As the operator of an independent local business in St. Louis, I take an interest in and root for the success of others like me because without strong local businesses, I would not have a job, they are my best and most ideal customers.
That is why I gladly jumped on board when my friend (and VP of Social Media at Falk Harrison) Chris Reimer launched a social media campaign to save Pratzel’s Bakery back in January. Pratzel’s Bakery, after 98 years of serving the St. Louis community, closed for good. The owners were ready to slow down and there was no one to pass the business on to, so they made the difficult decision to shut the operation down.
Enter the folks at Falk Harrison. Fans of the bakery, they were more than a little sad to see it go, and thought they just might be able to use their social media talents to help the folks at Pratzel’s find a buyer. It started with that blog post I linked to above, where Falk Harrison pleaded for a buyer, and offered a potential suitor free social media services in an effort to sweeten the deal, then soon after Falk’s initial offer, Aaron Corson of NJC Printing sweetened the deal even more with $1000 of free printing, and then Matt Mathison of Avid Magazine offered free advertising, and then Gregg Goldman of Goldman Photo offered his photography services.
Seeing an opportunity to help another local business, Exec joined the fray, offering up an HP printer and some office supplies. In all, over 20 more local St. Louis companies joined the effort, offering various free services.
Then the media grabbed the story. It was covered by The St. Louis Beacon, Deb Peterson of the Post Dispatch, the RFT among others. (See the original story link for the full list.)
Fast forward to last Monday. Falk Harrison announced a buyer for Pratzel’s had come forward. The bakery was saved. Jon Mills, a documentary film maker (up to now) had agreed to buy the company.
According to Falk Harrison, he wanted a new challenge, and bringing a 98 year-old bakery into the 21st century fit the bill. Ronnie Pratzel will serve as a consultant for a year or so. Jon’s plan is to operate a retail outlet out of their bakery location at 9263 Dielman Industrial Drive in Olivette. He’s going to spend the remainder of March and April improving the bakery and building out a retail counter, with a targeted open date of May 1, 2011.
Did social media really save the day? Or would Mr. Mills have come forward anyway? Who can say for sure. Mr. Mills claimed it definitely influenced his decision. Regardless, I love that all these local business owners came together to support a fellow member of that club. I hope all that support for each other and sense of community carries over beyond this event.
And if you are reading this Mr. Mills, let me know when you want me to drop off your new printer and gift certificate.
