Bella Vista Business Association Directory

up between the city, county and other small entities." e plan Even with the retail growth that has taken place in Bella Vista and the improvements to the tax base, which supports city services, there is stall a lot of work to be done. "My role is to enhance the sales tax base in Bella Vista by recruiting and retaining more retail and restaurant businesses," Travis said. " e plan is multi-pronged. It's reaching out to retailers and restaurants that aren't here, that in our assessment, could be here based on the other cities where they have locations." Bringing more retail cash registers into Bella Vista and working to keep them ringing requires a lot of conversations. "It's reaching out to developers who already have these relationships with these businesses," Travis said. " ey may have already done projects with those retailers. It's working with existing land owners and helping them decide what they want to do with the property and encourage them to sell or develop their own properties." In many cases, Travis said, his role may be simply to make an introduction. "As a city entity we don't control anyone's property," he explained. "We can't decide what goes where. If it's zoned correctly and if it ts, it can happen. If it's not zoned, the property owner can go and ask the city for a rezoning so that it can t." e challenge Even with the challenges Bella Vista may face as a growing city, Travis believes those challenges can be overcome. "I'm very high on Bella Vista's future," he said. " ere is so much demand in the area and we have an extremely high population for the services we have currently. We have 30,000 people and only about 15 restaurants. If you look around at other communities… Russellville for example… roughly the same population we have and they have roughly 80 restaurants. Based on our population we should have a great many more restaurants and retail outlets than we do." Travis said he works to communicate Bella Vista's potential to prospective prospects on a regular basis. " e message is that we have a growing population and the demand is there for more commercial services," he said. "We just have to get them here. I can use help spreading the message there are a lot of mouths to feed here." Mark your calendar for Small Business Saturday It's 2010, and small businesses are hurting from an economy in recession. In an e ort to support these local places that make our communities strong, American Express launches Small Business Saturday on the Saturday a er anksgiving — hoping to help bring more holiday shopping to small businesses. Just one year a er the launch, local o cials across the nation take notice and promote the day. In 2011, the Senate unanimously passes a resolution in support of Small Business Saturday. By 2012, o cials in all 50 states participate. It even gets a shout-out from the President of the United States. In 2013, more than 1,450 individuals and organizations sign up to be Neighborhood Champions and rally their communities with events and activities on the day. By 2017, that number has increased to more than 7,200 Neighborhood Champions — in all 50 states. And they're not alone. Business associations, nonpro t trade groups, municipalities and public o cials unite to form a Small Business Saturday Coalition, and nearly 100 corporations lend their o cial support. Small business owners embrace the day, and the impact is felt on every corner. rough their own promotional e orts and customer outreach, small business owners generate an estimated $15.4 billion dollars on Small Business Saturday in 2016. As it catches on in communities everywhere, Small Business Saturday® goes from a cause to a day of celebration. And shoppers show up in record numbers — each year greater than the last. In 2016, 112 million people come out to shop on Small Business Saturday. Today, the idea that started with one company in 2010 has evolved into a holiday shopping tradition and nationwide movement driven by millions of individuals. And it continues to grow. Small Business Saturday is set for Saturday, Nov. 24 in 2018. Source: AmericanExpress.com Bella Vista Business Association 2018 Bella Vista Business Association Directory – 35

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