It's no mystery that the past few years have been tough on local merchants—high unemployment and an increasingly frugal consumer base have forced several businesses in Nyack and Piermont to close their doors, or make major cutbacks.

A new, local film details just this, but with a twist—what does the sluggish economy look like through female merchants' eyes, and how do they combat it?

To find out, Piermonter Lisa Kaess—an economist and international finance professional with two masters degrees—used the river villages as a backdrop.

And she couldn't have selected a better area—Nyack and Piermont house a handful of independent, female-operated small businesses. In the under-30-minute piece, Kaess speaks with longtime staples like Lisa Litman of Sign of the Times and Maria Luisa Whittingham of Maria Luisa Boutique.

"Consumption makes up more than two-thirds of the U.S. economy today, and most shopping is done by women," Kaess explained. "If you want to know what's going on in the economy, ask a woman."

Kaess had the idea for the short film, titled Grace Under Fire, after noting a paucity of female voices in the media discussing the fiscal realm. So, she took to Broadway, Main Street and Piermont Avenue to change just that.

"I want to know how [female merchants] are surviving, how they're managing, what they're hearing from customers," she said. "I show Nyack as a microcosm for small villages across county struggling with same issues."

And though Rockland's economy is suffering, these women are pressing forward. "We have noticed Nyack is experiencing a downturn in foot traffic," merchants note in the film's trailer. But with many of them open for over two decades—see: Sign of the Times and Maria Luisa Boutique—they are far from folding.

Other prominent residents are featured in the film? Assemblywoman Ellen Jaffee, who notes "women and small business are the lifeblood of the economy," and mayor-elect Jen Laird-White.

The film screening coincides with Kaess' Sisterhood Solidarity Saturday at Nyack Center, which runs from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. on Dec. 10. The event marks the soft launch of Kaess' Feminomics, a new initiative that will provide local and far-flung female professionals with economic acumen and advice.

"We'll have seminars and be teaching fiscal basics," Kaess said. "We'll also have one-on-one advisory sessions and concierge services."

The event will also include refreshments—prepared by the Art Cafe and Didier Dumas—and 20 percent discounts at Gena Lisa Lingerie, Grandview, Sign of the Times, P. Ross and other stores.

See the attached YouTube video for a sneak peak, and the attached flyer for details of Sisterhood Solidarity Saturday and Feminomics.