Several of the experts who contributed to Downtown Idea Exchange’s annual Looking Ahead article cited a growing emphasis on nurturing startups in cities of all sizes. The first step, they say, is recognizing a new breed of non-traditional entrepreneur.
Research at the University of Wisconsin-Madison suggests that small business startups in rural communities are more important in creating new jobs than most larger existing businesses, notes Bill Ryan, community development specialist with University of Wisconsin-Extension.
“The paradigm for small cities throughout the country for job recruitment used to be attracting a big company from the next town over, or the next state,” says Ryan. Going forward, he suggests that small cities look closely at nurturing startups and providing space for them downtown.
One interesting trend revealed in the research is that, other than in larger cities, it is baby boomers, rather than millennials, who are launching startups.
As this demographic retires, and then decides to launch the shop they’ve always dreamed of, or to put their skills back to work, the number of older startup owners will grow, Ryan says. “Downtowns in rural areas should pay attention to these entrepreneurs as they may be a better target for new business development. Research also points out that the new business startups in rural communities are often by people with a Bachelor’s Degree, or with specific skills. In 2017, rural downtowns should increase efforts to reach these people, including those who grew up in the community, but moved away to build their careers.”
In addition to start ups, some surprising business sectors are poised for a comeback. “One more thing I think we are going to be watching is the continuing return to small-scale production in manufacturing,” says Patrice Frey, president and CEO of the National Main Street Center. “We may see that intensify over the coming year. It really is well-suited to the kind of building stock we tend to see in downtowns and neighborhood commercial districts.
“There’s a whole maker boom that we’re seeing, with independent coffee shops and microbreweries, but also with folks who are producing clothing downtown. The exciting thing about these types of businesses is that these can be higher paying jobs, and their economic impact is significant.” In fact, Frey says, there is a dollar for dollar return on investment for communities where small manufacturing businesses thrive when the multiplier effect is taken in to account. “That’s a nice return, in terms of investment,” she says.
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