Business

The Population Boom Spells Economic Boom in Johnston County

Smithfield is at a crossroads for interstate traffic from all directions.

It’s something of a North Carolina conundrum. How can a county without a town of even 15‚000 people amass annual retail sales of better than $1 billion?

In Johnston County‚ the solution to this puzzle lies in traffic patterns.

Interstate 40‚ traversing the county’s southern end‚ boasts daily car counts topping 50‚000 near Benson‚ where it meets the north-south Interstate 95. More than a dozen spots touch traffic counts of 40‚000 in the county‚ a number of them near the 83-store Carolina Premium Outlets on I-95 in Smithfield.

And good schools‚ industry and affordable quality of life are attracting droves of new residents from the Research Triangle west of the county.

Growth in rooftops means rocketing retail sales‚ says Don Johnson‚ who directs the Small Business Center of Johnston Community College.

Johnston County’s population – up 44 percent in the last decade – is approaching 160‚000 and will surpass 200‚000 in the next decade. Since 1991‚ taxpayers have invested more than $400 million in 23 school construction projects.

“The rooftops have brought in the national chains‚” says Johnson‚ mentioning the arrival of a third Wal-Mart Supercenter in the county‚ southwest of Clayton. “There are a lot of heavy big-box retailers with the outlets along I-95 in Smithfield – tremendous retail sales there.”

Sales tax collections have grown better than 11 percent annually for three years running. Fueling the local retail trade is the county’s strategic location along I-95‚ halfway between New York and Florida. That has meant a flourishing hotel and travel business.

Jobs in Johnston County are growing at an annual rate of 5 percent‚ healthier even than the Triangle of Raleigh‚ Durham and Chapel Hill. Growth is coursing new blood through the county‚ making the need for local‚ service-oriented and professional businesses even greater to help the wave of new residents‚ says Johnson‚ who advises people hoping to launch businesses.

“It’s an attractive area‚ for sure‚ because there’s a market here‚” he says. “But the competition is fierce when you’re talking about Wal-Mart and the retailers in outparcels and the mall-type atmospheres.”

Great opportunity exists‚ though‚ for independent merchants who provide investment and insurance services‚ child care‚ personal services such as salons and spas‚ and high-end or distinctive gift‚ accessories and furnishings shops‚ Johnson says.

Existing retailers are raising the bar‚ too.

Among them is Smithfield’s Carroll Pharmacy‚ launched by pharmacist Alan Carroll’s father‚ Kay‚ in a shopping center 30 years ago. Father and son are both active in the business they upgraded in 2000 by building a freestanding‚ 5‚000-square-foot pharmacy with drive-through service and one-hour photo processing.

Behind the retail floor‚ they added a robot with programmable controls‚ 250 cells for dispensing medication and a laser counter.

“It can fill a prescription in about 20 minutes‚” says Alan Carroll‚ who’s quick to point out these retail enhancements aren’t a replacement for what built the store’s success. “We have had a very loyal client base‚ and we’ve been fortunate to grow with the county. The underlying goal of all of it is to be‚ as our slogan says‚ ‘your friendly neighborhood drugstore.’ ”

Johnson‚ himself a veteran of a family appliance business‚ says maintaining that customer bond could be more important than ever now.

“The residential construction has really been driving the core economy in this county‚” he says. “I think one of the reasons Johnston County has been so successful is where it’s located and what’s happening around it. You couldn’t ask for a better place to be.”

Story by Gary Perilloux
Photo by Ian Curcio

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