In just two years, 100 businesses in Topeka have decided to cash in on a new way to do business. Trade exchange is becoming a popular route for small business owners around the Capital City, giving them the ability to stretch their dollars and create an economy all their own. It's an age old form of business: trading, bartering. "It just makes your dollars stretch so much farther to do trade commerce," Home Connections owner Andrea Coker said. And local businesses are catching on, hoping the concept will help them grow their companies. "Instead of using cash or credit cards, we're using a trade dollar. It's equivalent to a U.S. dollar," TradeBank Topeka president Dan Pentimone said. The idea, small businesses become part of an trade organization, like TradeBank Topeka. There they can work with each other to barter for items, help each other out, without always having to put their cash on the line. "It doesn't always have to come out of your bottom line," Coker said. "Things that we thought, 'that's not in the budget, oh wait a second, we might be able to afford that if we use trade'." "It's been a great networking tool. It's gotten us into doors that we may not have gotten into otherwise," said Patrick Grogan, owner of Pat the Plumber. The system is recognized by the federal government. Owners still have to pay taxes. "It's a recognized, proven business model," Pentimone said. The system creates a micro-economy which business owners say hope helps keep local dollars local. "People who were buying online, are now buying locally," Pentimone said. More than a half million dollars worth of trade flowed through Topeka last year alone. "We always do business locally if we can." Grogan said. Owners say they that's just the tip of the trading iceberg. Topeka isn't the only Kansas town with a trade system in place. Wichita has more than 400 businesses that belong to trade organizations.
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