Success Stories In Retail Recruitment

Kingsport Finds the Answer to Retail Development

The Right Information is Key

Retailers ask a lot of questions before locating to a particular area. If your city isn’t able to provide answers, it hinders efforts to increase shopping opportunities for your residents and tax revenues for your budget.

That’s exactly what city leaders in Kingsport, Tenn., learned when they attempted to attract retailers to their community. “When we did get meetings with retailers, they all asked the same questions that we were unable to answer,” says Jeff Fleming, assistant city manager, City of Kingsport. “It became apparent pretty quickly that we didn’t have enough information about our city.”

Kingsport leaders began their quest to lure retail development after market share slipped. Located in a tri-cities area, Kingsport was historically the market leader. But when a retail shift occurred, they found themselves lagging behind another city in retail sales.

Explaining just what their city had to offer proved to be challenging. Retailers and developers needed proof that their investment in Kingsport would be prudent. “We had a problem explaining that we were an underserved market. We knew we were underserved; we just didn’t have the information to back it up,” Fleming says.

The power of good information soon became clear. “We knew there had to be credible data out there after hearing it from the other side (retailers). We were slowly learning the value of information,” Fleming says.
Tired of failing to adequately answer retailers’ questions, Kingsport contracted with Buxton to get answers.

Data at Your Fingertips

Buxton provided information about specific retailers that were needed in Kingsport. And, Buxton helped Kingsport understand which retailers would work in new planned developments, Kingsport Pavilion and East Stone Commons.

Kingsport leaders focused their attention on the “Top 20” retailers and restaurants they wanted to attract. Their targeted strategy includes sending updated information each month. “I gather public sector information and supplement it with the Buxton data,” Fleming says. “It’s the one little extra piece of information that will convince someone that Kingsport is the right location. All of the developers in our area use it.”

Additionally, Fleming has been able to utilize the Leakage/Surplus Analysis report through SCOUT to show retailers which retail sectors are being underserved in their trade area. “The new report through SCOUT is easy to access and has been an invaluable tool for us, being able to show developers and retailers which retail sectors are currently underserved,” says Fleming.  

As a result of these efforts, Kingsport has seen success as retailers are relocating to Kingsport Pavilion and East Stone Commons. Retailers moving to these developments include Hobby Lobby, Pier 1, Ross, TJ Maxx, Chili’s, Old Navy, Office Depot, PetSmart and Dress Barn, as well as regional restaurants.

Fleming says: “Regarding all the relocation to our new developments, the Buxton data was the piece of information we were missing to convince these retailers that Kingsport Pavilion or East Stone Commons was the right fit for them.”

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