If it smells like cinnamon buns downtown, it means the city wants you to open a bakery.
A new poster campaign hopes to shine a light on business opportunities in St. Albert’s Perron District, by engaging both visual and olfactory senses.
The posters now decorate various empty storefronts. They want to attract entrepreneurs with pictures of a bakery, a coffee shop, a sports store or an office space. They also come with a twist.
Attached to the posters are scent machines that fill the streets with the smell of cinnamon buns and roasted coffee – of course, the poster for the fitness store emits no smell.
“So it creates that imaginative sensation where you walk by and think wouldn’t that be a great place for a bakery,” said Sean McRitchie, manager of business attraction with economic development.
McRitchie said the posters in the windows are meant to inspire, but the city is open to all kinds of business ideas. They decided on the designs because these types of businesses are often prominent in other downtowns, he said.
The posters were unveiled on Thursday morning during a seminar titled Downtown St. Albert – The New Cool. McRitchie said there are many business areas in Edmonton where people go to shop and dine that are considered “cool” again. They want to create a similar feel in the Perron District.
“Everyone in St. Albert knows that downtown St. Albert is beautiful, and the farmers’ market and everything. But we just wanted to let people outside of St. Albert know,” he said.
The half-day event also included a tour of the Perron District, presentations on the city’s downtown area redevelopment plan (DARP), and a workshop on creative leasing options.
McRitchie said lease negotiations are a problem in many cities and often scare people from opening a business. By offering a workshop with leasing coach Jeff Grandfield the city hoped to take away that barrier, he said.
Another barrier is the lack of residents in the downtown. But a proposed development by Amacon will help, he said. The developer wants to build apartments for several thousand people on the former Grandin mall site in the next 10 years.
“Having the people here will be a boost for this, as is the farmers’ market,” he said. “And the city is working on the St. Anne Street realignment. I think the ball is really starting to roll in a positive direction.”
Business owners who attended the event felt encouraged by the city’s efforts to revitalize the downtown. Shane McGee both owns a business and rents out space. He and others struggled with keeping tenants in the past, he said. He split some of his spaces in half to attract more tenants. The city also put posters in some of his windows and the effect is already visible, he said.
“During the presentation, I noticed people walking by and almost everyone was looking at them,” he said. “It’s like everything else, it just takes time and then, once it gets established, it just takes off.”
Jody Reekie, owner of Modern Eyes Gallery and Gift, also complimented the city on its work to attract people to the downtown.
“I think they are on the leading edge, they are really working hard at it to keep things modern, fresh,” she said.
Realtor Guy HĂ©bert said business owners are looking at the downtown. There are now five or six retail spots available, and a few office spaces. But that’s not a lot, he said. The city’s efforts will further help to market the downtown, he said.
“There’s just an interest in people opening and businesses relocating,” he said.
Other projects to revitalize the downtown this summer include the Gen Y CEO program. The program helps students create a business for the summer, starting in August. This year, students were encouraged to create jobs that will bring people downtown in the evening. More details will become available in the coming weeks.
A one-day conference, Retail Revitalized, was cancelled and moved to later in the year due to low attendance rates. The conference aims to help retailers and restaurant owners thrive in the downtown.
