A stronger Santa Cruz doesn’t begin with policy or big programs — it starts with something simple: the next time you spend a dollar, where does it land? This is the very first episode of the Think Local First podcast, and we’re kicking things off with the people who keep this place stitched together: the shop owners, makers, growers, and do-ers whose work turns a small transaction into a hometown ripple.

In this episode, we sit down with familiar faces across Santa Cruz to explore why buying local isn’t a slogan — it’s a system. Freedom Meat Locker talks about the craft and care that comes from knowing the families you serve. Hideout Vodka walks us through that “give us ten minutes, we’ll figure it out” responsiveness that big chains simply don’t run on. Local business is personal, and memory — real memory — is a competitive edge you can’t automate.

We get into the numbers with The Boardroom and the stories with Ohm Gallery. They break down how a single purchase moves through wages, vendors, sponsorships, school fundraisers… all staying right here instead of disappearing into a national ledger. You’ll hear about shopkeepers who send customers down the street to neighboring stores, because in a healthy downtown, everybody rises on the same tide.

And then there’s The Homeless Garden Project — the reminder that local commerce and local compassion are branches of the same tree. Your purchase can create training, structure, dignity, and actual paychecks for people rebuilding their lives. That’s community at its most functional.

If you care about this place — our bookstores and bakeries, our surf shops and bistros, our growers and gallery walls — this episode is a road map. Start small. One gift. One dinner. One bookstore trip. Tell a friend. Leave a review. Keep the energy in the county where it can do the most good.

This is Santa Cruz, told through the people who make it work.
Welcome to Episode One of the Think Local First podcast.