In the June 28 issue, the Boyertown Times noted the end of an era in the closing of Bause’s Super Drug Store, and reminded citizens that if they want to maintain local stores, they must support them. The very next week, the Boyertown Times welcomed the opening of a Big Lots out-let in the Boyertown Plaza, and encouraged citizens to find bargains and save money at the store.

Boyertown, you cannot have it both ways. People should realize that cheap prices have hidden costs. In saving a few cents, or a few dollars, you:

1) Patronize a giant retailer who buys in bulk and drives down the cost of goods by forcing suppliers to shave profit margins. Sometimes suppliers are driven out of business by retailers such as Wal-Mart, because they cannot survive if they don’t supply these orders, and they can’t survive with no profit margin. These retailers do not live in our community, do not buy their merchandise locally, and may not even pay local taxes.