Newsmakers 2015: Jim Bailey

Jim Bailey's accomplishments turning Poplar Bluff, Missouri, into a retail shopping destination happened, he says, by accident.

Bailey, a longtime resident of Poplar Bluff who owns and runs CARSTAR Poplar Bluff Auto Body & Glass, has been primarily in the auto repair industry for more than 30 years, but says he saw potential opportunity in buying available real estate near his business to use or rent. After Walgreens bought property Bailey owned on Westwood Boulevard, he decided in 2005 to buy Mansion Mall, a shopping complex farther down the street in need of some work.

"I had great success with that," says Bailey, who sought the help of a real estate broker, renovated the complex and added a new building for eight tenants at the site.

Restaurants and retailers now thrive at Mansion Mall, and at Valley Plaza, which Bailey bought in 2012, then renovated and filled with stores such as Hobby Lobby and Marshalls.

The result of Bailey's efforts has been the creation of many jobs and increased business activity in Poplar Bluff, and his peers, including friend Peter Tinsley, say that is exceptional because Bailey did it with virtually no tax assistance.

"I work together with everybody, and we build quality businesses and properties," Bailey says.

Bailey is 53 and has two sons.