But, he stressed, site selection isn't all about data. "The science of site selection is found in all the data and the new technologies for acquiring that data," he noted. "But the art of site selection is interpreting that data in light of your goals as a retailer, and being able to forecast changes in the market that will affect you in the future."

The other panelists agreed with that assessment, adding some twists of their own. "The collection and reviewing of data is definitely critical," noted William S. French, principal/VP at Colliers International's Indianapolis office, and a leading retail broker in the Indy market. "But there's another part to the art of site selection, and that's impressing the real estate committee that approves the deal. If you can't master that part of the art, nothing's going to happen. The key element in that is understanding the company, and knowing the 100 different things that might affect its store at any given site."

As a broker, it's poison to a deal not to understand the various factors in site selection. "You can't say 'I don't know,' " French said. "You have to know. This is especially true where it concerns municipalities, which are putting more and more restrictions on retail projects. What will the city approve? You have to know in detail."

John Reller, SVP of real estate with Indianapolis-based Steak 'n Shake, a restaurant chain with about 430 units, brought a retailer's perspective to the panel. "I'd like site selection to be a science," he noted, "and examining all the variables in the process is certainly important—demographics, traffic, competition, parking, access, penetration of your stores in a market, specifics of the deals, and more. The tools for understanding a site are important. But ultimately the process is an art. What's your gut feeling? What do you like about a site?"

Reller speaks from 16 years of experience in finding places for the quick-service Steak 'n Shake to grow, and sometimes things don't go as demographics and other data might suggest. One of the chain's Indianapolis sites, he noted, does relatively poorly, despite being in the city's prime retail trade area; by contrast, another site in the Indy market, in a submarket better known for its industrial real estate, is a stellar performer. "We didn't predict that," he noted.

Mark Jenkins, SVP of retail development for Kite Realty, also noted that gut feelings, for an experienced retail developer, shouldn't be underrated. "I believe in the art of site selection," he said. "The science of it is very important, but more to confirm your instincts. Data can confirm for you what you already know is true."

For a retail developer, he added, it's absolutely critical "to understand who you're working for, and what their needs are, if it's a retailer with standalone product. If you're doing multiple-retail development, you have to understandhigh-growth areas, and areas with growing income. Those areas are going to generate traffic."