The Good News Report

[Guest]

18 hours ago, KJHburg said:

The Best Cities for Business and Careers from Forbes ranks these NC cities in the top 25!

#2 Raleigh  #5 Charlotte #13 Durham  #15 Asheville 

Atlanta #11 Nashville #17     They looked at 200 metro areas across USA

https://www.forbes.com/best-places-for-business/list/#tab:overall

the worst?  Atlantic City NJ 

EL OH EL. Asheville

[SoDoSoPa]

1 hour ago, ricky_davis_fan_21 said:

EL OH EL. Asheville

Seriously, not sure how Asheville made the list unless it was hospitality careers only.

[KJHburg]

9 hours ago, SoDoSoPa said:

Seriously, not sure how Asheville made the list unless it was hospitality careers only.

they have an expanding GE Aviation plant which makes jet engines,  a hugely fast growing company the maker of Theraworx   https://avadimhealth.com/  which is adding the most new jobs of any manufacturer in western NC, ever expanding Mission Healthcare system and yes the tourism business is booming as is beer production!  Plus an unemployment rate in  Buncombe county of only 3.1% one of the lowest in the state.   Home to grocers Ingles and EarthFare both which are growing. 

Asheville is my favorite overnight or day trip from CLT. 

[KJHburg]

This is good news for Charlotte region 95% of Bank of America employees will get a $1000 bonus in 1st quarter of 2019.   https://www.bizjournals.com/charlotte/news/2018/11/02/bofa-to-award-bonuses-other-incentives-to-95-of.html

[KJHburg]

Record FY 2018 tourism year in Charlotte Mecklenburg.   from a special article in the Business Journal today and they also said 70% of our tourism in corporate travel.  

I did not feel like copying all those stats over so here is a photo from my marked up Business Journal.   Basically every stat was the highest or best ever except i guess for the occupancy rate. 

Edited November 3, 2018 by KJHburg

[KJHburg]

NC is ranked #2 best business state in the country behind only Georgia.  This is the 4th consecutive year.  

https://edpnc.com/site-selection-magazine-ranks-north-carolina-no-2-business-climate-for-4th-straight-year/

[KJHburg]

Charlotte Chamber released their 3Q jobs and expansion report.  Tracking about the same as last year so far but noted manufacturing is growing at 2x the national average which is great for the city and county.

https://charlottechamber.com/eco-dev/the-growth-report/

[KJHburg]

Both Charlotte and Raleigh are on the top list of Millennial boom towns  Charlotte #12, Raleigh #6, Nashville #4, Austin #3 etc based on growth, labor force growth etc.

https://www.bizjournals.com/triangle/news/2018/11/07/raleigh-charlotte-among-top-15-millennial.html?ana=e_me_set1&s=newsletter&ed=2018-11-07&u=oAaDx%2B74FoP4qOJ%2By4AU6dhJPpc&t=1541600303&j=84879101

[KJHburg]

Unemployment in Charlotte metro and Mecklenburg county is the lowest it has been since 2008 at 2.9% down from 4.1% a year ago!

https://www.bizjournals.com/charlotte/news/2018/11/07/cbj-morning-buzz-charlotte-unemployment-hits.html?ana=e_me_set1&s=newsletter&ed=2018-11-07&u=oAaDx%2B74FoP4qOJ%2By4AU6dhJPpc&t=1541602124&j=84881001

Edited November 7, 2018 by KJHburg

[Nick2]

I don't want to take away from this being objectively good news but that's dangerously low. It means that if someone leaves a position, it will be very difficult to fill quickly causing serious headaches for local businesses who can't just shift someone into that position from another within the company.

Hopefully it doesn't continue falling because these numbers haven't been sustained like this in decades so there is no way to know how exactly it will affect our current economic situation. It could be absolutely irrelevant but for a long time, economists have thought having a natural rate of unemployment of 4-5% was indicative of or even necessary for a healthy economy.

[Vitamin_N]

12 hours ago, Nick2 said:

I don't want to take away from this being objectively good news but that's dangerously low. It means that if someone leaves a position, it will be very difficult to fill quickly causing serious headaches for local businesses who can't just shift someone into that position from another within the company.

Hopefully it doesn't continue falling because these numbers haven't been sustained like this in decades so there is no way to know how exactly it will affect our current economic situation. It could be absolutely irrelevant but for a long time, economists have thought having a natural rate of unemployment of 4-5% was indicative of or even necessary for a healthy economy.

