In 2012 ITC had a dream!! What if we created a Facebook page all about Lane Cove? What if we featured Lane Cove Local News, Local Events, Local Businesses, Local Charities, Local Community Groups and Local Sporting Groups? Well as they say in the classics (or at least Kevin Costner said it) if you build it, they will come.
ITC Milestone
ITC reached a significant milestone in early April 2020 (we would have shouted it from the roof of Lane Cove Market Square except that may not have been a reasonable excuse to leave home, and we have been flat out writing local news updates).
We are so proud to announce that we have had over 2 million views in total on our Lane Cove hyperlocal website – www.inthecove.com.au.
We could not have reached this milestone without Lane Cove locals supporting ITC.
We are now a multi-platform hyperlocal media site.
Lane Cove Community Facebook Group
We have Lane Cove’s number one community Facebook Group with Lane Cove Chat by ITC. A closed lane cove community facebook group that allows Lane Cove residents to ask questions and recommendations and raise local issues.
ITC Gives Back
Thank you, Lane Cove. ITC cannot say enough how grateful we are for your support of a little page that started in 2012 with a post about coffee (but we do have a PhD in coffee drinking). Since that time, ITC has become so much more than ever imagined.
Currently, we’re going through tough times, but we are all in this together. Here’s what ITC will be doing as our way of giving back to a community that has embraced us (physically and recently virtually).
Lane Cove Local News – we will continue to bring you relevant local news free (we will never put in place a paywall). We will continue to expand our platforms.
Behind the scenes, we have been working on podcasts and vlogs to make the whole ITC experience better.
We will be doing more Facebook lives (our Facebook Live Virtual Dance Party was fun).
Local news is more important than ever. The Village Observer will not be printed this month and has gone into hibernation. We’ve always said if you read TVO and ITC, you will know all about Lane Cove. Sydney Community Services publishes the TVO (read more below).
The North Shore Times will now only be available digitally, and after a reader trial, there will be a paywall.
Lane Cove Community Engagement – We will continue to be Lane Cove’s Voice. We have seen your frustration at trying to connect with government at all levels. We will continue to advocate for you on issues that need traction.
Active citizenship is essential.
What is Active Citizenship? – it’s locals acting deliberately to contribute to the civic life of their communities and create positive change – this is crucial in developing and sustaining healthy societies and healthy democracies.
Last year the Paramatta City Council held the National Conference on Active Citizenship. It was inspiring to see so many local councils represented by staff who were keen to encourage Active Citizenship.
In the Cove attended this conference and met people and organisations involved in designing, delivering, researching and funding strategies seeking to enhance the capacity of people for civic engagement and creating positive change in the community.
Lane Cove Council did not send a representative. ITC is pretty sure that active citizenship is not on Lane Cove’s agenda.
There was also a similar conference in Canberra. This conference was attended by the Hunters Hill Council’s GM. Hunters Hill Councillor Elizabeth Krassoi attended this conference at her own expense. A local councillor with passion for community engagement, placemaking, and active citizenship.
We attend every Lane Cove Council meeting and advocate on issues raised with us by In the Cove readers. ITC is not always popular with Lane Cove Council. We push YOUR view in a respectful and considerate way and we won’t back down. That’s what people power is.Lane Cove Community Groups/Charities – We will continue to promote free of charge all your events, fundraising campaigns and volunteer call out and donation call outs. We will do this with even more passion and zeal than before.
Before Home isolation, we’d partnered with The Alcott to do regular fundraisers for local charities with all proceeds going to local groups. Before Christmas In the Cove and The Alcott held fundraising Trivia Nights for our drought-impacted Sister City Gunnedah (the room was packed with Lane Cove local who used to live in Gunnedah or have a Gunnedah connection). ITC donates our time and resources towards these events – in another life, ITC was a Trivia Host. Yes ITC is like an onion the more you peel, the more layers you find.
Lane Cove Sports Group – we will continue to advertise your registration days, your fundraising events, your sporting highlights, volunteer call out and donation call outs.
