PCDC Partnership Promises New Retailers & Restaurants

The Phelps County Development Corporation has partnered with The Retail Coach to attract new retailers and restaurants to the county.

“We are at a key moment in time for our community’s development,” PCDC Executive Director Ron Tillery said. “Retail is among the most important segments contributing to quality of life. If we’re successful in recruiting retail stores and restaurants, our chances to recruit and retain people will be vastly improved.”

Tillery said The Retail Coach comes highly recommended by colleagues. The firm is known for its relationships with those in the retail and restaurant industries and its ability to produce results. The firm’s outreach efforts will include traditional retail, restaurants, entertainment and hospitality.

“With this new partnership, we have the best potential to secure businesses that fill voids in the local market and strengthen existing businesses in town,” Tillery said.

The Retail Coach is a national retail consulting, market research and development firm with offices in Austin and Dallas, Texas, and Tupelo, Mississippi. The firm has worked with more than 650 communities.

“We have been doing retail recruitment for over 23 years, and our recruitment success is second to none,” The Retail Coach President Aaron Farmer said. “We have focused on building relationships with retail decision-makers during this time, and we use these relationships to leverage success in our client’s communities.”

Farmer said his firm has had “a tremendous amount of success” in communities the size of Holdrege.

“Smaller communities typically need more help getting noticed by retailers, and we are able to help make that happen,” Farmer said.

Holdrege has many options for retailers and restaurants including opportunities for ground-up development as well as the availability of existing spaces, Farmer said. It also serves a large population base.

“Holdrege is a regional market serving an area at least four times larger than the community population,” Farmer said. “And, multiple site opportunities are available.”

The Retail Coach team is currently wrapping up a market analysis of the area, which includes determining the trade area and analyzing the retail demand outlook, demographics and local consumer values, lifestyles and attitudes.

The team uses cell phone analysis technology to determine Holdrege’s Retail Trade Area, which is the defined boundary from which the community draws 80-85 percent of its primary consumers. This type of geofencing paints a bigger picture of how many people are visiting Holdrege on a daily, monthly, and yearly basis.

Using their data, The Retail Coach will determine which dominant retail categories best fit the community and have the highest prospect for success. Their team will create retail profile reports and marketing materials to promote the community to national and regional retailers and restaurants and actively recruit those concepts on PCDC’s behalf.
 
“Retailers and developers must ‘fit’ the market based on their location requirements,” Farmer said. “We use research, your community demographics and  psychographics and available sites to target retailers and developers that may be interested in your community.”

The Retail Coach team will visit Holdrege in the next month or so for an on-the-ground market visit.

PCDC has contracted with The Retail Coach for at least one year.  Farmer said after the initial studies are complete, his firm will reach out to prospects.

“We can expect to hear back from some of them fairly quickly,” Farmer said. “Once we initially hear back from a prospect, it can take anywhere from 6-18 months before the retailer is open for business.”

PCDC’s partnership with The Retail Coach also benefits existing businesses. Farmer said all of the data analysis will be provided to existing businesses in Holdrege. His team is willing to visit with individual business owners to identify opportunities from a marketing standpoint, expansion opportunities and franchising opportunities.

“We are excited about this new partnership with PCDC,” Farmer said. “Holdrege is a community with retail and restaurant opportunities, and we are excited about helping to grow the community’s retail base. Retail plays a big role in the overall quality of life of a community, and we are looking forward to helping build on Holdrege’s existing assets.”