Virtual cash mob launched to help struggling businesses improve income
MONTECITO, Calif. - An effort to help businesses in Montecito and the Coast Village Road district of nearby Santa Barbara has been launched online.
It's being called a Cash Mob.
Shoppers are asked to click on the 93108fund.org link and go through to their favorite businesses. From there the buying begins on the Cash Mob site.
Shoppers are asked to purchase certificates now, especially from closed businesses, in anticipation of using them when the doors open again after coronavirus rules are relaxed.
Ready to shop from home or from her phone, Montecito resident Nina Terzian has joined what is called a Cash Mob to help struggling businesses in Montecito and the Coast Village Road area of Santa Barbara.
She is a former retailer and knows the financial bind they may be in during the coronavirus crisis.
"So the expression, 'pay it forward', this has taken on a new meaning," said Terzian. "The retailers, the shop owners, the restaurants, they need the money upfront."
The cash mob asks shoppers to go online and link up to a list of businesses where they can buy gift certificates now for use at another time.
At Coast Village Road in Santa Barbara and nearby in the upper village of Montecito, businesses have many large signs up to encourage shoppers to go online.
The idea for the cash mob came out of the 93108 fund. This fund helps hourly workers with cash cards. The cash mob helps small businesses.
It is a three day effort.
By mid-morning thousands of dollars in certificates had already been purchased.
One of the organizers, Ron Blitzer, was tracking it on his cell phone. Each purchase triggered a ring sound, like an old cash register.
Kelly Finefrock with the James Perse store said, "I am frequenting all these places that I am still going to shop, so why not buy the gift cards now and keep the stores in business?"
 Among the supporters is the Montecito Firefighters Charitable Foundation,  which is funded by community donations.
Fire Chief Kevin Taylor said, together "we are strong. Firefighters say it's a unified effort to keep the community together and capable of getting beyond the current challenges."
He saw the community suffer in the 2018 disastrous and deadly mudflow, but make a comeback. "There is not a lot of quit in Montecito. It is the most wonderful group of human beings that I have ever had the pleasure to be associated with. Like the Thomas Fire and the debris flow, I have absolutely no doubt our incredibly resilient community will get through this like it gets through everything else - together."
The Cash Mob site includes, food and drink, retail, services, Coast Village Road, Upper Village and hotels.
For more information go to: Cash Mob or the 93103 fund.
See more on this story tonight on NewsChannel 3, NewsChannel 12 and KKFX My Fox 11.
