Nisa is on the lookout for the nation’s best community stores and is giving consumers the chance to nominate their local store and win £1,000 to be donated to local causes.

The symbol group launched the competition on June 20 to give customers the chance to celebrate their favourite independent retailers and recognise the work they do in the local community. The competition will run until 4 July.

Customers can vote for their nominated store at a website dedicated to the competition www.lovetobelocal.co.uk. Five winning stores will receive £1,000 into their ‘Making a Difference Locally’ fund which will be donated to a local cause.

Making a Difference Locally (MADL) raises funds in Nisa member stores through the sale of items from Nisa’s own-label Heritage range and a selection of branded products which carry charitable donations from the suppliers. Monies go into a virtual fund for the store to donate to a local charity or good cause within a 10-mile radius.

Kate Carroll, Making a Difference Locally’s head of charity, said: “The Shop Local competition aims to celebrate independent retailers and their place at the heart of local communities. It will recognise some of the fantastic ways in which Nisa retailers support these communities and will give consumers the opportunity to reward their local store for this with a further £1,000 into their Making a Difference Locally fund to be donated to even more local causes.”

The initiative is being promoted on Twitter by @NisaLocally and by the Making a Difference Locally charity on its handle @MADLCharity while the campaign is trending under the hashtag #lovetobelocal . The campaign will end on July 4 which also marks ‘Independents’ Day’, a day dedicated to celebrating independent retailers.