ENID — Rickey Hayes says if you talk to any national retail site selector, he would say there are only two big markets in Oklahoma: Oklahoma City and Tulsa.

But Hayes and City Manager Eric Benson are hoping to turn that around and bring recognition to Enid from the retail sector.

Hayes is chief executive officer of Retail Attractions, LLC, based in Owasso. He was hired early last year by the city to identify gaps in Enid’s retail services and which companies could be attracted to fill those gaps.

“The first part of our work was to evaluate existing conditions of retail and marketing efforts done,” said Hayes.

Hayes said he wanted to learn who shops in Enid — specifically, their ages and where they’re from.

Through his study, Hayes discovered in addition to the residents of Enid people from across northwest Oklahoma come to Enid to dine and shop.

Benson said Enid’s retail service area encompasses a radius of approximately 90 miles every direction.

So to him, that means Enid isn’t only serving 47,000 residents — they’re catering to tens of thousands of others who live outside of Enid, who know Enid is the closest place to shop.

“Enid is the main player (in the region),” Benson said, when it comes to retail.

Hayes, having identified the missing companies in Enid, said he has been talking with some of them about Enid, presenting to them information about the city and why they should do business here.

When asked which companies he’s been talking to, Hayes wouldn’t reveal them to preserve their interests without pressure.

He did say, however, talks with the companies are going well.

“I can tell you we’re very encouraged by the response of national retail (companies) to the presentation of Enid,” Hayes said.



What Enid has to offer



So what exactly has Hayes been telling national companies about Enid?

“Enid (has) a fairly well-educated population,” Hayes said. “It is a community that has a strong disposable income component. The city is young. There are a lot of young professionals there.

“There’s oil, there’s things related to the oil industry.

“There’s wind energy potential, and there’s the Vance (Air Force Base) component,” he added.

Benson highlighted Enid’s medical care industry as something of note, too.

The Enid retail market and any new retail additions could especially take advantage of that industry, he said.

“When people from out of town come to Enid for a family medical emergency, they’ve got to buy gas, they’ve got have food, they’ve got to spend the night,” Benson explained.



What Enid needs



Approximately 75 percent of Enid’s retail revenue originates from businesses stretching from Garfield to Garland on Garriott on the city’s west side, Benson said.

While Benson understands and appreciates retail success in that part of the city, he said he wants it to succeed elsewhere in Enid — north, south and especially east.

Establishing retail centers in all parts of the city benefits everybody, he said.

“These economic opportunities are all around us,” Benson said. “I think we have failed to view the big, positive success opportunities available. We don’t know the strengths we have, much less to harness it.”

And that, he said, is why the city hired Hayes, who Benson said has been a tremendous help.

“We’ve been wildly pleased with what’s been done,” Benson said.