Workshop plananed at Chamber next week

Casey Kidd, CEO of NaviRetail said that after reading over the data he has compiled on the retail market of Andalusia, he believes that there could not be a better place in South Alabama to start a business.

“When I walked into the office of Andy Wiggins, he told me that Andalusia is an anomaly,” Kidd said. “So when I ran the numbers, I realized that he really was telling the truth, Andalusia is a hub of business for this region and it is amazing how much opportunity lies there.”

NaviRetail, a Memphis based economic development agency, specializes in using data analytics for retail recruitment. The City of Andalusia and the Andalusia Area Chamber of Commerce have partnered with them for a market study, and some of their results will be presented next week.

Kidd will conduct a retail marketing strategy seminar in Andalusia next Thursday, teaching business owners how to use data analytics to boost their brands and sales.

“We want business owners to know who is shopping in Andalusia,” Kidd said. “And how they can market to these people, how they can make sure that they have the products they need so they don’t have to leave the city to get it, and how they can advertise in the correct way.”

The NaviRetail team will present demographic as well as psycho-graphic data findings, current retail trends, consumer profiling and buying habits, use of consumer tracking in retail, targeted ad campaigns and effectiveness, social media strategies and even in-person market evaluations on site.

“What we will do for the one-on-one sessions is sort of a field trip into downtown,” Kidd said. “We will treat a retailer as a case study and evaluate what some other retailers are doing, and make some on the fly evaluations to see if we can spice up their business a little bit.”

The one-on-one sessions will be during the second part of the workshop and will be optional.

Kidd said that the goal of the workshop is to make sure that people utilize this information to help the community.

“We want to see what companies can do with this information to effectively market their business,” Kidd said.

If a company individually hired NaviRetail to gather relevant data analytics, Kidd said that the price would vary based on the work performed.

“It takes a lot of work,” Kidd said. “For instance, if we are trying to work with an international grocery store, it isn’t going to be a Skype interview and it be done. We are going to be bringing them on the ground and figuring out a marketing strategy for them. We pride ourselves on this. We are going to bring them to the market.”

The free retail workshop is set for 9 a.m. until 11 a.m. at the Chamber of Commerce, on Thursday, July 26. A lunch break is planned for 11 a.m. until 1 p.m., and representatives of NaviRetail will meet with individual businesses that want to participate in the afternoon.

The morning workshop will focus on all of the data gathered about Andalusia and different strategies companies can use to improve their businesses.

The workshop is free, but the Andalusia Area Chamber of Commerce asks those interested to pre-register. There is a registration link on the Chamber’s Facebook page, or contact Executive Director Chrissie Duffy at chrissie@andalusiachamber.com.