Destination Meadowlands: Recruiting Retail and Growing Businesses Locally

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DAY ONE

Growing your District: Retail Recruitment
April 18, 2012

Retail Recruitment Tools and Methods for Business District Managers, Chamber Officials and Leaders involved in recruiting businesses to their districts.

New Jersey Meadowlands Commission Environment Center

NOTE: Each pre-registrant shall receive a packet of current economic data, pertinent to their respective commercial district, for use in retail recruitment. The packet will include: a site map of the district; demographic and income data; lifestyle (psychographic) data; retail supply and demand data for 3 radii of the district; a summary of the existing businesses; and updated traffic counts in and near their district.

8:00 am: Registration, refreshments

8:45 am: Program introduction: NJMC & MSNJ

9:00 am: Retail Recruitment: Program Overview (JGSC Group)

9:15 am: Recruitment lexicon: a discussion of the language used by the retail industry that the downtown manager needs to know

9:45 am: Site selection: the process and criteria for identifying best sites on which to prioritize the recruitment program

10:30 am: Break

10:45 am: Retail mix: using recruitment as a tool to achieve optimal retail mix for the trade area

12:00 pm: Break to distribute lunch. Lunchtime Remarks TBC

12:15 pm: (Program resumes during meal) Market data: the use of market data to determine sustainable categories

A.  Discussion of process

B.  Review of data packages (generic discussion to describe components included in each data package)

1. A site map of their district, with 3 radii centered on their busiest, or as the industry calls it, their “100% intersection”;

2. Demographic and income data;

3. Lifestyle (psychographic) data;

4. Retail supply and demand data for the 3 radii;

5. A summary of existing businesses; and

6. Updated traffic counts in and near their site.

2:30 pm: Break

2:45 pm: Prospecting: the identification, prequalification, and solicitation of appropriate retail prospects

3:30 pm: Final Q & A

4:00 pm: Program ends.

DAY TWO

Growing Your Own:  Building Destination Businesses
April 19, 2012

Cutting Edge Approaches to Success for Small Business Owners/Operators. Downtown Professionals and Officials

New Jersey Meadowlands Commission Environment Center

Thursday, April 19, 2012—

8:00-9:00 Registration, Networking, Coffee & Refreshments

9:00 Welcome

9:10 Introduction- NJMC, Main Street New Jersey & Improvement District Programs

9:15-10:45 How to Make Your Current Business a Destination, Pt. 1: Steps and tools you can use right now to increase your businesses’ profits, reach and sustainability —Jon Schallert (www.destinationuniversity.com)

10:45-11:00 Break

11:00-12:30 How to Make Your Current Business a Destination, Pt. 2: Steps and tools you can use right now to increase your businesses’ profits, reach and sustainability —Jon Schallert, Principal, The Schallert Group

12:30-1:30 Lunch

Remarks: TBC

1:30-2:30 The Most Bang for your Buck: Advertising Tips and Techniques for Tough Times – Best practices to leverage your businesses’ assets and maximize your media and message —Rich Carraro, Principal, www.Clownbike.com

2:30-4:00 Destination Marketing Roundtable: Jon will address individual marketing and destination creation challenges of attendees, giving them a specific Take-Away Plan to take home and implement using his Destination Strategies