To meet local needs this community banded together to create and operate its own downtown department store.
(Boonton, NJ, July 16, 2012) — A citizens\' campaign raised funds to organize and open The Community Store, a brand new downtown department store in Saranac Lake, NY.
In 2002 the long-time downtown department store went out of business, leaving residents to drive 50 miles or shop online for many basic needs.
To develop the store, community members were invited to purchase shares in the new venture. Shares were priced at $100 and issued with a limit of $10,000 for any investor.
It took five years to raise the needed $500,000 from about 600 hometown investors. The department store opened last October in 4,000 square feet of space that formerly housed a restaurant. Initial retail sales were strong, with investors and others on hand for the grand opening.
It was a true community effort, says Melinda Little, president of the store\'s board of directors. "Ninety-nine-point-nine percent of those who invested looked at this as an investment in the community," she says. "If they get a return someday, that will be gravy. That said, we do want to run the business as rigorously as possible and to be very cognitive of the bottom line, or the business is not going to succeed."
Details on the creation of The Community Store appear in the July issue of Downtown Idea Exchange.
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About the Downtown Research & Development Center
For over 50 years, the Downtown Research & Development Center has acted as the information clearinghouse on practical strategies and tactics for revitalizing the hearts of our cities and towns.
The Group\'s main activities include publishing the widely influential Downtown Idea Exchange and Downtown Promotion Reporter newsletters; publishing relevant books and reports; and operating the DowntownDevelopment.com website.
Website: http://www.DowntownDevelopment.com