3c hapter - Index of

210 Locavesting
been there, he says, but in challenging economic times it becomes
more urgent. “After a boom- and- bust cycle, people start to question
who they can trust. And trust is at the core of all market
behavior. If you don’t have trust in the people or the system, you
can’t do anything,” says Proffi tt. “So how do you restore that trust?
I think it comes back to basic human relationships. And where
can you get that except at the local level with something you can
really understand and get your head around.”
Local Stock Exchange
A local stock exchange handles all of the functions of a stock market—
listing company shares, providing price information, and facilitating
trading—but for a specifi c region. As the major stock exchanges continue
their global consolidation, local exchanges would offer an alternative
for a region’s companies and investors, much like the small
exchanges that once fl ourished across the United States and other
countries.
The Lancaster region already has a strong buy- local program
and is developing a local currency. But fi nancing is a critical part of
the equation, Proffi tt believes. Without adequate funds, local enterprises
cannot effectively compete with their larger, national rivals.
The area has many small and midsized companies that
could benefi t from a localized fi nancial market. One of those is
Wolfgang Candy Co., a fourth- generation chocolate maker across
the river from Lancaster in York. The Wolfgang family had already
been immersed in the art of candy making when, in 1921, Paul
C. Wolfgang started his hand- dipped chocolate company. He peddled
his chocolates at farmers markets from the back of a pony
cart, but the company’s main customers were, until recently,
churches, schools, and other organizations that sold the candy in
fund- raising drives. Today, Wolfgang Candy attracts 17,000 visitors
a year to tour its Willy Wonka–like factory, where 150 employees
make 120 products, including favorites such as dark chocolate–
dipped berries and pretzels.
The family- run company seems to have bucked the old rule that
the fi rst generation creates the entrepreneurial success and the third