Building Interest in Retail Development (Part 1)

Posted by Rickey Hayes on October 28, 2015 in Blog | 2 Comments

Retailers want to invest in locations where there’s demand for what they supply. To attract large retailers to your city, you have to build interest in retail development by letting them know your city has what they’re looking for. Retail Attractions is uniquely qualified to help with this task. We have years of experience assessing what you have to offer, and we know exactly how to market your community to the retail world.

Know Your Demographics

Before you can invite large retailers to build in your city, you must be able to offer them good reasons to invest in your community. Retailers want to see demographics for your city presented in a reliable, professional format so they can decide whether or not your city is worth their investment. They don’t want to lose money on a project any more than you do.

Retail Attractions offers Demographic Data and Market Analysis services to help you supply this demand. We know what retailers are looking for, and we’ll help you present your city demographics in a way that lets retailers know you’re serious about working with them. Retailers will appreciate that you were able to supply reliable demographics compiled by a third party, and it will make them more likely to consider investing in your city.

Show There’s Demand

Sometimes office and housing growth in developing towns or up-and-coming suburbs moves faster than retailers can develop the area. This isn’t just a challenge that affects small cities – larger areas like McKinney and Frisco, Texas, can also struggle with retail development lagging behind population growth. For quickly developing urban areas, you want to attract retail investors as soon as possible, and that’s where Retail Attractions can help.

To attract larger retailers to your city, they need to know there’s demand for their services. Retail Attractions can assist with compiling Opportunity Gap Analysis to show retailers that your city is a good location for their next development. If you can show that the market isn’t oversaturated, retailers are more likely to invest in your city.

Build Relationships

Good business is built on good relationships. If your city doesn’t already have contacts with retail developers, it can be hard to “get your foot in the door” on your own. Preexisting relationships with developers, and with the retail businesses they’ll bring in, is critical for starting the recruitment process.

Here’s another area where Retail Attractions can help. Founder Rickey Hayes already has a strong network of contacts, and he’ll introduce your city officials to investors, builders and business leaders. This helps with attracting retailers to your city now, and also makes it easier for your community to market itself in the future.

Retail Attractions Advises on Muskogee Urban Renewal

Posted by Retail Attractions on October 10, 2015 in Blog | No Comments

Retail Attractions Advises on Muskogee Urban Renewal

Time, chance, and retail development wait for no man. When Armstrong Development Properties Inc. wanted to delay development of a retail property in Muskogee, Oklahoma, it was time for city planners in the local community to shift their focus. Land tracts along West Shawnee Bypass are prime real estate, and there’s plenty of interest in developing this location.

With the help of Retail Attractions, the city of Muskogee plans on bringing in large-tract developers who can then bring in big-box retailers. Tracts chosen for urban renewal will include housing, office space, and retail attractions.

“There’s a ton of interest and some internal discussions about how to proceed putting that into the hands of those who wish to develop it,” says Retail Attractions’ founder Rickey Hayes. He continues, “The Armstrong deal is off. The entity wanted to delay, and we can’t hold good dirt because somebody wants to delay – we’ve got people wanting it.”

Retail Attractions is an economic development consulting firm. They advise communities on retail development projects with the goal of increasing city revenue and improving the quality of life within the community. By applying reliable data to real needs in the community, Retail Attractions provides useful information that benefits both cities and companies looking to invest in retail development.

Once presented for final approval in October, the city of Muskogee will proceed with a master plan to develop areas between Chicago and 11th streets on the east and west and Shawnee Bypass and Talladega Street on the north and south. This plan, assembled by the Planning Design Group from Tulsa, includes multi-family and single-family housing, office and warehouse space, and retail centers. It is designed around a 20-acre focal point which will include restaurants, water features and one of the two shopping centers planned for this project.

Retail investment and development companies that do strike a deal with the city of Muskogee will also benefit from Retail Attractions’ experienced assistance. By fostering effective communication, Hayes’ company helps retailers translate their expectations into information that city planners can work with easily.

In his testimonial about working with the Retail Attractions team, Jim Tapp of Tapp Development describes Ricky Hayes as “an interface.” Tapp says,”The greatest strength Ricky has for our company is a communicator. He’s a go-between for us to communicate with these cities.”

For further information about this project, and other available properties, contact Rickey Hayes at Retail Attractions.