Top Stories -- May 15, 2003
BY ANDREA T. TURANO
Business Writer
aturano@republicanherald.com
HAMBURG
- If regional firms and businesses want to take advantage of the anticipated six
million shoppers and visitors expected to trek annually to Cabela's, they'll
have to make adjustments.
And
that includes taking a broader look at customer needs and staying open on
weekends and evenings.
In
preparation for the tentative opening Sept. 18 of a Cabela's outdoors/sporting
mega-store in Tilden Township, near Hamburg in northern Berks County, state and
local officials huddled with 200 regional business representatives Wednesday at
the Hamburg Area Middle School.
William
S. Fontana, executive director of the Pennsylvania Downtown Center, Harrisburg,
stressed the adjustment in hours of operation that will be required to take
advantage of Cabela's multistate drawing power.
The
downtown center covers Main Street programs in Hamburg, West Reading, Lebanon
and Pottsville.
Fontana
joined Cabela's representative Alan J. Dorn and other revitalization
representatives in the workshop titled, "Hunting for Partners, Fishing for
Profits."
The
annual estimate of visitors to the Cabela's outlet, which is currently under
construction, is based on the actual visitations to one of the firm's stores in
Minnesota.
Developing
a partnerships between area businesses and Cabela's is an important step in the
process of building success, Fontana and Dorn agreed.
"Our
contention is that if this area is successful, we're successful and if we don't
have successes in this area, we fail," said Dorn, retail promotions manager
for Cabela's.
Dorn
told participants about the partnerships, marketing/promotion and charity
involvement that have helped Cabela's get to where the firm is at today.
"We
are the reverse Wal-Mart effect," he said. "We empower the local
businesses" and work with local companies to provide a win-win situation.
For
example, working with companies such as Genmar Boats near Cabela's Owatonna,
Minn., site, Cabela's allowed the boat competitor to showcase its boats during
its boat competition on its lot.
To
make surrounding businesses known to the crowds drawn by Cabela's, Dorn
continued, the store will provide a kiosk near the front desk of its Hamburg
area site as it does at its other sites. It will have information on surrounding
attractions for visitors as well as a local events calendar.
Involvement
from area chambers of commerce, tourism centers and economic development
agencies is critical in the stability and growth of regional businesses
surrounding Cabela's, Dorn said.
He
also added that Cabela's will offer an area of the store to house brochures from
regional companies, as long as the companies provide the brochures.
To
benefit from Cabela's, Fontana said, firms also need to be visitor friendly.
Everyone
may not buy something, but regional firms must be prepared to deal with an
influx of visitors because people want to explore, Fontana said. That influx
will offer firms the opportunity to increase sales.
For
surrounding businesses, the next several months can be crucial, according to
Donald L. Martin, director of learning resources for Kutztown University's Small
Business Development Center (SBDC).
It's
important to gain support from local SBDCs like those at those at Kutztown,
Lehigh University, Bethlehem, and in Wilkes-Barre, Martin said.
"What
we want to help the small businesses do is create a positive experience for the
people that visit," he said.
For
Deena L. Kershner, president of Our Town Foundation, a Main Street program aimed
a revitalizing downtown Hamburg, marketing is the key for any businesses
surrounding Cabela's.
"Established
businesses all have to pull together and market our efforts," she said.
Advertising
regionally will help companies get their names out there as well, said Fontana.
Fontana
said the Pennsylvania Downtown Center did a 300-mile-radius study of the
intersections leading to Cabela's Hamburg site and noted there are strong
pockets of traffic that will pass through the Interstate 81 and 78 corridors,
Philadelphia, northern Maryland and via Route 61.
The
impact is from radial highway networks that will draw people, he said.
Liana
E. Evans, president of Forward with Frackville 2008, another community
revitalization group, said she is concerned about how Cabela's will impact
Frackville citizens and businesses.
Since
Frackville is at the crossroads of Interstate 81 and Route 61, there will
potentially be additional traffic from New York and western Pennsylvania, she
said, adding that if the community could benefit from just 10 percent of that
new traffic, it would be a considerable plus.
Evans
agreed it would be in their own best interested for concerns such as hotels,
restaurants and gas stations in Frackville and all of Schuylkill County to take
advantage of the opportunities to partner with Cabela's.