President of Retail Strategies
Lacy Beasley is the President of Retail Strategies, a full-service advisory firm that works with municipalities on retail and restaurant business recruitment through commercial real estate connections.
Beasley serves on the Board of Trustees for ICSC, the largest not-for-profit membership-based retail commercial real estate industry organization. She also serves on the ULI Alabama Leadership Team.
The recipient of numerous awards, the Birmingham Business Journal has named Lacy nationwide “Top 100 National Influencers in Commercial Real Estate”, “Top 40 under 40 for the Decade”, one of Birmingham’s “Eight Emerging Influencers”, “Who’s Who of Commercial Real Estate” and “Women to Watch”.
Lacy has spoken on retail trends and best practices in retail recruitment at hundreds of events across the U.S. and Canada. Her articles have been published in Shopping Centers Today, Site Selection Magazine, and the Alabama Retail Federation.
A graduate of Lipscomb University, she earned her bachelor’s degree in Business Management.
Vacant storefronts do more than reduce economic activity: they shape public perception, weaken investor confidence, and create barriers to future investment. Yet many communities struggle to move from identifying vacancies to successfully recruiting businesses that fit their downtown. This session provides a practical framework for downtown business recruitment built specifically for Main Street districts, rural communities, and traditional downtowns. Attendees will learn how to assess downtown readiness, engage property owners, identify market-ready opportunities, and recruit businesses that strengthen the district's identity and long-term vitality. Drawing on experience working with hundreds of communities across the country, this session will demonstrate how public investment, stakeholder alignment, and targeted business recruitment work together to create a stronger and more investable downtown. Participants will leave with actionable strategies they can begin implementing immediately.