Lane Cove Animals and Animal Lovers – we will continue our incredibly popular Dog of the Day. To all those Lane Cove Cat Lovers out there – yes we have been dog-centric and catist, so we will feature more cats (psst don’t tell Mr Doggy ITC)
Lane Cove Kids – We will continue to provide you with fun things to do and entertainment. How much fun have our bear trail, rainbow trail, easter egg hunt and ANZAC Day craft ideas been? We will find other activities for you to undertake during home isolation and afterwards.
Lane Cove Shops, and Lane Cove Businesses
We will continue to support local businesses and find new and unique ways for Lane Cove locals to shop with local businesses.
In the Cove always gives a free shout out to new local business or businesses we only just find out about in our Lane Cove Monthly Business Round-Up (one of our most popular monthly articles).
Within 24 hours of the COVID 19 restrictions In the Cove, we had updated our website to include details of local businesses who had changed their practices to work with the COVID restrictions. This free publicity is available to all companies operating in the Lane Cove Council area. To be included for FREE just email us here with the heading Lane Cove Local Business Free Promotion.
A Vibrant Lane Cove Shops = A Great Lane Cove.
It’s more important than ever to Shop Local Lane Cove – why is that important?
Shopping Local does not mean you can’t shop outside Lane Cove. It indicates where you can choose to buy local and support locally owned businesses which use local resources, employ locals and primarily service local customers.
Why should we shop local? Here are five reasons:
Buying Local Fosters Uniqueness You can walk into any big shopping centre in Australia and see the same stores. Still, in Lane Cove, if you buy local, you can foster and preserve one of a kind businesses with a distinctive character. Lane Cove people place a high value on uniqueness and individuality. We have seen big chains come into Lane Cove and fail (how many suburbs can lay claim to the fact that McDonalds shut down in their suburb). It does not mean that we don’t like franchised stores. We have some fabulous franchised stores in Lane Cove, for example, Oliver Brown, Chargrill Charlies, and The Source Bulk Foods Lane Cove – they are part of a big group, but they are all owned by the people who work in the business and love being in Lane Cove.
Support Your Local Community, Locally owned businesses support local groups. If you go to any local school fundraiser, you will see that small local business donate the majority of the prizes. ITC speaks to local businesses every day, and they have told me that they are always happy to give prizes when a customer asks, but if a stranger who has never shopped with them, walks in off the street and asks for a donation, they are less likely to donate. They want to help the people who buy from them.
Local Decision Making A local store can quickly source different and varied products; they do not have a buyer who sits in an office and does not interact with the customer.
Local Owners Expertise and Knowledge – Local Lane Cove shops have a greater interest in finding out about their customers. The owners are your neighbours, and their kids go to the local school.
Competition and Diversity –A local community with many small businesses is an ideal way to ensure innovation and competition. People vote with their wallets. That is not to say that Lane Cove does not have a large number of cafes. However, most of them are unique and are not part of a chain.
So next time you could buy something locally or at a big shopping mall, choose to shop local and help out your neighbours and your community. These people might be the people who give your kid a job on the weekend.
Lane Cove Online Business
Our lane cove online businesses owners have developed some unusual and unique online offerings.
Here’s one example of a Lane Cove online businesses adapting and helping locals:
Who is Delivering – Lane Cove locals developed this site with extensive experience in online databases and connecting activities. This is what they said:
“Like many businesses across Australia, us at SHFTHero have been heavily impacted by the COVID-19 Crisis and the ensuing government restrictions. In light of this, the SHFTHero Team has decided that we want to do something to help. Using our resources and expertise, our team has developed a way in which they can help cafes, restaurants, catering and event businesses across the country, who are staying open for delivery and takeaway during this period. Our free website, www.whoisdelivering.com allows businesses Australia-wide to list their business, contact details and menus, and let customers know if they are open.
Our aim? To raise awareness and connect local customers to their favourite local businesses. Over the past month, there has been an awesome response to the community-led website, with businesses and customers alike jumping on board. The SHFTHero team has been working hard behind the scenes, working alongside Local Councils and key leaders to promote the initiative to local communities.”
