By Tom Spoth, tspoth@lowellsun.com
City officials are using these postcards to attract big-name retailers to downtown Lowell. SUN/ Amanda-Beth Potter
LOWELL -- City officials will soon flood selected retailers with postcards from residents, urging the companies to consider locating in the Mill City.
The city is soliciting six stores: The Gap, Newbury Comics, Finagle a Bagel, the small Boston-area chain Economy Hardware, the Boston grocery Foodie's Urban Market, and a fair-trade craft store called Ten Thousand Villages.
Officials picked the retailers based on which stores were most likely to attract shoppers to downtown, using information gathered at the city's recent "downtown summit" meetings, said economic development director Theresa Park.
Five hundred glossy postcards were printed for each business. The cards show the companies' storefronts superimposed onto downtown Lowell locations, in front of sidewalks populated with consumers. The city's recently revived slogan, "There's a Lot to Like About Lowell," runs across the top of the card; below is a message urging the company to add another likable store to the mix.
About a month ago, the city strategically placed the missives in residential buildings downtown. Residents were asked to fill in their name and address on the back of the card, which they then placed in a collection box. The city has since gathered hundreds of the cards for each business and will soon mail them in bulk, Park said.
"If these companies can hear directly from the purchasing power, the ones who have the income, that would help them in their decision-making process," Park said. "We're hoping to really pack a punch."
The city plans to follow up by contacting the retailers directly.
Kathleen Marcin, president of the Lowell Downtown Neighborhood Association, said she's aware of the postcards but hasn't heard too many people talking about them. There's definitely an appetite to bring mid-size or large chain stores to Lowell, Marcin said, but she was skeptical of the postcard movement.
"Residents feel it's a bit unrealistic to expect a Gap or a major chain store at this point in time," Marcin said.
Park said city officials tried to be practical. For instance, the popular grocery Trader Joe's was not targeted because downtown Lowell doesn't meet the company's requirements, even though residents have repeatedly expressed a desire to have the store in town.
Downtown businesses would likely welcome a well-known store into the fold, given recent complaints about anemic foot traffic and a persistently high number of vacant storefronts.
"I think every city needs to have a mix of brand names and independent retailers," said George Villaras, president of the Downtown Lowell Business Association. "I think the postcard campaign is a good initiative."
Asked whether a large clothing or record store might eat into the profits of existing businesses, Villaras pointed out that independent coffee shops such as the Coffee Mill and Brew'd Awakening Coffeehaus have found customers even though they compete with Dunkin' Donuts.
Park is unsure of how successful the new measure will be -- to her knowledge, it's never been done before. But with hundreds of cards already completed and ready to mail for each company, she thinks it will make an impact.
"I certainly think it will turn some heads at those stores," Park said. "I'm optimistic we could land at least one, and hopefully more."
The postcard initiative cost only a few thousand dollars, Park said, a small fraction of the money expected to be spent on improvements downtown. City Manager Bernard Lynch pledged at last month's summit to plunge roughly $3 million to $4 million into the effort.
Some short-term improvements are already underway, including landscaping on a Central Street traffic island and improvements to the city's "gateway signage," Park said.
This story appeared in the Lowell Sun on Thursday, July 19, 2007