The Good News Report

[KJHburg]

7 hours ago, King of the Queen City said:

Was there anything recognizable in the Hallmark movie? It would be nice if they actually set one in Charlotte, but I guess in one way it is fitting since Charlotte was Nashville before Nashville.

Yes the Blumenthal, Nascar Plaza plaza, top of AC by Marriott uptown ....  others were private homes in Charlotte.  Country music production started in Charlotte then moved to Nashville and they stole that from us due to a stronger radio station centrally located.  

Nashville has a great brand recognition for sure much more known than Charlotte.  

 

[KJHburg]

from Joe Bruno on twitter  sounds like existing company maybe Allstate, maybe Vanguard, maybe someone else that recently arrived. 

City of Charlotte is making an economic development announcement at 10 am. A company is bringing more jobs to Charlotte

@wsoctv

[atlrvr]

Maybe it'll be corp HQ for XPO's new business.... it's splitting in half, and I think the new business is already what is primarily in Ballantyne.

[KJHburg]

the city's announcement today is  for Arrival the British electric vehicle manufacturer so thinks the Biz Journal. 

Edited December 9, 2020 by KJHburg

[DMann]

So.....this is for the arrival of Arrival?

 

[KJHburg]

YES Arrival has arrived so says the Mayor 150 new jobs $3 Million investment into Charlotte offices. 

 

from Oct Biz Journal article 

London electric vehicle company to open office in Charlotte's South End - Charlotte Business Journal (bizjournals.com)

Arrival establishes its North American Headquarters in Charlotte N.C. Read more: https://arrival.com/news/Arrival-establishes-its-North-American-Headquarters-in-Charlotte-NC… Watch announcement live: https://youtube.com/watch?v=4j6e-_cZ7xA…

 

 

City of Charlotte

10:04 AM · Dec 9, 2020·Twitter Web App

Edited December 9, 2020 by KJHburg

[RANYC]

54 minutes ago, KJHburg said:

YES Arrival has arrived so says the Mayor 150 new jobs $3 Million investment into Charlotte offices. 

 

from Oct Biz Journal article 

London electric vehicle company to open office in Charlotte's South End - Charlotte Business Journal (bizjournals.com)

Arrival establishes its North American Headquarters in Charlotte N.C. Read more: https://arrival.com/news/Arrival-establishes-its-North-American-Headquarters-in-Charlotte-NC… Watch announcement live: https://youtube.com/watch?v=4j6e-_cZ7xA…

 

 

City of Charlotte

10:04 AM · Dec 9, 2020·Twitter Web App

aww, old news

[Rufus]

2 hours ago, atlrvr said:

Maybe it'll be corp HQ for XPO's new business.... it's splitting in half, and I think the new business is already what is primarily in Ballantyne.

Not to start a speculation fantasy -- but this would be huge. I didn't know the logistics part had a presence in Charlotte. This is a $16b company splitting in two, so one can assume both would be F500. Gaining that would be massive for the area. I still think Charlotte has a chance to take on a role as a Logistics Hub. We did it with banking, finance, and energy. Why not this? 

[kermit]

On 12/9/2020 at 12:03 PM, Rufus said:

Not to start a speculation fantasy -- but this would be huge. I didn't know the logistics part had a presence in Charlotte. This is a $16b company splitting in two, so one can assume both would be F500. Gaining that would be massive for the area. I still think Charlotte has a chance to take on a role as a Logistics Hub. We did it with banking, finance, and energy. Why not this? 

Its not speculation. Charlotte has been a logistics hub for 60+ years (although it was called "Wholesale Trade" back in the day). Historically this was mostly a product of our trucking firms (I-85 / 77, central location on east coast, etc.). I am not sure that our airfreight industry ever caught fire (although I have not been looking closely), but we have certainly been capturing more than our share of e-commerce activities. Regardless of the specifics of industry makeup, we have lots of human capital / expertise in the industry and this gives us a big  advantages over other places in expanding the industry cluster.

