City study analyzes shoppers

By Alicia Petska

Published: October 7, 2008

Lynchburg’s leaders are trying to come to grips with reality. At least when it comes to economic

development.

On Tuesday, the city released some of the broader findings of a new study designed to offer an unvarnished assessment of the community’s appeal to the retail industry.

The analysis — commissioned by the Industrial Development Authority — sought to create a realistic portrait of the local market and what it can or cannot attain.

“Sometimes, we look in the mirror and think we’re the Queen of Sheba,” said City Councilman Jeff Helgeson, part of a wide assortment of government officials on hand for the presentation. “Hopefully, this will get us to look at who we really are, and what we can attract.”

The retail study was carried out by the Texas-based matchmaking firm Buxton, which bills itself as the industry leader in customer analysis.

The company was called upon to examine the retail draw of four primary areas: downtown, midtown, River Ridge mall, and the proposed Lakeside Centre site.

Shoppers in each area were broken down into 66 different categories or “consumer buckets.” Compatible retail matches were then suggested for only one of the reviewed districts, in accordance with the terms of the contract.

The city chose the Lakeside Centre area for that

distinction.

The presentation made Tuesday glossed over most of the study’s conclusions, and offered only a cursory glance at some of the data amassed.

Economic Development Director Marjette Glass said the full demographic report will eventually be released to the public and made available to interested developers and business owners.

The names of specific retailers recommended, however, will likely be deemed confidential due to the sensitivity of the information, she said.

Economic development staffers and IDA members plan to refine the current list of eligible retailers down to a final 15. Those desired tenants will then be courted with the help of Buxton consultants.

The ensuing marketing efforts will not be carried out in conjunction with Lakeside Centre, officials said, although the site of that stalled project is the focal point of the area used to draw up the suggested list.

The city chose to single out Lakeside in part because of its announced development, Glass said, but officials were also interested in examining the potential of the surrounding area and will not be working to recruit tenants for a single project.

Buxton considered

everything within a 12-minute drive of Lakeside Centre to be part of that area for the purposes of its evaluation.

The Buxton study comes at a time when economic turmoil nationwide is stifling many of Lynchburg’s commercial projects, including Lakeside Centre.

Chip Rodgers, a senior vice president with the company, said a turnaround is anticipated in the next year or so, though, and the city needs to be in position to reap the benefits of that rebound.

“Let’s make sure to do the right things today, so when they start to grow, they grow here first,” he said.

Glass said Buxton’s insight will help her office tailor its marketing strategies and mount more effective sales pitches to prospective

businesses.

The company was paid $55,000 for its services. The presentation of its findings was made at a meeting of the IDA, but attendance at the event was extended to several parts of the city government, including City Council and the planning commission.

Some council members suggested the big-box ordinance — a long-debated measure that will come to council later this year — should be tabled until the city’s new economic development priorities were established.

The city planner, who has been a strong advocate of the suggested ordinance, in turn expressed concern about any possibility the city might lower its development

standards.