Consultant Services for Countywide Retail Market Analysis, Recruitment Strategy, and Staff Training

Franklin County, Virginia's Office of Economic Development is requesting proposals for consultant services to conduct countywide retail market analysis, develop a recruitment strategy, and train staff, with proposals due October 1, 2026 at 4:00 p.m. to corey.white@franklincountyva.gov.

The scope encompasses custom demographic research with trade area identification; mobile data collection analyzing visitation patterns; retail gap analysis and peer market comparison; psychographic profiling; real estate site analysis identifying five or more geographically diverse sites; a countywide property catalog; priority retail category identification with a minimum of 10 qualified prospects; marketing guides with customized templates; aerial imagery with traffic counts and mobility data; staff training workshops; industry overview presentations; and quarterly coaching meetings. The engagement covers the full geographic area of Franklin County, including established commercial centers, designated growth areas, and rural communities. The work is structured to build FCED's internal capacity; County staff will lead implementation and direct recruitment activity using the consultant's data, recommendations, and tools. The consultant will provide guidance and coaching but will not function as the County's outsourced recruiter.

Proposals are evaluated on Experience & Qualifications (20 points), Presentation (20 points), Understanding of Scope & Approach (30 points), Timeline (10 points), and Budget (20 points). Offerors must submit three comparable governmental references, demonstrate prior experience on similar projects, provide detailed methodology and project schedules, and submit a fixed price covering all travel and supplementary service costs with payment terms Net 30 days after invoice receipt unless negotiated otherwise. The County reserves the right to negotiate fees with the selected offeror and is not bound to select the lowest-cost proposal. Questions are due September 24, 2026. Contract performance will commence upon notice to proceed and be completed within a timeframe negotiated with the selected consultant. No contract value, set-asides, or incumbent information is identified.