Benefits of Main Street

A vibrant downtown gives the whole community and Region a sense of pride and positive self image. It serves as an ANCHOR for the community providing stability necessary for economic growth.

In a healthy downtown, property owners are more willing to invest in and maintain historic commercial buildings, there by preserving an important part of the communities heritage.

A healthy downtown attracts new businesses. And dollars that would be spent elsewhere are spent locally.

Americans love Mom & Pop shops. We love their attentive customer service, their unique merchandise, and the special atmosphere of their stores, as opposed to the cookie-cutter retail chains that all seem to sell the same thing. We also love our heritage, and many Main Street districts are the cultural centers of their communities.

Many people consider shopping on Main Street “experience shopping,” because you interact with people and a community, instead of frantically hunting for rock-bottom prices. Shopping on Main Street means finding merchandise that is infused with local heritage and can’t be found anywhere else. It’s about making a connection. It’s also about keeping the entrepreneurial spirit alive and helping local businesses compete against Big Box retailers and other large retail institutions. Choosing to shop Main Street lets these businesses know you appreciate them and want them to stick around.

Still unconvinced?

Here are 10 reasons to spend your holiday shopping dollars at independent businesses in Main Street districts and online:

• Maintaining diversity and community character:   Local businesses reflect the character of their community through their unique products, services, and atmosphere and through their location in historic buildings, which preserve an authentic sense of place.
• Vibrant Main Streets help reduce sprawl. These districts embody smart growth principles by concentrating retail; offering housing on Main Street or nearby to create pedestrian-friendly communities; and using community resources, such as infrastructure, tax dollars, and land, wisely.
• Historic preservation is the ultimate recycling. When buildings are demolished, most of the materials are used for land fill. By finding new uses for historic buildings, we reduce demand for new materials and prevent unnecessary land fill. Many Main Street businesses are located in rehabilitated historic buildings.
• Commercial districts are prominent employment centers. Even the smallest commercial district employs hundreds of people, and often the district is collectively the community’s largest employer. There has been a cumulative net gain of 331,417 jobs in Main Street districts since 1980.
• Main Streets are home to entrepreneurs. Small businesses are the lifeblood of social mobility, enabling people to pull themselves up by their bootstraps. A marketplace of thousands of small businesses ensures innovation.
• Main Streets increase choice.  Thousands of small businesses offering products based on the needs of their customers instead of a national sales plan promote a wider array of choices for consumers.
• Main Street provides an important civic forum, where members of the community can congregate. Parades, special events, and celebrations held on Main Street reinforce an intangible sense of community. Private developments like malls and strip centers can and do restrict free speech and access.
• Everyone benefits from revitalized historic districts. From residents to financial institutions, from property owners to local governments, everyone is better off with a vibrant Main Street district. Historic shopping districts also boost the community’s heritage tourism potential, which can be a significant revenue generator for Main Street. Cultural heritage travelers spend, on average, $623 per trip compared to $457 for all U.S. travelers. Forty-four percent of cultural heritage travelers shop during their trips, compared to 33 percent of all other travelers.
• Online shopping for the holidays is rising for all businesses. In 2005, E-commerce sites rang up more than $30.1 billion during the weeks leading up to Christmas. Online sales positively affect the bottom line for independent businesses, which usually operate on a thin profit margin, and can make a difference in their ability remain competitive and stay open.
• Community-based businesses give more time and money to community activities. According to the U.S. Small Business Administration, small businesses give more time and money to charitable organizations than their large competitors.
• Buying from independent businesses has a greater economic impact.  Recent studies have shown that a larger share of each dollar spent in a local business stays in the community as compared to chain stores.  Furthermore, the economic impact of dollars spent at local businesses is increased through a local multiplier effect.

 

Notes:

1. 2005 Main Street Reinvestment Statistics compiled by the National Trust Main Street Center to measure cumulative reinvestment of all active Main Street communities (1,900 districts throughout the nation) spanning 1980 to 2005.
2. The Historic/Cultural Traveler 2003 Edition study prepared by the Travel Industry Association of America.
3. The Historic/Cultural Traveler 2001 Edition.
4. eSpending report produced by Goldman Sachs, Nielsen//NetRatings and Harris Interactive.

 

New Study Reveals Popularity of U.S. Cultural and Heritage Travel

Large, Affluent Market Focuses on History and Tradition

Washington, D.C. – A recent research study reveals that 78% of all U.S. leisure travelers participate in cultural and/or heritage activities while traveling, translating to 118.3 million adults each year. With cultural and heritage travelers spending an average of $994 per trip, they contribute more than $192 billion annually to the U.S. economy.

