BERWYN DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION
2021 QUARTERLY REPORT 2ND QUARTER
3322 S Oak Park Ave, 2nd Fl | Berwyn, IL 60402 (708) 788-8100 | info@berwyn.net | Berwyn.net f @BerwynDevelopmentCorporation i @Berwyn Development Corporation
2021 TIMELINE
APRIL - JUNE
APR
• Approval of a BDC Commercial Loan in the amount of $187,500.00 to Rite Price Auto for the purchase of property located at 6844 W 16th Street • BDC Women in Business Monthly Meeting • BDC’s Nonprofit Roundtable Monthly Meeting • BDC Women in Business Multi-Chamber Collaborative Monthly Meeting • Your BDC Membership + Marketing Opportunities! Monthly Meeting • BDC Seminar Series: Hiring in the New Normal – Zoom Information Sessions (3 total) • Grand Opening and Ribbon Cutting for JC Stacks Gaming Lounge • Grand Opening and Ribbon Cutting for State Farm Insurance – Eddy Mujica Agency • Grand Opening and Ribbon Cutting for Gutierrez Taekwondo USA
MAY
• Approval of a DCEO Advantage Illinois Loan in the amount of $39,500.00 to supplement the BDC Commercial Loan to Rite Price Auto • BDC Women in Business Monthly Meeting • BDC’s Nonprofit Roundtable Monthly Meeting • BDC Women in Business Multi-Chamber Collaborative Monthly Meeting • Your BDC Membership + Marketing Opportunities! Monthly Meeting • Marketing & Special Events Commission Meeting • DCEO Economic Development in Illinois Post Covid-19 – Zoom Information Sessions • Grand Opening and Ribbon Cutting for Berwyn Custom Tattoo Company • Grand Opening and Ribbon Cutting for Fleitas Group Cross-country Mortgage • Grand Opening and Ribbon Cutting for BABYGOLD BARBEQUE • Ribbon Cutting for Cien 100% Naturalisimo
JUN
• BDC Women in Business Monthly Meeting • BDC’s Nonprofit Roundtable Monthly Meeting • BDC Women in Business Multi-Chamber Collaborative Monthly Meeting • Your BDC Membership + Marketing Opportunities! Monthly Meeting • Visit Oak Park Annual Meeting • Depot District Corridor Roundtable • Illinois Restaurant Association Business Resource Webinar
BDC PROJECTS The Berwyn Beat Newsletter E-Blast Launch date: September 3, 2020
The Berwyn Beat is a weekly newsletter targeting residents and visitors of the Berwyn Area. Each week highlights a different topic that encourages local spending. It gives us another opportunity to engage and support members as we share their seasonal offerings and services. The newsletter also includes a "coupon" section that allows us to share their deals/specials.
Subscribers: 1,544 Click Through Rate: APR: 9% MAY: 12% JUNE: 12%
Average Open Rate: APR: 34% MAY: 29% JUNE: 36%
*Average email benchmark click through rate rate for all industries in 2020 was 11% according to Constant Contact.
*Average email benchmark open rate for all industries in 2020 was 18% according to Campaign Monitor.
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Letter from David Hulseberg | Contract
LETTER FROM THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR As
the Executive Director of the Berwyn Development Corporation (BDC), I would like to welcome you to our 2nd Quarter Report for 2021. Within this report you will find valuable information on how the BDC has contributed to economic development in the City of Berwyn. Q2 of 2021 continued the progress of rapid vaccine rollout and distribution. We saw conditions on the ground change quickly and worked diligently as a team to ensure the businesses and residents alike had up to date information. As case counts dropped, we watched the world return to some semblance of normal. We were just as excited as anyone to welcome the community back to Phase 5 and see capacity restrictions dropped entirely. Outside of e-blasts and social media posts, we directly shared information more than 140 times to existing businesses in the community.
