Downtown business recruitment
Find the right businesses for your downtown
Recruit the businesses your community wants with a strategy tailored to your market, available spaces, and long-term vision.
Downtown recruitment is different
Recruiting businesses for a downtown requires a different approach than recruiting for a shopping center or highway corridor.
Success depends on understanding both what your market can support and what independent businesses, regional operators, and expanding brands are looking for.
That’s where we come in.
So, you know, almost every city that we talk to, they want more retail in their downtown. And of course, that provides a great opportunity for them to really show the character of their community with local businesses, whether that's boutiques or restaurants or even fitness studios and hair salons. And so there's a really deep desire for city leaders to have that. But so often the question is, what comes first? Is it that I have this great retail and awesome brewery and then people come and it becomes this great kind of hotspot? Or is it the reverse? Do I have to get the people there first? Then comes the retail. So when we launched Downtown Recruitment, we really wanted to serve our cities in kind of both ways, helping them first gauge the vitality in their downtown. Vitality is a word that we use a lot that really is kind of a litmus test for buzz in the downtown, if you will. What's happening? How does it feel? There aren't very many true metrics, you know, data or things like that that can gauge vitality. Sometimes foot traffic and sales tax being generated, sometimes those can be metrics, but generally it's something that you really feel when you go to a community. So when we work with cities, we want to first help them kind of gauge their vitality, amp that up if necessary, and then recruit retail, you know, existing local businesses that may want to open a new store, but also really holistically elevate the rest of the small business ecosystem downtown. So we have a very kind of wide ranging approach to improving the retail in our client communities.
What we do
Build a recruitment strategy around your downtown
We start by studying your business mix, available properties, consumer demand, retail leakage, visitor patterns, demographics, and walkability. That research shapes a strategy focused on businesses that complement your downtown and strengthen its identity.
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Recruit businesses that fit your community
A thriving downtown comes from the right mix of businesses, not from filling every vacancy. We target restaurants, specialty retail, entertainment, local entrepreneurs, and regional brands, each evaluated for market demand and long-term success.
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Handle the outreach
Our team works as an extension of your staff, identifying qualified prospects and connecting directly with business owners and decision-makers. We coordinate with property owners and support site evaluation so your downtown gets introduced to the right businesses instead of waiting to be discovered.
Downtown Resources
Downtown retail recruitment checklist
Struggling to fill vacancies or attract the right mix of retailers to your downtown?
Download our free checklist to attract the right businesses and build a thriving downtown district.
What you receive
Market intelligence
We start with industry-leading mobile and economic data, including retail gap analysis, demographics, walkability, and commute patterns. Our exclusive access to Kalibrate means we recruit Main Street businesses with Wall Street data.
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In-market workshop
Within the first 90 days, our team is on the ground in your community for a walking tour, core team meeting, and stakeholder input session. Together we identify priority properties for adaptive reuse, backfilling, and redevelopment.
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Downtown market assessment
We combine data, real estate findings, and in-market observations into a market conditions report and downtown property catalog. You also get priority business categories and a community survey that builds public buy-in.
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Strategic business recruitment
We find the right contacts at prospective retailers and match their expansion plans to specific sites in your downtown. From introductions to site visits, we nurture leads through the full life of a deal.
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Capacity building and retention
Existing businesses get access to an on-demand training platform with private accounts, peer forums, and direct access to instructors. Recruitment and retention work hand in hand.
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Policy and systems optimization
We listen to prospective and existing businesses to assess local policies. Our recommendations remove barriers, encourage investment, and create a more predictable, business-friendly downtown.
Recruiting businesses to your downtown
Empty storefronts send the wrong message. Downtown Strategies President Jenn Gregory walks through how to make your downtown investable, bring property owners to the table, and recruit the local shops, restaurants, and experiences your community wants.
Practitioners, not just consultants
Our team has run Main Street programs and worked with downtowns across the country. We know what it takes to fill a storefront, from getting property owners on board to finding the right business for the space, and we bring that experience to every community we partner with.