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Downtowns and urban commercial districts across the U.S. won’t recover from the economic impacts of the global pandemic simply by way of government proclamations to reopen or a marketing campaign to bring customers back downtown. A return to bricks-and-mortar shopping and other downtown activities, such as getting a haircut, participating in a fitness class, eating in a restaurant, and attending a special event, will greatly depend on the ability to understand, influence, and comfort the human psyche.
Test yourselves: how do you feel or respond when passing someone, and they cough or sneeze? When someone doesn’t “adhere” to social distancing guidelines in the grocery store, do you move away or get angry? Do you feel differently when standing near someone wearing a mask versus someone who is not? Even if policymakers say you are no longer required to observe social distancing, how will you feel?
Human psyche relative to how we will respond to shopping downtown is influenced by both personal and environmental conditions, which lead to habit formation. For example, have you grown used to being able to swing past your favorite downtown restaurant and having them bring your food out to your car? Have runs through downtown and your local park taken the place of a treadmill at the gym? Research suggests on average it takes 66 days for people to form a new habit, but it can range from as few as 18 days to 264 days. As such, we should anticipate that our shopping, working, and social interactions have been deeply influenced at both the conscious and subconscious levels. Recent polling suggests the same:
- A survey by Coresight showed that more than two-thirds of respondents plan to avoid some kind of public place or plan to change travel plans after stay-at-home orders end. They further suggest Americans may be reluctant to head to public places, even as authorities allow doors to open again.
- A recent Washington Post/University of Maryland poll indicates that 67 percent of Americans, regardless of current restrictions, are uncomfortable going to a retail clothing store to shop, and 78 percent are uncomfortable eating at a restaurant.
- On a local level, in a survey of local residents conducted by Owosso Main Street in Owosso, Michigan, 70 percent revealed they would anticipate being open to attending an outdoor event if proper social distancing measures were in place, but 65 percent indicated they would not be comfortable with an indoor event.
Understanding human psyche should not be limited to consumers, which represent only one side of the district revitalization equation. The attitudes of small business owners have also changed and will play a key role in whether or not they decide to reopen. They will be influenced by their feelings about existing safety guidelines, employee safety, consumer safety, liability issues, and whether increases in e-commerce and delivery will be short-term or long-term shifts.
We see this being played out already in states that have allowed for non-essential business openings. For example, a survey by the McAllen Chamber of Commerce in Texas revealed that, despite the state’s lifting of business shut-down orders, 20 percent of the small businesses indicated a reluctance to reopen.
Inherent in all this data are underlying personal psychographic characteristics that include influences like media, health status, value systems, political preferences, and certainly place.
Given this dynamic situation, reopen proclamations and marketing campaigns are very limited in their ability to kick-start recovery. Businesses need to feel comfortable, protected, and have the tools to adapt business models to better meet the needs of consumers. Consumers need to feel comfortable in their personal safety, financial position (remember 30+ million unemployed), and formulating hybrid shopping habits that combine the good in new and old patterns of consumerism and social engagement.
Resources for Main Street Programs
Like the Main Street Approach, recovery planning and implementation must be comprehensive and strategic. To help inform a thoughtful response to the lifting of business restrictions in your community, you must start by gathering understanding from several “inputs.”
The first “input” involves collecting primary data around the human psyche status of both local consumers and small business owners. To help you in this effort, MSA has created a local resident survey designed for your use and adaptation, which will allow you to better understand current and likely consumer attitudes toward shopping and forms of social engagement. We have also created a set of interview questions designed to understand how your local businesses may approach reopening their stores both in the near and mid-term.
On a more macro level, no rural or urban district resides in a bubble. We are deeply influenced by trends at the national level; some will quickly go away, while others may be more rooted, to which commercial districts will need to adapt. In either case, as the proverbial saying goes, “when one door closes, another one opens.” While there will be closures and changes in our normal operations, there will undoubtably be opportunities more suited to changes in our district conditions. Thus, be prepared to understand how a more permanent number of people working from home may influence, for example, a downtown largely dependent on the office worker sector. What happens with office real estate, fast casual dining, etc. as a result? These changes may open the door for more adaptive reuse of upper floor office to housing, or new retail niches in office furniture and home décor.
And finally, it’s important to factor in the value of local assets and market strengths that should be both re-evaluated and leveraged in a recovery situation. The fundamentals of revitalization remain consistent. Thus, while there are certainly general things that we should consider in district management post-reopening, it is prudent to recognize that recovery will be built upon the unique characteristics and assets of a place, coupled with an understanding of consumers, small business owners, and macro-societal conditions.
For 40 years, the Main Street Approach has enabled commercial districts to comprehensively take on malls, big box stores, and even a pandemic. We don’t know how long recovery will take, but as always, we will need to be both comprehensive and strategic in our approach.
