SpendWithThem rebuild

If you are a retailer affected by bushfire, click here to be featured on the SpendWithThem Instagram page.

Instagram is a powerful tool in any retailers marketing arsenal, but NSW locals Turia Pitt and Grace McBride have utilised this tool for an incredible cause – supporting the retailers in communities devastated by bushfire.

Making headlines is the new viral Instagram account @SpendWithThem, launched days ago and now with over 110,000 followers. SpendWithThem, motivated by the highly successful @BuyFromTheBush campaign which promoted rural retailers facing drought conditions, aims to ensure the survival of businesses in these communities. Turia writes on her personal Instagram below.

 

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My last post was long. So, let me get into the guts of it here: Once these fires are finally ‘over’, it won’t be over for many of the local businesses in fire-ravaged towns. A lot of these places (like my home in Mollymook, and Mallacoota, Kangaroo Island, Eden etc) rely on the tourist dollar for their very survival. I’ve been motivated by Tegan Webber’s #GoWithEmptyEskys campaign and by the legends at @buyfromthebush. And so this is what I’m doing. I’ve created @spendwiththem, a place to feature businesses in fire-affected towns. So, if you want to buy something (now, or in the future), check out @spendwiththem and buy something from one of these places. Spend your money with the people and the communities who really, truly need it. They need you. We need you. This is a way to put money directly in the pockets of the people and communities who need it the most, and need it NOW. Long after the threat is over and the choppers stop flying overhead. Long after summer ends and the wail of sirens ceases in the streets. Help them rebuild. Make them feel heard. Spend with them. And, if you’re a business in a fire-affected town, hit us up at @spendwiththem to be featured. Much love to all of you, donating, spending, and doing everything you can. I’m blown away. Turia xx #spendwiththem

A post shared by Turia (@turiapitt) on

“Obviously our community has been so deeply affected by the fires over the last few weeks – physically, financially, emotionally and mentally,” says Pitt, a motivational speaker and athlete who suffered severe burns after being caught in a grassfire during an ultramarathon in 2011. “We wanted to do something right now that would make a difference to [these businesses] and would continue to support them for months, and hopefully years, to come.”

Currently the account features Hinterland Honey Byron Bay, Stony Creek Farm Distillery, Milton Mushrooms and several other retailers. If you are a retailer affected by fire, email info@turiapitt.com to share your story and be featured on the SpendWithThem Instagram page.

The National Retail Association is working to support retailers in these conditions, and the efforts of this group and other charities around the nation are to be lauded. For more information on current bushfire conditions and resources to aid with recovery, visit our Bushfire Resources page.