Friendswood economic development committee outlines branding, small-business supports

Susan Esmond Keys, chair of Friendswood’s Community and Economic Development Committee, laid out the committee’s recent strategic work and a new suite of marketing messages aimed at positioning Friendswood for business growth.

Keys said the committee completed a strategic planning cycle begun in 2021 and that the group distilled interviews, discovery trips and public outreach into a core message: "Friendswood is a forward-looking community with a proud past, strong traditions, and a space to grow dreams." The message is broken into three themes—Proud, Welcoming and Community—meant to be repeatable in presentations and outreach.

The committee emphasized practical objectives: attract and retain relevant businesses, develop local talent and maintain a business-friendly local government process. Keys described outreach to about 25 local business owners and study trips to other Texas downtowns to learn best practices.

Local business owner Louis Briones described retail-promoting collaborations such as a "Shop Hop" that recently involved about 30 shops and rewarded shoppers who visited multiple retailers. Speakers framed the Shop Hop and Farmer & Vine festival as tools to increase foot traffic and to fund public-art projects and operations.

Keys and city staff said volunteers and staff plan to continue using the committee’s strategy to inform city messaging and to pursue partnerships that support small-business programming and downtown placemaking.