Columbia Seeks New Business at Midwest Trade Show

The City of Columbia participated in Kansas City this week in a trade show sponsored by the International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC), the global trade association for the retail industry.  The Heartland States Idea Exchange, which migrates each year between Omaha, Kansas City and St. Louis, offers one of the Midwest's best opportunities to learn about trends in retailing and to meet national and regional retailers who may be looking to expand into new locations.

Paul Ellis, Columbia's Director of Community & Economic Development, attended the event for the second year running.  This year, he was prepared with display materials and virtual magazines (on attractive mini-CDs) offering economic and community information. About 250 businesspeople attended the event--roughly 20% retailers, 60% brokers (some of whom were representing retailers), and 20% representatives from cities like Columbia and Grain Valley, MO. The event included workshops, roundtable discussions and an afternoon deal-making session with about 60 exhibitors.

Columbia's results from the Kansas City event include leads from a number of restaurants, sporting goods stores, discount merchandisers and even a national bookstore.  Ellis will now be working with local real estate professionals and building owners to turn these leads into tenants.

Small Town Guru Jack Schultz to Visit Columbia February 8th

Jack Schultz, nationally acclaimed author of Boomtown USA: The 7 ½ Keys to Big Success in Small Towns, will be the keynote speaker at a special forum for the Monroe County Economic Development Council (MCEDC) on Monday, February 8th at The Falls Reception and Conference Center in Columbia.

The forum is sponsored by Midland States Bank. Doors will open at 7:00 a.m. and the event will conclude around 9:00 a.m.

Schultz, founder and CEO of Agracel, Inc., an industrial development firm specializing in rural America, is a top economic development authority on small towns just like those in Monroe County. His book has already inspired many communities to find their own vision.

The Boomtown USA project took more than three years of research beginning with 15,800 small towns across the country. Schultz narrowed the list down to a group of 397 outstanding small towns he calls "agurbs"--communities that were growing and offering opportunities to their young people while others were turning into ghost towns. His research has been featured in USA Today, Forbes and BusinessWeek (among others), and he has been a guest on numerous radio and television programs including Bloomberg Business Television.

Schultz has taken his message on the road to more than 300 communities in 44 states since 2004. In 2005, Schultz was named Ernst & Young’s Illinois Entrepreneur of the Year and in 2006 he received the Beta Gamma Sigma Medallion for Entrepreneurship.

His company, Agracel, has completed projects in 14 states, owning seven million square feet of industrial space, which has facilitated more than 5,000 jobs. The company owns 15 business parks and a short line railroad.

At the upcoming Monroe County forum, Schultz will talk about the characteristics of towns that are successful as well as the importance of encouraging an entrepreneurial approach in the community. He will also share reasons why it is vital to support local businesses and ideas about how small towns can survive and thrive during hard economic times.

Attendees can register for the event by going to the U of I Extension-Monroe County website, via email or by calling 618-939-3434.