Catalyst Commercial and our retail initiative

This summer the City of Jackson, the City of Cape Girardeau, and the Chamber of Commerce of Greater Cape Girardeau and Jackson Area contracted with Catalyst Commercial. Through this agreement Catalyst will provide each city with a specific merchandising plan to be used by Catalyst, the cities, and Chamber of Commerce to promote our area to retailers. The final goal is to recruit new retail business to the area.

As I study the retail industry I am learning more and more about the challenges facing cities. Because of the importance of sales taxes, cities want to assure they have a vibrant retail business base. This creates a very competitive environment between cities and areas to attract retailers and to assist their present retailers to expand.

I am very pleased we have been able to combine this project across the two cities. By combining this project with Cape Girardeau we were able to split the cost of the analytical work and recruiting costs. We were also able to receive assistance from the Industrial Development Authority of Cape Girardeau County. While both cities have the goal to increase retail sales, we can work together to attract specific retailers based on the needs and opportunities of each city.

The process is very data driven and requires the ability to analyze information about population, income, demographics and the present business environment. This information is used to identify retail gaps or opportunities.

From national statistical analysis every 10,000 vehicles generates approximately 930 square feet of retail demand. Additionally, every 1,000 employees in the local workforce generate 2,500 square feet of retail demand. Initial information on our area is that our trade area has a sales potential of $4.8 million, which can support 16 million square feet of retail. Our primary trade has a population of 102,000, a $46,746 median household income and 50,525 employees.

All this data is then used to find matches with retailers' location requirements, allowing us to promote our cities and recruit those retailers. The information also will be used by local and regional retailers to make decisions on business expansion opportunities.

Catalyst Commercial was founded in 2009 by Jason Claunch. The company is based in Dallas, Texas. They promote themselves as a small, outcome-oriented, data-driven firm with experience working on over 180 projects. All team members are involved in the details of the project while having specific areas of expertise. The project will be led by the president, Jason Claunch.

I am excited about this retail initiative. While we are only two months into the project the data for our area is very positive. The draft of the merchandising plans and the marketing materials will be finalized by the beginning of October. Recruiting and promotion will then proceed.

While we all want immediate success, the sales and decision cycle will take time. While some retail businesses can make quick decisions on expansion and site selection most require years to go through this analytical process. Finally, sometimes decisions are finalized by a competitive process between developers, areas and cities. The most important point is that we are in the game and competing as cities and the area for new retail business.

Dwain Hahs is the mayor of Jackson.