The downside of developing a cluster in logistics is that it is largely a paper industry (from a regional development perspective). It shows LOTS of dollars of cash flow, but it generally an industry of a handful of people 'pushing paper' but very few local employees. That is not to say its not an industry worth cultivating, its just that its direct impacts tend to be much lower than finance, energy, or really any other industry.

Edited December 11, 2020 by kermit

[KJHburg]

1 hour ago, RANYC said:

aww, old news

the Business Journal talked about the lease but it was never officially confirmed until this morning.  

On the XPO speculation 

XPO already has an office in Ballantyne that has a couple of hundred people and an office in High Point too.    Currently based in high cost Greenwich CT. 

Why XPO Logistics Is Splitting in Half (fool.com)

Edited December 9, 2020 by KJHburg

[KJHburg]

Good news is that Charlotte is one of the top 10 cities for women entrepreneurs!

Best Places for Women Entrepreneurs - 2020 Edition - SmartAsset

[rancenc]

The State of NC announced the distribution of millions of dollars in grants throughout the state.

https://www.nccommerce.com/news/press-releases/governor-cooper-announces-nearly-13-million-rural-infrastructure-grants

[KJHburg]

Jeff Bezos' ex wife donates $10M to local Goodwill from the Biz Journal today.  Great news indeed. 

""Goodwill Industries of the Southern Piedmont, which serves the greater Charlotte area, has been gifted a $10 million donation from billionaire philanthropist and author MacKenzie Scott. It's the largest investment in the local nonprofit's 55-year history, according to a news release. The funds will go toward helping local job seekers secure work and preparing them for tomorrow's workplace.  “We have ambitious goals set in our 2025 strategic plan that we are excited to be able to expedite thanks to this generous investment," said Chris Jackson, the nonprofit's president and CEO, in the release. "This will propel us forward in our unwavering dedication to closing the skills gap and eliminating the challenges created by inequities."  
Scott is said to have evaluated nearly 6,500 organizations based on community needs, program outcomes and each nonprofit's ability to make effective use of the funding. Her team worked to identify organizations supporting communities with high projected food insecurity, high measures of racial inequity, and high local poverty rates, the release stated.""

[KJHburg]

Charlotte, Raleigh, Greenville NC and Wilmington all in the top 20 of inbound moves based on population and NC is the 2nd most popular state.  None of this should surprise anyone who lives here with all the New York, NJ, Florida, California tags I am seeing around town.

Charlotte is a top moving destination in 2020. But this small North Carolina city tops the list. - Charlotte Business Journal (bizjournals.com)

[Rufus]

So, Driven Brands is filing for an IPO that could be upwards of $700m. It will still be mostly owned by Roark Capital, but this could be interesting to see a new public company prestige coming to the city. 

[carolinaboy]

On 12/28/2020 at 8:10 PM, KJHburg said:

Charlotte, Raleigh, Greenville NC and Wilmington all in the top 20 of inbound moves based on population and NC is the 2nd most popular state.  None of this should surprise anyone who lives here with all the New York, NJ, Florida, California tags I am seeing around town.

Charlotte is a top moving destination in 2020. But this small North Carolina city tops the list. - Charlotte Business Journal (bizjournals.com)

OT: I loved my time living in Greenville and would seriously consider moving back there. 

Congratulations to Charlotte, Raleigh, Wilmington and Greenville for making the list.

