WINDHAM – An analysis of retail and restaurant activity in North Windham shows the area takes in nearly $300 million in annual revenue, but is still falling short of its potential.

The Retail Coach, a Dallas-based company hired in March by the Town Council, said in its initial report last week that North Windham, by filling in the sectors not already represented in the shopping destination, could generate as much as three times that amount.

“Basically what the gap analysis shows us is opportunity,” said Aaron Farmer, vice president of the Retail Coach. “And I’ll tell you, it shows a lot of opportunity for Windham.”

According to Farmer, the company’s recently released “retail gap analysis” determined the amount of retail activity per sector already taking place in Windham in actual dollar terms using state sales figures. It also projected what those sales could be if shoppers chose Windham rather than neighboring shopping meccas such as Freeport, South Portland, Lewiston-Auburn, and North Conway, N.H.

The numbers indicate Windham businesses as a whole reported annual sales of $292 million last year. Potential sales, predicted by The Retail Coach using per-capita income from likely shoppers in the area surrounding North Windham, were pegged at nearly $1 billion.

The Retail Coach compiled data for more than 50 retail sectors, ranging from lumber and hardware stores to bakeries, children’s clothing stores and car dealers. While potential sales were predicted for all the various sectors, some actual sales figures were not published to protect proprietary information that could compromise local businesses (especially when a sector is represented by only one or two stores in Windham). All but two of the categories show potential sales being much higher than actual sales, indicating to local business officials that the Windham market could handle additional retailers in nearly all sectors.

“I think the potential here is very high,” said Tom Bartell, Windham’s economic development director. “There’s a lot of area for improvement in our sales and other things, just looking at it generally. Looking at it specifically, there are areas where the local knowledge will help because of differences in reporting.”

Farmer is scheduled to meet with local business and government officials in August regarding the retail analysis. He said the analysis is helpful for existing business since it shows what the market could handle, as well as what sectors – such as mobile home dealers or luggage stores – are not represented in Windham.

“We’re about to come in to discuss all this with the local businesses, really help them understand the opportunity, how to use it, because Windham, first and foremost, is interested in seeing those local business expand,” Farmer said. “And then we’ll look to bring additional retailers to help fill the market.”

In May, Farmer and Bartell attended the ICSC trade show, known as the world’s largest retail real estate convention. Farmer said the two made some contacts at the show that seem interested in developing in Windham.

“It was a great show,” Farmer said. “We had a couple of retailers show interest in Windham, obviously can’t say who they are at the moment. But the key to this game is follow-up, follow-up, follow-up.”

Dan Hancock, chairman of the Sebago Lakes Region Chamber of Commerce’s retail committee, which is focused on improving the retail climate in the area and last year spearheaded a Buy Local initiative, is similarly encouraged by the report that indicates the Windham market could handle further growth.

“The report clearly identifies several opportunities to increase sales in the Windham area,” Hancock said. “The next step will be to share this information with retailers and discuss how we can work together to retain a bigger percentage of purchases that are being made outside of our market.

“The results from last year’s Buy Local campaign during the holiday season show that consumers will respond to this message so we need make this a year-round focus and continue to promote the benefits of shopping locally.”

The retail gap analysis provides a good goal, Bartell said, to strive for in the future. And the more Windham businesses earn, the more likely they are to generate additional property tax and personal property tax (on business equipment) to reduce the residential tax burden in Windham. That is ultimately why the Windham Town Council paid The Retail Coach $38,000 for a 15-month contract, to lure new companies to town and help existing businesses maximize sales.

“We’re in competition, if you would, with South Portland, Portland, Freeport, North Conway, all of those places, so the question is how much of that we can capture and keep in the area, to provide jobs and property taxes,” Bartell said. “So that’s our job, to try to capture more and more of that.”