An update from City Planner, Curtis Thomas:
Last night, we gave a presentation to City Council to reveal the results of the Grocery Store Survey and the associated market research. Attached you can find the slide deck. Here is a summary:
In our Economic Development Strategic Plan, we identified the lack of a grocery store as a competitive disadvantage. This led us to the research question: Can Creswell support a grocery store, and if so, what size grocery store? At a staff level, we heard plenty of anecdotes about the desire for the grocery store, but we lacked the DATA to be able to agree or disagree. Per the survey and market research, we can confidently say that Creswell can support a grocery store of about 20,000 square feet. To put the size into perspective, Bi-Mart is about 30,000 square feet and the average sized Winco is 90,000 square feet.
Therefore, a 20,000 square foot grocery store in Creswell will have to find a way to compete with the local Walmart, Costco, and Winco. It is not easy. In my opinion, a local grocer will have to find a way to create and maintain brand loyalty in order to be competitive. A few people in the survey asked why we are investigating this question, when Ray’s was not successful. Rays had a highly unfavorable rental-lease agreement, which led to a trickle-down result of high prices and bad reputation.
In the survey, Creswellians responded that they prioritize price, convenience, options, and availability of fresh produce – no surprises there! The market research further recommends that a local grocer focus on produce, fresh meats, dairy, etc. As you all already know, grocery stores provide cleaning supplies, pharmaceuticals, and “pantry” items. In Creswell, we already have stores that carry those goods, meaning the market is semi-saturated in those areas. A local grocer should try to fill the gap.
We have shared the results of this project with Farmlands, the only grocer who has shown recent interest in expanding in Creswell. While they understand the market potential and clientele, Farmlands is determining the feasibility of moving to a new building, expanding operations, and taking a financial risk. We have connected Farmlands with Grocer Consultant to help decision making.
Best,
Curtis Thomas
City of Creswell
Planner
541. 895. 2531 ext. 326 | cthomas@creswell-or.us
City Council Slideshow: https://5il.co/2hcvl