Narrative Overview

BARTLETT & NORTHEAST SHELBY COUNTY

In 2007 Bartlett was recognized by CNN / Money Magazine as one of the Top 100 Best Places to Live in America. It was the only community in Tennessee to earn that distinction.  Also, in 2009, Barteltt was ranked in the top 100 Most Affordable Places to Relocate by RelocateAmercia. 

Bartlett is the second largest municipality in Shelby County and the tenth largest city in Tennessee with close to 50,000 residents. Located at Shelby County's geographical center - the city's market area comprises eight zip codes and is the largest submarket in the metro region and one of its fastest growing. Other jurisdictions within the market area include; Lakeland, Arlington, Memphis/Cordova, Memphis/Raleigh, and unincorporated areas of east and north Shelby County. Combined this area has a population of about 250,000 or over 20% of metropolitan Memphis.

Within a ten mile radius of the intersection of I-40 and Germantown Parkway, the market's epicenter, there are over 15,000 businesses, 225,000 employees and 145,000 households. The median age is 37 with a median household income of just over $65,000 (150% of the national median household income) and an average household income of $80,000. Within a five mile radius, over 60% of the total population has at least some level of college education.

The economy of the area is very diverse with no dominating industries or sectors. The retail sector employs about 50,000 with an average of 16 employees per business. Finance, Insurance & Real Estate employs about 25,000, Manufacturing a little over 10,000, Wholesale Trade and the Construction sectors both employ roughly 9,000 and Government is responsible for over 27,000. The largest single sector is Service at 85,000 employees with the largest industries being Health Services (28,000), Business Services (14,000) and Education & Social Services (10,000 each).

Primary industries serve a major role in the region's economic strength. Most of these businesses are located in the corporate and industrial parks bordering or near I-40. Numerous industry clusters have evolved within the corridor including medical device manufacturing, pharmaceuticals, healthcare, hospitality services, agribusiness and food processing, IT services and general electronics. Numerous corporate and divisional headquarters are also based in and around Bartlett including Youth Villages, Brother International, Pfizer, Lucite, Stratas Foods and Kraft Food Ingredients.

The Northeast Shelby County workforce is perhaps the best in the Memphis Metropolitan area and very likely one of the best overall labor markets in the Southeast United States. The region provides existing and prospective employers with a wide choice of skills and college degrees combined with a strong work ethic typical of this part of the country.

Bartlett & Northeast Shelby County is a thriving residential and business corridor with a bright economic future. Thousands of acres of developable land will carry Bartlett and the region well into the 21^st Century with an estimated build-out population of over 300,000.

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