Disclaimer: This material has been prepared for informational purposes only and is not intended to provide, and should not be relied on for legal, insurance, liability, tax, or accounting advice. You should consult your own legal, insurance, tax, and accounting advisors for guidance on these matters.
Meet the Author
Matthew Wagner, Ph.D., Vice President of Revitalization Programs: Matthew Wagner, Ph.D. serves as Vice President of Revitalization Programs at the National Main Street Center, Inc. In this role, he is responsible for driving the Center’s field service initiatives including the development and delivery of technical services for Main Street America and Urban Main programs, directing the Center’s new research agenda, as well as professional development programming through the Main Street America Institute.
Read Matthew's bio.
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Business Spotlight: Black Entrepreneurs Leading By Example in Chicago
For Black History Month, we want to recognize and celebrate the Black business owners and entrepreneurs who have overcome challenges and obstacles in launching and running their own businesses, thanks to resilience, creativity, and hard work.
Main Spotlight: Pop-Up Retail: Not Just For Start-Ups, And Other Learnings From Its Evolution
As a vital place factor within an entrepreneurship ecosystem, pop-up programs allow for emerging businesses to test their product, gain consumer feedback, and promote their brand at an extremely low cost. In essence, allowing for a ‘fail-fast’ product development cycle.
Asheville, NC © Ablohkin
Coping with the COVID Crisis in the Midst of the Holiday Rush: Nine Takeaways from Our December Surveys of Small Business Owners and Main Street Programs
In early December, as the COVID-19 crisis intersected with a peak moment in the holiday shopping season, we surveyed small business owners and Main Street programs to learn more about how they were managing.
© Cindy Shebley
Jump off the Business Recruitment Train: The Real Returns are in Cultivating Local Entrepreneurship
New research by Main Street America suggests greater returns on our missions and resources can be had by transitioning to more deliberate economic vitality work centered on cultivating new business development from within our own communities and neighborhoods.
Community Spotlight: Storefront Activation Through Storytelling in Fredericksburg, VA
Fredericksburg Virginia Main Street (FVMS) is taking storefront activation to a new level with their new initiative, the Scan & Love Project, which tells the stories of business owners through personal and engaging videos.
HartBeat of Main Street Grant Program: Spotlighting Tina’s Timeless Threads
Meet a recipient of the HartBeat of Main Street Grant Program
HartBeat of Main Street Grant Program: Center of the Yarniverse
Meet a recipient of the HartBeat of Main Street Grant Program
HartBeat of Main Street Grant Program: Spotlighting The Bankery
Meet a recipient of the HartBeat of Main Street Grant Program
HartBeat of Main Street Grant Program: Spotlighting BuzzBomb Brewing
Meet a recipient of the HartBeat of Main Street Grant Program
HartBeat of Main Street Grant Program: Spotlighting The Owl Wine Bar & Home Goods
Meet a recipient of the HartBeat of Main Street Grant Program
HartBeat of Main Street Grant Program: Spotlighting Griff Goods
Meet a recipient of the HartBeat of Main Street Grant Program
HartBeat of Main Street Grant Program: Spotlighting Mockingbird Bar and Tacos
Meet a recipient of the HartBeat of Main Street Grant Program
Economic Gardening Takes Root: Redesigning the Bricks & Clicks Business Retention Program During the Pandemic
Harrisonburg Downtown Renaissance explores how they redesigned their Bricks & Clicks Business Retention Program during the pandemic.
Business Spotlight: Women-Owned Businesses on Main Street (Part 3)
Meet some amazing women business owners!
New Survey Results: How Small Businesses are Managing the Pandemic and Social Unrest
Read the results of our survey aimed at understanding how business owners are managing the recovery from COVID-19 and responding to recent protests and social unrest related to police violence against Black Americans.
Research Spotlight: Black-Owned Businesses on Main Street and Beyond
Our research team dug into some of the data about the state of Black-owned businesses on Main Street, the structural challenges they face, and how Main Streets can support them.
Main Spotlight: Holiday Shopping During COVID: What Should Main Streets Expect?
Matt Wagner explores how the pandemic may affect the shop small holiday weekend.
Main Spotlight: How Rural Economies Can Leverage the Rise in Remote Work
COVID-19 has led to a rise in remote working. How can small and rural towns leverage this shift to create vibrant local economies?
The Impact of COVID-19 on Small Businesses: Follow-up Survey Report
Detailed findings from our follow-up survey on the impacts of COVID-19 on small businesses to better understand the continued challenges businesses face as the crisis evolves.
Local Impact: Small Business Saturday
Small Business Saturday® is more than a day to shop. It’s a nationwide movement that shines a spotlight on the importance of supporting small businesses in communities across America.
Community Spotlight: Benson, North Carolina
The Town of Benson started a special project to highlight their downtown businesses.
