Shelly Kaiser brings 'passion' as Jackson's new retail chief

Shelly Wessell Kaiser, a 1990 graduate of Jackson High School, became retail and membership director nearly three months ago of both the City of Jackson and Jackson Area Chamber of Commerce.

Kaiser, who succeeded Jen Berti in the role, is clear about what persuaded her to leave a more than 30-year career in banking.

"I followed my heart and my passion," said Kaiser, who holds a dual role with the chamber and city, according to chamber executive director Brian Gerau.

Shelly Wessell Kaiser

Shelly Wessell Kaiser

"Mayor (Dwain) Hahs and I sat down and we looked at the needs of the community — the city and the chamber — and with advice from our chamber board and city aldermen, we came up with a split position, with half of the role being chamber membership and programming responsibilities and half retail (business) recruitment for the City of Jackson," said Gerau, who himself has led the chamber in the Cape Girardeau County seat for more than 14 years.

Kaiser, in the hybrid job, is paid equally by both entities.

In April 17 State of the City remarks to the Jackson Board of Aldermen after his April 4 reelection, Hahs reflected on the historical importance of Kaiser's undertaking.

"A major partnership was formed with the Jackson Area Chamber of Commerce for retail expansion and the increased sales taxes that will result. A full-time retail director was hired and over 70 new bricks-and-mortar businesses have been added during this time. Retail sales have grown 39% in the last five years from $224 million to $312 million at our present growth rate," said Hahs, who became mayor eight years ago.

"I've always enjoyed being an ambassador for both the Jackson and Cape Girardeau chambers," said Kaiser, winner of Jackson chamber's Woman of the Year (WIN) Award in 2022 and most recently a mortgage loan originator with Alliance Bank. "I'm partial to Jackson because i love the city, so when this opportunity became available, I had to jump on it."

Gerau said there was no template followed for creating the position Kaiser has held since Feb. 1.

"I don't know a lot of chambers and cities that have this kind of hybrid position (and) we do get a lot of inquiries about how the job was put together. My response is you have to have a city and chamber on the same page about wanting growth — whether that's growth in sales, in bricks-and-mortar or in population. Everything lined up pretty well six or seven years ago to do this. No, we didn't follow anybody else's lead. We basically sat down with the city and we asked each other what we're wanting. One answer is we always want to increase retail sales tax revenue." he said.

Philosophy and outlook

Kaiser said she has a perspective on what makes Jackson — one of the faster growing municipalities in Missouri between 2010 and 2020 according to the U.S. Census Bureau — attractive from a retail point of view.

"I believe safety, housing and education are key selling points for recruiting business to Jackson," she said.

Kaiser has long been known as a prolific photo taker at Jackson chamber events.

"I've gone from being the unofficial to the official photographer," she joked.

"I love people and my community. I've never met a stranger and I'm a cheerleader."

Accomplishment

"We do (retail) quarterly reports and we meet with Mayor Hahs monthly, sometimes weekly, to talk about developers we've met with and businesses we've reached out to. This is our second retail director and retail sales tax revenue has blown up in tandem with the population increase in Jackson," Gerau said. "We're proud of this hybrid position and appreciate the city for having the vision to create it. We want to make sure we're pretty transparent and to ensure the city knows they're getting a return on their investment. (Kaiser's) position is demanding because you're meeting with movers and shakers in the development and retail communities and with the leadership of your city. It takes the right person to multi-task to talk to a major grocer and then shift gears to meet with new chamber members. It's a high pressure, results-driven job."

Gerau indicated that while attracting businesses is a goal, with 10 new bricks-and-mortar outlets an aggressive yearly target, the chamber won’t lose sight of the folks already in the chamber.

“We also believe sometimes you have to grow from the inside out. It’s not just recruiting new but making sure our existing businesses have what they need if they want to expand and that they have all the resources they need,” he said.

Asked what success will look like in the years ahead, Kaiser offered these concluding thoughts.

"Success is helping Jackson grow and bringing big city things to a little city. Keep the little city feel but have the big city attraction," she said.

Do you want more business news? Check out B Magazine, and the B Magazine email newsletter. Go to www.semissourian.com/newsletters to find out more.