The City Of Columbus Is Talking Retail Recruitment

COLUMBUS, Miss. (WCBI) – In the city of Columbus’s working budget, there is $36,000 set aside for a one year contract to possibly hire a retail recruiter for Columbus.

More retail is something every town is after. It generates more money, more people and more business to town.

The city of Columbus is talking R and R, aka retail recruitment. Councilman Charlie Box says a town this size should have more retail options.

He also says a recent study done by the Chamber of Commerce, highlights why the city needs more.

“There was over $1 million worth of shrinkage per year. Which means we’re losing $1 million dollars worth of retail shopping in Columbus, and it’s moving to towns like Tuscaloosa, Starkville, West Point, all over, so we’ve got to stop that bleeding. We’ve got to get some stores in here so our people won’t have to travel,” said Box.

Box says bringing those shoppers and that money to Columbus instead is the overall goal in hiring a retail recruiter.

The city has been paying the L.I.N.K. a little over $100,000 a year for a decade to do that, but Box says the city now wants someone focused strictly on the retail sector.

“About $1 million that we have paid them for industrial development and recruiting and we feel like that we just haven’t got enough for our money. So, that’s why we want somebody actually on board working for us. The L.I.N.K. has done a fantastic job with industrial development for the county, but not so much for the city,” said Box.

Mark Castleberry has property in eight different cities across Mississippi and has been in the commercial real estate game since 1992.

He says the first thing businesses look at is the market, which is Columbus in this instance.

“Will it support their concept? And so first, there has to be a marriage at that level and then, okay, they’ve approved the market. They want to be in Columbus. Now, where do they want to be in Columbus? What type of a property do they want to be in Columbus? And that’s where hopefully, one of our properties would be appropriate,” said Castleberry.

Castleberry says everyone wants a Target or Olive Garden in their town, but it all boils down to certain things for these types of big retail stores.

“People don’t necessarily come to Columbus because they like Columbus and that may sound kind of negative, but they like Columbus because of its average income, average household income, its population within a three mile drive, five mile drive and different companies have their own on how far do their concepts draw from,” said Castleberry.

Councilmen have narrowed down their search to one retail recruiting firm and will be voting on hiring the group at Wednesday’s council meeting.