Browse local shops from home

BUY LOCAL: Michele Meek is co-founder and president of Shelfdig.com, an online company that markets about 63 businesses online to Providence consumers for in-store shopping. / PBN PHOTO/MICHAEL SALERNO
BUY LOCAL: Michele Meek is co-founder and president of Shelfdig.com, an online company that markets about 63 businesses online to Providence consumers for in-store shopping. / PBN PHOTO/MICHAEL SALERNO

Shelfdig.com is a free website that helps Providence consumers browse for local goods before visiting bricks-and-mortar stores.

The business could be a money-making proposition once different strategies are leveraged to bring in revenue while keeping some level of operations always free, says Michele Meek, co-founder, president and Providence native. Other co-founders include her husband, Geoff Meek.

Incorporated in April, the official site debuted in early November. But the concept originated in 2011, when Shelfdig was a semifinalist in the Rhode Island Business Plan Competition, Michele Meek said.

While buyers browsing some 63 stores on Shelfdig can put an item on hold, they still need to go to the store physically. But the co-founders believe their site is bridging an “information gap” in which consumers too often bypass local goods and services by rushing to online venues.

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“The context of the shelf is important,” said Meek. “It helps the buyer in terms of knowing what stores they might be interested in and discovering new stores.” •

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