Warner Robins highlighting military-friendly businesses with new initiative

WARNER ROBINS — The city of Warner Robins is making it easier for veterans to find savings and hoping to highlight local businesses that honor military service. On Veterans Day, the city began its Military Friendly Business initiative, a program which connects local military to vendors that offer a military discount. 

Businesses with a Military Friendly Business badge on their window are already registered in the program, and offer military discounts for goods and services, ranging from five to 25%.

A full list of participating businesses can be found on the city’s mobile app, or here.

Mayor LaRhonda Patrick said the launch goal was Veterans Day, but the idea formed earlier this year while talking with her family, many who are military.

“Wouldn’t it be something if we had a way for veterans to identify locations that provide discounts, but also encourage other businesses to join suit and also provide a discount to show their appreciation?” she said.

While talking with her family, she learned they’re more likely to visit and feel valued from businesses that offer a military discount.

“My family members often look for businesses that provide discounts to military members and veterans. My little brother, my uncle and my father, they always ask at every place they go, ‘Do you have a military discount?’ Many of them say, ‘No.’ If they say no, my family feels they don’t appreciate veterans, because they don’t have a discount and they sacrificed for them,” Patrick said.

From there, Patrick met with the Community and Economic Development department, who played a pivitol role in putting together the initiative, modeling the rollout to a similar pet-friendly business initiative in 2022.

“I met with the director, Kate Hogan, and told her what I wanted to do. She said it’s a great idea — as I knew she would — and then she went to work setting it up,” Patrick said.

Patrick is hopeful the initiative can connect veterans to local businesses and help them save money. She is also hopeful local businesses can have a spotlight and garner more patronage, and follow suit with providing discounts if they don’t already.

“We want to highlight the businesses who truly do put their money where their mouth is, meaning they sacrifice making some money to show appreciation to veterans. We want to really highlight them and show them that we do appreciate that they make a sacrifice for those who have made sacrifices for us,” she said.

Overall, the initiative is an opportunity to show veterans and veteran-friendly businesses they are appreciated. Patrick encouraged local businesses to honor military and the public to shop at military-friendly businesses.

“My goal is to, of course, make it convenient for veterans to see where they can shop with a discount, but also to encourage other businesses who don’t provide any discounts to our very military-friendly community to offer something for veterans and their families,” she said.

For now, eligible businesses are based in or have locations in Warner Robins, but Patrick said the city is also considering businesses in Centerville. Businesses who are interested in joining the initiative can do so by visiting City Hall or emailing lwalker@wrga.gov.