Despite the constant pressures in the form of online sales and unfavorable regulations, small-town businesses – often called main street businesses – survive; even many of them are thriving. Main street business is actually a trend today. How so?
Lower competition, lower startup costs, better market (as more people are going to suburbs for better quality of living – especially those who have retired) – they encourage the rising trend of going suburb.
You can see the ‘wind of change’ from the number of media coverage on thriving main street businesses.
It’s a fact: New businesses are coming to small towns
Let’s have a look at the small town of Allegheny, Pennsylvania, USA. Communities in Allegheny are hand-in-hand in making the local neighborhoods better – from planting flowers to reshaping their streets – in an effort to attract people and businesses. So far, their hard labor has been fruitful: For the fiscal year that ended June 30, 2012, those 11 business districts saw a net gain of 21 businesses, bringing their total number to 914 businesses.
Another example is coming from The Monroe Monitor and Valley News: Eight new businesses come to Main Street, reducing the number of empty storefront on Main Street, Monroe to six. This breathes fresh air to the local community, and also becomes one of many examples how Main Street is flourishing.
How about some success stories to ‘prove’ the trend?
Mark Pollard, the Co-Founders of Bread Euphoria Cafe, Main Street Haydenville, MA, USA, shares his story of how moving to small town has given him and his family a chance to buy a local bakery and continue to serve the local communities – both people and businesses – and thrive.
How about Wendy Carter’s success story? She opened a small consignment store in the small city of Lilburn, GA, face tough challenge in establishing the store on the Old Town Lilburn, which traffic is rather low due to the recent close-down of a restaurant and a few other shops. She proves that being proactive and forming partnership with the competition works in making her small business thrives.
Big businesses are eying on rural and suburbs, too!
Not only independent business owners, big businesses are also eying on the rising trend in small town business. Just ask The UPS Store.
In my recent Q&A session with Michelle Van Slyke, Vice President of Marketing and Small Business Solutions for The UPS Store on their latest program – Main Street franchise model, she explains that The UPS Store considers rurals and suburbs to be an ideal market to explore.
This new model offers plenty of benefits, such as lower capital requirement and more operational flexibility. Along with up to $80,000 reduction in initial capital requirement, franchisees can access a more flexible operating structure – depending on the nature of the market.
Takeaway
Obviously, just like any other things in life, there’s a set of pros and cons when it comes to opening a business on Main Street. Low traffic, low potential revenue, and so on can be a real challenge for new Main Street businesses. However, better environment, low competition and great local communities’ initiative in improving the attractiveness of their local neighborhood can be a real game changer in the near future.
Today, I can see the ripples. If you are interested in starting a business on suburbs, you should get ready to ride when the ripples are eventually becoming a big wave.
