norfolk-based Retail Alliance launched its Center for Retail… [Read More]
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Retail Alliance works to continue to be a trusted resource for the success of local retailers
July 17, 2017 by Filed Under: Advocacy, Articles from Retail Angles, Buy Local, Economy, News Articles, Retail Careers, Retail Companies, Technology
LOVEVA Voted “Best Of” Local App
July 11, 2017 by Filed Under: Buy Local, Economy, News Articles, Press Releases, Technology
Retail Alliance launched the LOVEVA program in October 2014 with the goal of promoting and supporting local businesses to keep our dollars here in the Hampton Roads community. LOVEVA currently has well over 16,000 users with 342 participating local businesses in the app and growing. We are proud to announce that LOVEVA has been voted… [Read More]
LOVEVA in the news!
June 8, 2017 by Filed Under: Buy Local, News Articles
We were fortunate to have CoVaBIZ Magazine interview us about our buy local program, LOVEVA, recently. The interview was published in their latest issue which we’re stoked about! Check it out here in PDF format or read the content below: CoVaBIZ Magazine June/July 2017 BEYOND THE BIZ By Ryan Miller Retail Alliance is connecting business… [Read More]
LOVEVA Update: 2016 Year End Wrap-up
January 9, 2017 by Filed Under: Articles from Retail Angles, Buy Local
Happy New Year y’all! We hope you had a wonderful holiday season. 2016 was a great year for us and we’re looking for 2017 to be even better. As you may know from the last Retail Angles, we’ve grown usage by over 200 percent which is a pretty big deal! We averaged more than 500… [Read More]
LOVEVA Update Nov/Dec 2016
November 28, 2016 by Filed Under: Articles from Retail Angles, Buy Local
We just celebrated our second anniversary! And let me tell you, this has been a good one. We have over 12,500 LOVEVAs using the app and we’ve had over 55,000 transactions! We’ve grown usage by over 200% which is a pretty big deal!! We average more than 500 new accounts a month and more than… [Read More]
Shift Your Shopping – Buy local first throughout the holidays and win!
November 17, 2016 by Filed Under: Buy Local, Holiday, News Articles
Retail Alliance’s Be A Local LOVEVA program features a downloadable app and rewards shoppers for buying local in Hampton Roads. Since its launch in 2014, the LOVEVA app has helped change the landscape for our region’s independent retailers. What started as a grassroots campaign, the program has grown to include hundreds of retailers and serve… [Read More]
LOVEVA Update Mar/Apr 2016
April 30, 2016 by Filed Under: Articles from Retail Angles, Buy Local
As we close out winter, we are busy planning many activities and community outreach opportunities for the spring and summer months. Here’s a brief update on some of the projects underway: Contest In the true spirit of giving, we held The Love Local Valentine’s Day contest, whereby LOVEVAs were asked to like, share, and tag… [Read More]
Vote for your favorite LOVEVA business!
April 19, 2016 by Filed Under: Buy Local
Voting Open NOW This year we’re honoring the best LOVEVA business as chosen by YOU! The Local Voice LOVEVA Award is for the business you consider the best in Hampton Roads. It is open to all businesses in the LOVEVA app. Cast your vote for your three favorite LOVEVA businesses from now until May 10th!… [Read More]
LOVEVA Update: 2016 Plan & New Sweetheart LOVEVA level
February 11, 2016 by Filed Under: Articles from Retail Angles, Buy Local, News Articles
Happy New Year LOVEVAs! We sure hope you’ve had a fabulous holiday season. We are excited to share some big news with you regarding LOVEVA modifications for 2016. These changes will help improve the LOVEVA package overall and create a more stable and expanding local first program. We understand it’s a chicken or the egg… [Read More]
LOVEVA – Wrapping Up Our First Year
December 30, 2015 by Filed Under: Articles from Retail Angles, Buy Local, News Articles
We’ve come a long way in our first year, with many LOVEVA accomplishments and milestones to celebrate. We would like to share some of these achievements with you. We have over 6,500 Love-vahs now using the app and we’ve had over 20,000 transactions since last October! We’re so excited that people have downloaded the app… [Read More]