"We discovered that an impressive number of U.S. travelers seek out cultural and heritage experiences," said Helen Marano, director, Office of Travel and Tourism Industries, U.S. Department of Commerce. "With 78% of all domestic leisure travelers participating in cultural and heritage activities, their expenditures confirm that this is a strong market, and they are contributing significantly to our communities during these challenging economic times."

The study is the first to segment cultural and/or heritage travelers, showing the diverse groups that exist within this broader category of traveler. The segmentation analysis uncovered five different types of cultural and heritage travelers: Passionate, Well-rounded, Aspirational, Self-Guided, and Keeping it Light. Three segments – Passionate, Well-rounded, and Self-guided – were more serious about their travels and said that cultural and heritage activities had a greater impact on their destination choice. Together, these three segments represent 40% of all leisure travelers and contribute nearly $124 billion to the U.S. economy.

Cultural and heritage travelers as a whole are more frequent travelers, reporting an average of 5.01 leisure trips in the past 12 months versus non-cultural/heritage travelers with 3.98 trips. They are also more frequent business travelers and are more likely to have taken an international trip in the past 12 months than their non-cultural/heritage counterparts. More than half of cultural/heritage travelers agree that they prefer their leisure travel to be educational and nearly half said they spend more money on cultural and heritage activities. They are also likely to travel farther to get the experiences they seek: about half of most recent overnight leisure trips were 500 miles or more from home. More than a third say they traveled between 100 and 300 miles for a day trip.

"This is the first study to segment this market," said Sheila Armstrong, executive director of the U.S. Cultural & Heritage Tourism (USCHT) Marketing Council. "While we suspected that most leisure travelers participated in some cultural activities, this study identifies the passionate cultural and heritage travelers – those for whom culture and heritage drive their destination choices – as well as the more casual cultural traveler. The study helps us understand what travelers consider when making destination and spending choices."

The study found that cultural and heritage travelers are more likely to participate in culinary activities, such as sampling artisan food and wines, attending food and wine festivals, visiting farmers' markets, shopping for gourmet foods, and enjoying unique dining experiences as well as fine dining.

Other cultural and heritage activities identified by travelers include visiting historic sites (66%); attending historical re-enactments (64%); visiting art museums/galleries (54%); attending an art/craft fair or festival (45%); attending a professional dance performance (44%); visiting state/national parks (41%); shopping in museum stores (32%); and exploring urban neighborhoods (30%). The vast majority of these travelers (65%) say that they seek travel experiences where the "destination, its buildings and surroundings have retained their historic character."

"This study of the habits of cultural and heritage travelers reconfirms the size of this lucrative market," said John Williams, president and CEO of Heritage Travel, the study's lead sponsor. "It also shows that cultural and heritage travelers seek authentic destinations with historic character as well as educational experiences in their travels."

The study was conducted by Mandala Research for the U.S. Cultural & Heritage Tourism (USCHT) Marketing Council, in conjunction with the U.S. Department of Commerce. Heritage Travel, Inc., a subsidiary of The National Trust for Historic Preservation, and its website www.gozaic.com was lead sponsor of the study. Other sponsors include American Association of Museums; California Travel and Tourism Commission; Center for Socioeconomic Research and Education at Texas A&M University; Chicago Office of Tourism; Positively Cleveland; Visit Florida; The History Channel Magazine; Marriott International; Museum Store Association; Sarasota and Her Islands Convention and Visitors Bureau; Shop America Alliance; Vantage Technology Partners; and the Virginia Tourism Corporation. For more information about the study or to purchase a final report, please contact Laura Mandala at laura@mandalaresearch.com or 703.798.5452.

The USCHT Marketing Council's primary purpose is to market and promote cultural and heritage experiences to travelers to and within the United States through online packaging at www.TheCulturalTraveler.com. To learn more about the USCHT Marketing Council, please visit www.uscht.com.

Mandala Research, LLC is a leading source for travel and tourism market research needs. The company's mission is to conduct studies that address the unmet needs in travel and tourism research, providing with every study an in-depth understanding travelers, their motivations and desires. To learn more about Mandala Research, please visit www.mandalaresearch.com or contact Managing Director Laura Mandala at 703.798.5452 or Laura@MandalaResearch.com.