Wages have been sticky for a while, it seems like they've been rising as of late and I hope that continues. Whenever I see an article with employers complaining they "can't find good workers" I mentally add "...at the wages we're currently paying." That isn't always fair--sometimes there may indeed be legitimate labor market issues--but I've seen enough examples in my own career of employers trying to fill jobs at low prices that I know it's an issue.

[tozmervo]

1 hour ago, Vitamin_N said:

Wages have been sticky for a while, it seems like they've been rising as of late and I hope that continues. Whenever I see an article with employers complaining they "can't find good workers" I mentally add "...at the wages we're currently paying." That isn't always fair--sometimes there may indeed be legitimate labor market issues--but I've seen enough examples in my own career of employers trying to fill jobs at low prices that I know it's an issue.

In architecture we're dealing with a "2008 to 2012" gap. For several years, graduates were coming out of school into a dead job market and jumped ship. Now there's a major shortage of people with 5-10 years of experience.

[cltbwimob]

14 hours ago, Nick2 said:

I don't want to take away from this being objectively good news but that's dangerously low. It means that if someone leaves a position, it will be very difficult to fill quickly causing serious headaches for local businesses who can't just shift someone into that position from another within the company.

Hopefully it doesn't continue falling because these numbers haven't been sustained like this in decades so there is no way to know how exactly it will affect our current economic situation. It could be absolutely irrelevant but for a long time, economists have thought having a natural rate of unemployment of 4-5% was indicative of or even necessary for a healthy economy.

 The only real problems with a super low unemployment rate that I can think of are producer prices and consumer prices. In a tight labor market, producer prices go up because the wage rate often goes up, which is what we're seeing -thankfully-happen for the first time in decades (when adjusting for inflation). Consumer prices can go  up due to a rise in aggregate demand.  As more people are employed  and the weight rate rises, the aggregate figure of dollars able to be spent in the economy is higher. However both of these problems have a good side to them-more people are employed, the wage rate rises, and aggregate demand rises which boosts economic output.

One thing you have to remember is that while the unofficial unemployment rate is at an all time low, labor force participation rate and employment to population ratio are still 2 1/2 to 3% below their levels in 2007-2008.   This means that there are still a significant number of marginally attached workers in the workforce or people who have left the workforce all together.   The real unemployment rate, sometimes called U6 by economists, takes into account discouraged workers and individuals who have left the workforce altogether. That unemployment rate for the US is between 7 % and 7 1/2%.  Assuming the differential between real unemployment and the official unemployment statistic is the same for Charlotte as it is for the US, real unemployment is  probably just a shade over 6% in the metro. Roughly speaking, that means that the official unemployment statistics would have to drop another percentage or two to get aggregate employment levels to where they were in early 2008 (as a percentage of population), and get real unemployment to the 4%-5% range.

[KJHburg]

More commercial real estate reports are rolling in this time from Avison Young about the office and industrial markets.  They can be summed up by saying BOOM:  growth in occupancy, growth in rental rates, and lots of space coming in 2019 but a lot of the office space is preleased (these reports don't reflect the reported 150,000 sq ft by Allstate in the Railyard)  They mention the Kannapolis 1 Million sq ft Amazon warehouse which is now opened but remember an even larger multistory Amazon warehouse is underway by the airport.  

https://www.avisonyoung.us/en_US/web/charlotte-nc/research

 

[KJHburg]

EY is adding a third office to its Charlotte offices in addition to the one at Bank of America CC and the new one at Railyard the innovation center where they leased 30,000 sq ft for their 375 new jobs there.   Now they are opening a Managed Document Review facility in 17,000 sq ft in Parkway Plaza where 15 new jobs will be created.  

From the Business Journal subscriber article

""Ernst & Young has opened a Managed Document Review facility at 5260 Parkway Plaza, where it will employ primarily contract workers who will help EY clients (corporations, law firms and legal departments among them) manage high volumes of electronic documentation like regulatory compliance, contract and lease abstractions, litigation and investigations. The Charlotte MDR facility is one of a handful across the U.S. and a new business service for EY here.""

https://www.bizjournals.com/charlotte/news/2018/11/09/ey-expands-charlotte-presence-with-new-office-in.html?ana=e_du_prem&s=article_du&ed=2018-11-09&u=oAaDx%2B74FoP4qOJ%2By4AU6dhJPpc&t=1541799585&j=84940021

200 non employee contractors will work on site here at this very secure facility. EY employs 1200 in Charlotte now and is growing. 

