‘Downtown Hackensack Trend Report’ Reveals Preferences

On Jul 20, 2023

The Main Street Business Alliance (MSBA) released its first Hackensack Trend Report, which shows what residents are looking for on Main Street, broken down by age, gender and years lived in Hackensack. The data comes from a detailed survey sent to residents of Hackensack through the MSBA, in partnership with the Johnson Public Library and the Hackensack Regional Chamber of Commerce. Approximately 1,400 people filled out the survey.

“The report demonstrates the significant progress we’ve made to gather and evaluate information from residents of Hackensack about what they want to see on Main Street,” said MSBA Executive Director, John T. Peters. “Working together with our partners at the Johnson Public Library and the Hackensack Regional Chamber of Commerce, we designed a survey that would generate data across multiple segments of residents to find out what people truly wanted to see on Main Street with respect to food, retail, and entertainment. The city has done a wonderful job bringing thousands of new residents and new life into Hackensack. Now, we need to bring even more vibrancy by securing more of what people are looking for on Main Street, be it new restaurants, new merchants, new entertainment, or new retail. We’re first using this data to help determine who next to approach from the retail and restaurant view. On top of that, we collected some wonderfully informative data about how residents want to continue to use the award-winning Johnson Public Library.”

Key highlights of the report:

• 18% of respondents visit Main Street daily, 53% weekly, 18% monthly.
• 61% of respondents want to see more ethnic food restaurants. 45% want more bars / pubs. 56% want to see more coffee/pastry options.
• 41% have a dog or cat, with 19-29 year-old respondents representing the largest age group of pet owners at 61%.
• 60% of respondents would like Main Street to have some sort of comedy club.
• 86% of respondents want to see Main Street establishments stay open late (9pm).
• 70% of respondents prefer to attend events on weekends.

“This trend report and the related data analysis project is incredibly informative. We’ve never had such a detailed analysis of resident preference data. We’re all excited to see what’s next,” said Edward Decker, the Chairman of the MSBA.

“Property and business owners and operators will find this report extremely useful,” commented Jerry Lombardo, owner of CJ Lombardo Company and former Chairman of the MSBA. “The intrinsic value of a report like this has never been higher as we now have thousands of new residents who are looking to Main Street for eateries, services, retail shopping, and entertainment.

“This data, and analysis provides insight to the business community and helps us provide better services to the Hackensack residents. The survey information validates the positive trends and growth we see in North Jersey,” said Charles Muldoon, President of JP Management.

Methodology

The Main Street Business Alliance collaborated with Hathaway and Lane – a data analysis firm, the Johnson Public Library, and the Hackensack Regional Chamber of Commerce to build the survey, compile and analyze the data, and build the report. The data is deemed reliable but not guaranteed for accuracy as it may not reflect all the residents in the area.

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