A total of 35 businesses have signed on as redemption stores and over $1200 were loaded onto the gift cards in just a few weeks time. Out of this, $660 have already been spent in local stores.

"The Shop 2580 gift card program is a long-term investment in the retail sector of our local economy," a Goulburn Mulwaree Council spokesperson said.

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"Council and the Chamber of Commerce have committed for three years, and we hope to see the program continue to grow and become more popular over this time.

"Every $100 spent locally has an approximate impact of $180. Each business participating in the program is a locally owned business, which employs our community members, so we hope the community gets right behind the gift card program to support them."

The community has welcomed the new initiative which has been designed to boost the Goulburn economy and encourage local shopping.

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The gift card will enable amounts from $10 to $1000 to be loaded onto the card which can then be spent at locally owned stores across Goulburn.

The cards are part of the Why Leave Town initiative which operates in more than 140 postcodes. So far, more than $10 million in loaded cards have seen sold nationally.

It is estimated that with every $100 spent locally, $180 will be injected into the Goulburn community.

Mayor Bob Kirk had earlier said that the cards were a way of "keeping money in town".

"As a council, we have been looking for ways in which to support local businesses, and we felt that the Shop 2580 gift cards would be a brilliant program to combine with other organisations on to roll out," he had said.

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