 

Edited November 9, 2018 by KJHburg

[GeauxCLT]

They sound like a great primary tenant for Legacy 2.

[J-Rob]

People like to talk about how Pepsi started in the Carolinas, but overlook the fact that the largest Coca-Cola bottler is headquartered right here in South Park.  Coca-Cola Bottling Co. Consolidated, has almost 2,000 employees in Charlotte and 16,000 employees nation-wide.  The company is independent of The Coca-Cola Company (ticker - KO), and is publicly traded as COKE.  The "good news" here is that the company has grown tremendously over the last five years.  As stated in the article, "We were probably a $1.5 billion business five to seven years ago. This year, we’ll be moving toward $5 billion in revenue."

So maybe during the holidays this year raise a glass of Coke rather than Pepsi.  It taste better anyway.

https://www.bizjournals.com/charlotte/news/2018/11/15/how-coke-consolidated-grew-from-small-distributor.html

 

Edited November 15, 2018 by J-Rob

[CharlotteWkndBuzz]

Thread derailed in 3, 2, 1...lol jk.

Here's some good news...From the Observer today: https://www.charlotteobserver.com/news/business/banking/article221589840.html

"Charlotte regains its place as No. 2 U.S. banking center. Will it keep it?"

[CLT704]

It'll be number 2 for good when Wells Fargo moves their HQ here  !

[KJHburg]

another Charlotte marketing company expanding in SouthEnd from the Business Journal today

""A Charlotte-based company with a growing portfolio of consumer product brands is growing its space by six times with a move to lower South End. Elements Brands, which has been Queen City-based since 2015, is moving from its 8,500-square-foot space at 201 Rampart St., near Sycamore Brewing, to a 51,000-square-foot flex building at 4444 South Blvd. The move was prompted primarily because Elements is "busting at the seams" in its South End office, said CEO Bill D'Alessandro, who founded Elements Brands in Boulder, Colorado, in 2010.""

Subscriber article:   https://www.bizjournals.com/charlotte/news/2018/11/15/ceo-new-larger-location-in-lower-south-end-to-open.html?ana=e_du_prem&s=article_du&ed=2018-11-15&u=oAaDx%2B74FoP4qOJ%2By4AU6dhJPpc&t=1542322018&j=85051171

[KJHburg]

In other good news of the week, Elior North America the French owned food service management company has increased its space 46% in the 300 South Tryon bldg to 19,000 sq and now employs 170 at the HQ.  

""TrustHouse sold to France-based Elior Group SA in 2013.  Elior North America spun out from that parent group.   It now has approximately 20,000 employees in the U.S., with sales of $1.3 billion last year. Roughly 170 people are employed at the Charlotte headquarters — ahead of initial hiring projections of 100.""

Subscriber article https://www.bizjournals.com/charlotte/news/2018/11/28/photos-elior-north-america-ceo-talks-charlotte.html

They run of course La Belle Helene and Parliament Coffee in the building as well. 

and more from the CEO 

""It’s highly likely we would do another Parliament concept with another building in Charlotte. I think there’s a high likelihood we would potentially do another restaurant — probably not a La Belle Helene — but we would probably do another partnership with a large financial or business institution in Charlotte to create a new concept unique to them, much like we did for 300 Tryon with Barings. It’s got to be the right partnership for us. ""

Edited December 1, 2018 by KJHburg

[KJHburg]

This is more sports good news but the Belk Bowl will have UVA vs USC Gamecocks.  Due to their relative close locations many will make this trip to Charlotte and spend $$$

https://belkbowl.com/

[NCMike1990]

Tomorrow is Charlotte's 250-year anniversary (sestercentennial). The link below has a good but brief video that you all will like.

http://clt250.com/

[NcSc74]

That video was awesome.  I am very jealous of you that can live in such a photogenic city.  I just can't help but think why any company would not want to have ties to the area.  Keep aspiring Charlotte; dream BIG.

[hinsp0]

Not that it would’ve ultimately mattered, but that video (and a gold nugget) should’ve been our amazon presentation.