Tell us what your favourite lane cove shop or business is, and we will feature your submission in a special Shop Lane Cove Article that complements our numerous Shop Local Lane Cove Guides #shoplocal #lovelanecove #shoplanecove.
Just email us here with the heading Lane Cove Local Business Free Promotion.
How Do Lane Cove Locals Connect with In the Cove?
Great question and we are glad you asked it.
Our website www.inthecove.com.au is the starting point.
Features include:
- Local News
- Lane Cove Local Guides
- Lane Cove Business Directory
- Lane Cove Local Jobs Board (free to use, so there are local jobs for local people)
- Lane Cove Event Calendar
- Lane Cove Eating Out and Eat Street Guides
- Spotlight on Lane Cove Locals
In the Cove proudly creates its content or seeks content from local experts or local businesses. All our articles have a Lane Cove focus, or they relate to a Lane Cove business or resident. If we think there is an activity that is close to Lane Cove and would interest Lane Cove residents we let you know. Our content is proudly Lane Cove Centric.
This page is our Local News and Events Page. If it happens in Lane Cove, it will be on In the Cove because In the Cove is in the Know thanks to our fantastic network of Roving Reporters.
This closed/private Facebook Group is for our followers to set the agenda and ask questions or make comments about Lane Cove. It’s all about having a neighbourly conversation. This is where you can seek recommendations, ask advice on a particular Lane Cove issue that impacts you or just tell people why living in Lane Cove is fab!!!
Our Instagram page is where we highlight and show Leafy Lane Cove and its beauty. It’s also where you can follow ITC’s adventures in Lane Cove. We are Lane Covist we shop, eat, sleep, exercise (ok sometimes), play and walk-in Lane Cove. We showcase photos and pictures that do not usually appear on our Facebook Page
If you don’t have time for social media, then join our newsletter. Our newsletter goes out every Wednesday at 7.30 pm (on the dot). It has all the articles published on our website in the previous seven days and upcoming events. Our newsletter is extremely popular with people who are not fans of social media or don’t have time to check their Facebook/Instagram feeds.
How is ITC funded?
In the Cove is a small local Lane Cove business with a vast community focus. We can’t call ourselves a social enterprise as we do take advertising to support our costs and to make a living. In 2012 ITC set up a page called In the Cove and sent it around to my friends.
For three years, the ITC Facebook page was a passion project. In 2015 I wanted to capture all the info on our FB page and launch a website where people could find local info faster (rather than searching through posts).
I told a few local businesses (that I had used for years). I was going to set up a website, and they agreed to become foundation sponsors. Since then they have said to ITC on many occasions we fund you to help with ITC’s community and advocacy work and any business we get is a great bonus.
At the moment, some of ITC’s most significant supporters have been required to shut their businesses, or they are a business that has been heavily impacted by COVID 19. We will work with them and other Lane Cove Businesses to assist them with rebuilding. We know Lane Cove locals will support them.
ITC’s Very First Post
Our very first post in 2012
Sydney Community Services
Sydney Community Services (SCS) are working hard to provide for the elderly and vulnerable in our community. They are a local not-for-profit organisation that helps residents to live a quality and independent life in their own home and their community.
They provide Local Support for Local People.
Now more than ever, they are providing meals and assistance to the elderly and the vulnerable.
They provide a service where they will shop for locals, or they will assist local seniors by shopping online for them. Online Shopping can be daunting for some segments of society.
You can help SCS by either:
- Donating via their website here; or
- Donating Food and Grocery Items or Supermarket Vouchers.
Donations can be dropped off at their office at Pottery Lane (i.e. the Little Street Car Park across from the pool).
Be a Lane Cove Legend
To make sure you don’t miss Lane Cove info sign up to our newsletter. It comes out every Wednesday at 7.30 pm and includes a wrap up of everything posted on our Facebook site in the previous week.
Did you know that In the Cove has an Instagram page? Yes, we do, and we feature pictures from our roving reporters and our ITC team that do not appear on our Facebook page. Follow us on @inthecove
