With major construction on the horizon, the Springfield Redevelopment Authority has hired The Retail Coach, a national retail recruitment consultant already working with officials in Hartford, to come up with a plan to renew and expand retail and restaurant offerings.
The firm will study the retail market and potential customers within a 15-to 20- minute drive — from just south of Enfield, Connecticut, to Easthampton in the north, said Chief Development Officer Timothy T. Sheehan.
He and the Development Authority are aware of the challenges faced by retail.
“We will look at the business uses that stimulate pedestrian activity,” he said. “That doesn’t necessarily have to be like a dress shop.”
But it might be a dress shop. GodUs Boutique is preparing to move to Main Street, into a storefront within the study’s focus area of Main from Harrison Avenue to Union Street. The shop struggled with visibility on Taylor Street after moving when the Eastfield Mall was razed.
And no one realistically envisions a return to the hustle-bustle days of big downtown department stores.
“It may not be at the scale of Forbes & Wallace and Steiger’s,” Sheehan said, referring to two long-closed destinations. “But having a retail presence is critical for engagement downtown.”
Food and beverage expansion is key to attracting business as well. He noted that COVID-19 virtually shut down the business district just a few years ago.
“It’s critically important that we understand who that market is and try and build upon experiences,” Sheehan said.
The Redevelopment Authority has a two-year-contract with The Retail Coach, headquartered in Austin, Texas. The company will be paid $134,500 from SRA operating funds collected through property transactions.
“The SRA reviewed multiple proposals for this work, and The Retail Coach stood out as the most qualified with a strong, action-oriented approach,” said Springfield Redevelopment Authority Chair Margaret Boyle in a written statement.
Sheehan said the Retail Coach will also help recruit retailers and restaurants to the city.
A lunchtime crowd strolled Wednesday on the blocks where The Retail Coach will focus.
Owners Nina Ortiz and Khesahn Reid moved their restaurant, Flame on Vegan, to Main Street from Agawam in February.
Their fried “veken” sandwich (“chicken” made from oyster mushrooms) is a specialty.
For much of their time so far, construction at the nearby Thirtyone Elm project and the rebuilding of Court Square itself meant their storefront was blocked from view.
“Now, things are picking up,” Reid said.
He is surprised at the number of out-of-town visitors and is thinking of posting a map and asking folks to put a pin at their hometown.
“Whether it’s for a concert, or a competition at MassMutual Center,” Ortiz said. “We get a lot of families in town for gymnastics and cheerleading competitions.”
Wednesday, it was locksmiths – in town for the 45th annual Yankee Security Convention – emerging from the MassMutual Center to grab lunch and check their phones.
Conventions hold the key.
But Brett Albert, owner of Rumspringa Books with a location off Main Street inside Nosh Cafe, said many patrons are what he calls “destination” visitors, headed to a particular place.
“We don’t have what some other nearby cities have, which is people who come and browse,” he said.
It’s the chicken-and-the-egg problem. More stores and restaurants would mean more people. But more business won’t open without more people.
Also frustrating, he said, are landlords who hold rents higher than the earning potential of a business in that location could support. That results in empty storefronts.
Sheehan said all those concerns as well as parking and the perception of safety came up in early discussions with The Retail Coach.
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