People often think being local means shopping local, eating local or attending local events.

Those things matter.

But being local is bigger than that.

It's creating opportunities for entrepreneurs. It's investing in locally owned businesses. It's strengthening food systems, supporting workforce development and helping communities access the resources they need to thrive.

At its heart, being local means building an economy where opportunity stays closer to home and more people have the chance to participate in it.

That's the story behind Local First Arizona's 2025 Annual Report.

Creative events that showcase the character of small communities across Arizona allow towns to celebrate what makes them unique. At the same time, these events are welcoming out-of-town visitors who then patronize restaurants, gas stations and hotels, pumping money directly into the local economy. While festivals and events do act as introductions for small towns to non-locals, they also provide seasonal stability for the small businesses that support those towns year round. 

Small towns across Arizona are facing a similar challenge: Young people are moving to larger cities, causing local jobs to remain vacant and the economic health of communities to struggle.

“So many doors have opened for me,” says soap maker Veronica Cruz about graduating from Local First Arizona’s Fuerza Local Business Accelerator. Sales have increased eightfold, and she even has shipped internationally. “This program was a little push that I needed.”

Although it’s good news that more Arizonans are employed than ever before, the demand for workers has been challenging for small businesses to keep up with, particularly in rural areas.

Local First is working with rural employers to understand their staffing needs, opportunities and challenges to find solutions.

Close your eyes and picture your neighborhood. Picture the homes, the parks, and the open spaces. Now picture the businesses in your neighborhood. Imagine that instead of your favorite unique local businesses, all the places are the same cookie-cutter concepts. The same coffee shop; the same restaurant; the same boutique; the same repair shop.

That is the effect of big box and big tech.

A higher percentage of Arizonans quit their jobs in March 2022 than almost anywhere in the nation. Whether this is due to employees making big personal decisions about life changes or the fact they have an abundance of available positions in our state to choose from, it’s clear that this is a job seeker’s market.

Talent Pipeline Management (TPM) is an employer-led, demand-driven process that brings together employers from the same industries in a specific region to collectively address shared workforce challenges.

There are 160 manufacturing employers in Kingman, LHC, and Bullhead City that account for 3215 jobs in the region. Manufacturers in Mohave County reached out to Local First Arizona to engage in collaborative conversation utilizing the TPM Model for workforce development to answer the question: “What can Mohave County manufacturers do to communicate a better understanding of the younger workforce and create packages that appeal to the true environment they're looking to work within?”

The Little Colorado Foundation is rolling out a new soft skills training program that will be open to those seeking to start or enhance their career in any industry in Apache County. The program - called “UP (Unleash Your Potential)” - utilizes the National Retail Industry Fundamentals curriculum, providing students with an understanding of the retail industry, job readiness skills, and building basic customer service skills. UP is a 5-week hybrid training program that incorporates self-guided, online training and onsite community engagement activities to enhance customer service and soft skills in the Apache County workforce.  

Local First Arizona is working closely with employers to gather labor market data to understand the workforce needs of the region as it relates to mental health. There are only three organizations currently providing mental health services locally. Two out of three of those organizations agreed that there isn’t an issue of lack of applicants, it is a lack of qualified applicants for mental health positions in the Gila Valley. Outside of the three organizations providing mental health services, a few related organizations stated that they would like to be able to offer mental health services to clients but they do not have the resources or know how to find the resources to expand their services.

In partnership with the Mohave County Workforce Board, Local First Arizona connected Creative Care with the Arizona@Work Eligible Training Provider List (ETPL) program that now funds them not only to conduct training for their own new hires but also to provide CNA training to anyone in Mohave County who would like to attain their CNA license. This has created a workforce pipeline for all of Mohave County and is providing Creative Care with diversified income that they can utilize for their staff and facilities.

In November 2020, Local First Arizona interviewed Duncan residents, business owners, elected officials, working professionals, volunteers, and parents to gain an understanding of spending patterns resulting in either dollars recirculating in the local economy or leaking out of the local economy.

Pipeline AZ is a multi-sided platform bringing job seekers, companies, educational institutions and workforce organizations together to match talent to market needs and prepare job seekers for future opportunities - online. Unlike other career services or workforce development platforms, Pipeline AZ serves the entire workforce ecosystem simultaneously: companies, job seekers, educators and workforce organizations. Pipeline AZ is free for users, and will include case management for job seekers to help best connect their skills to job opportunities. Employers can list jobs, internships and/or apprenticeships.