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According to the Iowa Small Business Development Center, there are 266,382 small businesses employing 641,288 people in Iowa, and nearly 50% of all workers in the state are employed by a small business. Of those small businesses, only one-tenth are retail; however, retail has an outsized impact on community character and quality of life.

Communities understand that supporting local retail is key to becoming and remaining economically viable. However, most local small retail business owners are so busy with the day-to-day details of running a business, they don’t have the time to equip and empower themselves and their employees with key foundational skills and tools. Without this knowledge, businesses stagnate and local economies suffer and decline.

Enter the Iowa Retail Initiative (IRI).

Equip your local independent retail, invest in your local economy

The ISU Iowa Retail Initiative provides trainings for community champions and snapshots.  Find details on who should attend and the value of this training.

A list of resources to encourage retail health and vitality from city / district scale to individual retail stores.

A one-hour program to teach local retailers and community leaders how to enhance their businesses and their community business environment through using social media.  An easy-to-use program for county offices to deliver locally.