Community Spotlight: Berkley, Michigan
The Berkley Downtown Development Authority (DDA) proudly debuted its Downtown Berkley Shopping Bag for a Cause through a partnership between Better Life Bags.
Main Spotlight: Learnings from the ESHIP Summit
Supporting new and existing small businesses, and the entrepreneurs who run them, represents a vital aspect of the revitalization of downtowns and neighborhood business districts.
Creating Equitable, Inclusive and Transparent Cities: A Year in Review
The Equitable Economic Development Fellowship is a two-year, one million-dollar effort funded by the Surdna Foundation and the Open Society Foundations to help equity, transparency, sustainability and community engagement become driving forces in local economic development efforts.
Community Spotlight: Mini-Grants Offered to Small Businesses in Jefferson, Iowa
The Jefferson Rotary Club partnered with Jefferson Matters: Main Street to offer mini-grants for building facades and storefront signage to two dozen businesses for up to $500 each.
A Memorable Makeover on Main Street
The Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation (WEDC) partnered with Retailworks, Inc., a commercial interior design, display and branding firm headquartered in Milwaukee, to launch Wisconsin’s Main Street Makeover Contest.
Creative Discovery on the Maker Trail in Enid, Oklahoma
Kelly Tompkins of Main Street Enid shares more about the Maker Trail project and how it inspired creativity and helped people discover downtown.
City Sidewalks, Dressed in Holiday Style
Too often, as we’re strolling our favorite Main Street, we pass empty or dark shop windows that make us want to hurry home a little bit faster. Imagine instead, a charming streetscape adorned with vibrant, lively window displays, showcasing retailers’ favorite products and seasonal gift ideas.
Community Spotlight: #ShopSmall in Goldsboro, North Carolina
Small Business Saturday promo pic from Downtown Goldsboro, North Carolina, showing all the folks who took the pledge support a small business in their community.
Using Local Search Trends to Attract More Customers to Your Main Street
We’ve put together a practical list of some of the things that local store owners can do right now to help them capitalize on this increasing trend in local searches.
Network Spotlight: Main Street Iowa Restaurant Week
From authentic comfort food to farm-to-fork fresh and everything in between, these restaurants, bars, and cafes are key to the thriving social, business, and residential life in the historic commercial districts in Main Street Iowa communities.
Fab Lab Sparks Rural Opportunities
Located in southeast Kansas, Independence (pop.8,799) is home to Fab Lab ICC, which is on track to be the world’s leading innovator in combining entrepreneurial mindset education with a fab lab maker space.
Community Spotlight: Morganton, North Carolina
The craft beer industry is playing a key role in the rebirth of Main Streets and neighborhood commercial districts across the county.
Rethink Storefront Accessibility to Rethink Community Viability
Appealing to mobility-challenged shoppers yields benefits beyond the store.
Sparking a Movement in Small Business and Small Towns
Being the only person in the know can be fun, exhilarating even. Except when you are the one person out of 600+ in a room and you know bad news is coming.
The Lowdown in Downtown LaBelle
Fritz the dog has made his way into the hearts of the residents of LaBelle, Florida, and helped our Main Street Community find a way to make what we do more noticeable.
Pop-Up Altavista 2.0
Altavista On Track, the local Main Street organization, is working to cultivate and sustain local entrepreneurs with an educational business launch competition, Pop-Up Altavista 2.0.
The Bright Center: A Space for Winchester’s Bright Minds to Create, Innovate and Thrive
In Winchester, Virginia, one woman’s vision and commitment to downtown’s revitalization created an innovative community space for the Creative Class.
Why Business Retention and Expansion Plans are Important for Downtowns
A business retention and expansion plan, properly implemented, not only helps keep businesses open but possibly even helps them expand.
Business Investment Guides: “Think B.I.G.”
The first rule of conducting business is “make it simple.” The easier it is to pay for merchandise, get entertainment or obtain a service, the more likely it is that people will take advantage of those options.
Small Box – A Creative Retail Project
Main Street communities across the country are no stranger to seeking creative strategies to solve their most nagging issues – vacant buildings, marketing downtown, bolstering retail to name a few.
Supporting Immigrant Entrepreneurs in the Heart of Boston’s Main Streets
To understand the role that immigrant business owners play in Boston’s small business ecosystem, you need only to walk through any Boston Main Streets district.
Measuring the Economic Impact of Storefront Improvements
Façade appearance is a critical aspect of the overall aesthetic appeal and unique character of downtown.
Sign Design Guidelines
A lot of signs are necessary to make a downtown work well, but not every community knows what a good sign system looks like, or how instrumental it can be to the creation of a successful downtown.
Improving Performance in Main Street Iowa Communities
Main Street Iowa, a program of the Iowa Economic Development Authority’s Iowa Downtown Resource Center, created a one-of-a-kind three-year program to provide help for performance venues located in Main Street districts.