DAVID HULSEBERG
For the first time since the pandemic began, we could pivot from reactive towards a more proactive mindset. In Q2 2021, we completed the launch of the Berwyn EDA Revolving Loan Fund, committing $500,000 to the $2 million award. This new $2.5 million fund will be readily available for Berwyn business borrowers. Together with the support and recognition as a certified lender under DCEO’s Advantage Illinois program, the BDC is ready to help our community prepare for the next phase of growth and expansion. We know that there exists significant pent up demand in the market; in Q2 we saw an uptick in business attraction, responding to more than 23 requests for information from prospective businesses outside of the community. The BDC continued offering our Commercial Loan and Microloan Programs, adding one new business to our pool in Q2 2021. The BDC also continued offering our Finish Line Grant and Pay As You Go Programs in our Roosevelt, Depot, and Harlem/Cermak TIF districts. The BDC committed $83,317.05 in Finish Line Grants though Q2 of 2021. Q2 2021 brought with it a renewed sense of optimism. The BDC continues to grow our resources to aid and support our business community by any means possible. We look forward to the second half of 2021 to be even more successful than the first half. Our community is strong and resilient. We’ll continue to build Berwyn together. Sincerely,
David Hulseberg
Berwyn Development Corporation Contract with the City of Berwyn A. Business Attraction (New Business Prospects): a. The BDC provided information to 23 new business prospects on land, buildings, demographics, labor force, housing, education, infrastructure, and other relevant information. c. The BDC agreed to perform the following business attraction services to aid prospective businesses and developers: i. BDC staff reviewed existing incentive programs to make recommendations and provide feedback from the development community. The BDC continued tracking feedback by way of commercial transfer stamps, business licenses, and building permit touches. This information is provided to the City of Berwyn by way of the Vacant Properties Report and Building Permit Report on a semi-annual basis. 1. The BDC continued to market the Finish Line Grant Program in Berwyn’s Roosevelt, Harlem, and Depot TIF Districts. In 2021, the BDC set aside $250,000 in the Roosevelt TIF, $250,000 in the Harlem TIF, and $150,000 to the Depot TIF. a. The BDC committed $83,317.05 in Finish Line Grants through Q2 of 2021 2. In response to the Covid-19 pandemic, the BDC continued the Finish Line Marketing Program for 2021 to assist with marketing costs and business transitions. B. Business Retention and Expansion (Existing Business Prospects) b. The BDC retention program identified the needs of existing businesses in the following ways: i. The BDC provided information 140 times to existing businesses on economic, demographic, or commercial real estate. Some businesses were contacted with multiple touches, hence the large amount of retention information shared. The primary focus in Q2 2021 was reopening resources as they related to Phase 4 and Phase 5 of the Restore Illinois Plan. As of the end of Q2, Berwyn was fully reopened. ii. The BDC updated information on Berwyn’s economic profile, including the available properties map, vacancy information to aldermen, and sales tax data in our annual and quarterly reports. The BDC website was also updated to reflect change in resources and policies from national, state, and local guidance. iv. The BDC continued to maintain a database of all Berwyn businesses and work with the Permit Administrator to revamp the City business license process. Contract continued on next page
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Contract Continued | Social Media/Marketing Results
C. Miscellaneous a. The BDC operates the Commercial Loan and Microloan pools to assist community businesses with financing options. d. The BDC was awarded $2 million by the US Economic Development Administration to create the Berwyn EDA Revolving Loan Fund. The BDC formally launch this program in Q2 2021.
E-BLAST MARKETING RESULTS
5,227
CLICK THROUGH RATE:
AVERAGE OPEN RATE:
APR: 10.5% MAY: 9% JUNE: 10%
APR: 27% MAY: 23% JUNE: 26%
CONSTANT CONTACT E-BLAST SUBSCRIBERS
*Average email benchmark click through rate rate for all industries in 2020 was 11% according to Constant Contact.
*Average email benchmark open rate for all industries in 2020 was 18% according to Campaign Monitor.
WHY BERWYN SOCIAL MEDIA RESULTS FACEBOOK
40K 35K 30K 25K
5K
51,517
10K
38,541
15K
0
APR
14,551
MAY
AVERAGE FACEBOOK ENGAGEMENT RATE
12.4%
*Average Facebook engagement rate is <1%.
13,059
32,300
20K
10,082
JUNE AVERAGE INSTAGRAM ENGAGEMENT RATE
4.1%
*Average Instagram engagement rate is 1.22%.
HIGHEST PERFORMING POST IN Q2: 223 LIKES 86 COMMENTS 41,012 IMPRESSIONS HIGHEST PERFORMING POST IN Q2: 227 LIKES | 5 COMMENTS | 3,562 IMPRESSIONS