ShopBenGil .com is set to launch next week. After a little over a year of “ideating”, planning, and programming, we’ve finally completed version 1.0.
What is it
www.shopbengil.com
It’s a website that allows any business in the BenGil community (at-home or brick and mortar) to create a store on the site and sell their merchandise on-line 24 hours per day, 365 days per year.
Shoppers can purchase and/or “window shop” everything from toys from the Village Toy Chest to Jim Shore figurines from Sullivan’s to historic photos from Jim Marcacci and Sound Images 4 U from the comfort of their home with a single purchase. Customers can pick up the order at the store or have it delivered to their home by our local delivery service.
As of this article, we have over 12 local businesses signed up on the site.
Who owns it
It’s locally owned and operated by G-Pie Media, LLC, which is owned by local business owner T.J. Allan. The company was created to help restore the once thriving main streets of Gillespie and Benld and stimulate economic development. Although, it’s a for-profit company, it was NOT created to make money off the BenGil community. 100% of the profit from the site will be given back to local charities, schools, and other non-profit organizations.
Why You’ll love it
- Convenience: Shop locally when it fits your busy schedule. Shop from over 12 different local merchants on ONE site with ONE purchase. The site is open 24 hours per day, 365 days per year.
- Variety: Jim Shore figurines, Victoria LeLand Design jewelry & purses, hunting & fishing décor, vitamins, minerals, herbals, Gillespie Miner clothing, toys, puzzles, stuffed animals, antiques, computers, historic photographs, and more.
- Simplicity: Purchase items from over 12 different stores with one click of the mouse and have them delivered to your doorstep. It’s just like shopping on any other website.
- Trust: All storefronts on the site are locally owned and operated. Buy from people you know and trust.
- Give Back: Shopping locally is essentially investing in your community. The more you purchase from small, local businesses, the better our community will be.
As with any site or piece of software, there will be bugs (software problems). We’ve tried to eliminate as many of them as we could over the last 12 months. However, we’ll never remove all of them. Facebook, which has thousands of programmers working daily and a valuation of several billion dollars, still has issues/bugs that arise from time to time. It’s just part of the software industry. I can assure you though that we will fix any problems that may arise as quickly as possible.
The site will continue to improve with each passing month. We’ll continue to add more stores, and the stores we currently have will continue to add more products. Soon, if it’s made or sold in the BenGil community, you will be able to purchase it on the site. You’ll also see better deals and discounts as we continue to grow. Eventually, a year or two from now, we’ll hopefully see a few new stores on main street that started with just a virtual storefront on the site.
Please sign up for our weekly newsletter for great local deals and discounts from the businesses on our site by clicking here. Plus it’s the only way to win free gifts!
Invest locally by shopping locally.
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