Nice Bristols

Is it anti-social, an example of creeping separatism or just plain unpatriotic?.

I am talking about the recent emergence of what amounts to a private currency system in the City of Bristol.

It almost sounds like a return to the Medieval period when the Guilds and Master Trades ruled the commerce in English towns and cities or even to the later philanthropists and entrepreneurs of the industrial revolution who paid their workers in tokens which could only be redeemed through the company shop.

The underlying intention is however genuine in a bid to encourage residents to buy locally produced goods from independent retailers rather than give the Corporate Megastores an even greater slice of what is purported to be one in every eight pounds passing from consumers through the UK tills.

Bristol has adopted the scheme after the relative success of smaller scale currency systems in Totnes, Lewes, Stroud and Brixton.

The mechanics of the scheme are as follows.

There are actual printed cash notes in various denominations and known as Bristol Pounds. They circulate with pounds Sterling and are underwritten as a non-profit partnership between Bristol Credit Union and a community interest company founded by local business leaders. The £B can be bought at cash points around Bristol or on the internet but is legal tender only with independent traders based in or around the City area.

The initial exchange rate for Bristol Pounds is at parity with Sterling and so traders do not have to dilute their turnover or profit more than already the case to compete with the big, brash boys on the High Street and Out of Town Retail Parks.

The scheme has around 300 independent businesses signed up and it is hoped that a target of more than 1000 can be acheived. An innovative feature of the currency is the function for customers to pay for goods by text message as a very attractive alternative to retailers who otherwise have to subscribe to a credit card processing operator at tangible cost. The flash of a Membership Card and the texting of the name of the trader and a personal pincode to the Bristol Credit Union allows the transaction to be completed.

There is no quantative easing required in the economy of a brave independent Bristol with notes in circulation currently amounting to £B125,000 but with hopes for this to more than triple over the next 12 months.

The world media has shown interest in what the Bristolians are trying to acheive as well as other UK towns and cities who feel that Mary Portas is just not enough to save the traditional shopping streets and proud independent retailers from being squeezed out by the high volume, shelf stacking ,pocket smacking warehouse type operators. To turn their own guns on themselves it is really a case of every little helps.