The cards are similar to a gift voucher, but can be used at 54 locations in the city. 

The EFTPOS-based cards are already used in city’s such as Orange and Bathurst, Dubbo Regional Council Ignite coordinator Nicola Chandler said, and have kept more than $1 million in regional centres.

“The idea is to keep money in Dubbo, for Dubbo,” Ms Chandler said.

And with the festive season here, it was the prefect time to try it out, she said.

“Everyone buys a voucher at Christmas for someone who is hard to buy for so instead of buying a gift card for one store this is a set amount for 54 stores.

“You can have a few drinks, go out to dinner, buy a pair of shoes, get a facial, get your tyres changed. There’s a great cross section of businesses in the CBD.”

There are three locations where the myDubbo cards can be purchased: the two We Know Travel stores and Snare Newsagency.

We Know Travel’s Kerin Stonestreet said she would love to see more businesses redeem the myDubbo cards.

“The moment I saw the paperwork, the thing that jumped off the page was that it was local. It’s Dubbo shopping and as a small business that’s what we have to do to keep business in town,” Ms Stonestreet said.

She said in the ten days before the cards were officially launched she had already sold 16.

Dubbo Chamber of Commerce president Matt Wright said it was a fantastic initiative, and one businesses had shown they were behind.

“Anything to encourage shoppers to keep their money within the city and spend it with small businesses locally is something we would definitely support,” Mr Wright said.

There were some businesses which had been reserved about the idea, Ms Chandler said, but once they saw the cards in process she said their questions would hopefully be answered.

More information, including the list of businesses currently involved with the myDubbo cards, is available at dubbo.com.au/shop.