IDA Milwaukee Conference: Day 2

IDA Milwaukee

Sunday, September 13th:

Today was another great day in Milwaukee.  The weather felt similar to that of a typical summer day in Lincoln, NE (even though most Lincolnites know there is no such thing as typical weather in their city).

My morning kicked off at the Midwest Airlines Conference center where I attended a Young Leaders of IDA meeting led by P.U.M.A’s Jamie Licko, an IDA board member, and new IDA CEO, Kit Cramer.  It is quite encouraging that Kit has taken on the task of bringing together young individuals of IDA and mapping out the future of the organization and downtown organizations in general. It is also encouraging to have Jamie, a talented young leader in her own right, taking a leadership role for this propitious group.  It will be enjoyable to follow the growth of this group and to see what great ideas stem from conversation and collaboration.

After the morning meeting the official conference was set to start at 8:00am.  These conferences are always filled with breakout sessions throughout the day and I was able to learn a great deal.  In order to keep everyone’s attention, I will simply highlight some key issues I observed during the day.

A theme I noticed throughout the conference was the popularity of the retail breakout sessions.  It is apparent that downtowns all around the country and even the rest of the world have retail on their mind.  I think there are two main factors for this trend:

1. There are many downtown’s that have experienced fortune in other economic development areas and they are to the point where they need retail to establish themselves as an elite visitor and consumer destination.

2. After hearing from many downtown consultants, it appears that the momentum of retail is in favor of the downtown.  More and more people in this consumer world are looking for “the real thing” and that is exactly what downtowns have to offer.  They give the consumer a feeling of authenticity and sense of place.

With that being said, there is still much to learn about having the right retail mix.  A morning session I attending included the aforementioned Michael Berne of MJB Consulting, as well as two other retail consultants Midge McCauley of Downtown Works and Susan Nigra Snyder of CivicVisions. 

The three consultants all reiterated the importance of a good tenant mix.  For downtown retail to be successful, it needs to have the correct balance of retail and restaurant types, as well as the right mix of goods that adhere to the needs of the target consumer.  A quote I heard from a presenter during the conference that stuck with me the most was “you want to make the consumer homesick for your downtown.”  This goes with Downtown Lincoln’s retail strategy to support unique, local independent concepts with a sprinkling of brands, meaning that with this mix, downtown Lincoln will offer an experience you cannot get anywhere else. 

Speaking of unique independent stores, it was very interesting hearing from local Milwaukee business owner, Deanna Inniss, who owns Freckle Face, a childrenswear boutique.  She also works with the city in bringing in more retail and is very savvy on what is important for a retail store to succeed in a downtown.  She also reminded me of some of Lincoln’s talented retailers. 

Other Breakout session Quick Hits:

- The role of arts is vital for community development and the vibrancy of downtown retail.  I believe that art is the cornerstone of an inviting and entertaining environment.
- A healthy community is one that includes success in housing, culture, education and employment.
- In downtown retail, usually the restaurants come first and the soft goods follow.
- Two minutes is really ten minutes in “Consultant time”

Overall, it was a wonderful and informative day of breakout sessions.  My favorite part of today however, was the night reception at downtown Milwaukee’s City Hall.  Very unique building, which recently underwent a $75 million renovation and now stands as a renewed symbol of Milwaukee’s vibrant heritage and future vitality.  The food wasn’t bad either. ;)

Thanks for reading my day two rambles, look back tomorrow to hear about day 3.

-Todd O