[rancenc]

Great news for Charlotte and NC in general.  Maybe as retailers look at profitable markets to expand into, some of these "elusive" brands that are being coveted might now be a reality....let's see what 2021 holds.

https://www.charlotteobserver.com/news/business/biz-columns-blogs/whats-in-store/article248152190.html

[KJHburg]

NORTH CAROLINA IS BUSINESS FACILITIES’ 2020 STATE OF THE YEAR

RED BANK, NJ—Jan. 5—North Carolina has been named Business Facilities' 2020 State of the Year, the first time NC has earned Business Facilities’ top honor, which has been bestowed annually by the magazine since 2007.  “North Carolina has been a rising star on our radar for several years,” Business Facilities' Editor in Chief Jack Rogers said. “The successful execution of a regional economic development strategy targeting a diverse group of growth sectors in North Carolina is reflected in the proliferation of top-ten results for NC in our state rankings.”   In Business Facilities’ 2020 State Rankings Report, NC was ranked among the top 10 states in rankings categories including Best Business Climate, Workforce Development, Manufacturing Employment, Foreign Direct Investment, Biotechnology, Installed Solar Power, Unmanned Aerial Systems and Fastest-Growing States (Population).    “North Carolina is leveraging its advantages—including a prime logistics location, a steadily expanding skilled workforce and impressive higher education resources—to seal the deal on one big project after another,” Rogers said.  “The Tar Heel State has put down a marker that it’s ready to compete for a leadership position in the emerging growth sectors of the 21st century,” he added.  North Carolina’s largest recent projects (by capital investment) included Centene's $1-billion regional headquarters in Charlotte, a project that will bring more than 3,200 new jobs to NC; aircraft engine maker Pratt & Whitney’s new $650-million manufacturing plant in Buncombe County; and pharma giant Merck’s $650-million vaccine-producing plant in Durham.   Business Facilities is a national publication that has been the leading location source for corporate site selectors and economic development professionals for more than 50 years.

[rancenc]

Here is the article that @KJHburg posted above concerning NC's recent ranking in Business Facilities Magazine

https://businessfacilities.com/2021/01/north-carolina-is-business-facilities-2020-state-of-the-year/

[KJHburg]

One more thing on this being selected State  of the Year by an economic development pub Business Facilities it is a big thing believe me. 

read WRAL Techwire recap of that and of biosciences expansions in NC over $2 Billion none in the Charlotte area but great for the state primarily in Raleigh Durham area 

North Carolina earns 2020 'State of Year' honor from economic development magazine | WRAL TechWire

[RANYC]

Hello All - If I'm a small, NYC-based Investment Business, looking to open a 2nd headquarters in the southeast with a technology focus, what reports should I collect and review that rank/score various cities based on the quality of and availability of Technology Talent?  Also, if any of these reports have compensation levels in these various cities for mid-level  tech professionals, i.e. 10+ years experience, that would be extraordinary.

[KJHburg]

6 hours ago, RANYC said:

Hello All - If I'm a small, NYC-based Investment Business, looking to open a 2nd headquarters in the southeast with a technology focus, what reports should I collect and review that rank/score various cities based on the quality of and availability of Technology Talent?  Also, if any of these reports have compensation levels in these various cities for mid-level  tech professionals, i.e. 10+ years experience, that would be extraordinary.

CBRE does a great technology report each year.  Here you go

2020 Scoring Tech Talent | CBRE   this report is widely read and has the kind of information you are looking for.

[KJHburg]

Since green walls on buildings and garages were discussed in several threads here is a newly based Charlotte firm doing something about it.

Suite Plants.   Custom Living Walls for Any Space (suiteplants.com)

attention developers do something with this firm on your parking garages or blank walls.  (the Ascent?)

Some green walls I saw on the Disney property in Orlando. 

 

[Robbie Charlotte]

9 hours ago, KJHburg said:

Since green walls on buildings and garages were discussed in several threads here is a newly based Charlotte firm doing something about it.

Suite Plants.   Custom Living Walls for Any Space (suiteplants.com)

attention developers do something with this firm on your parking garages or blank walls.  (the Ascent?)

Some green walls I saw on the Disney property in Orlando. 

 

I actually emailed the company about green-screens on parking garages and they said they do this, but no concepts currently in Charlotte.  Any way the city can incentivize this to get done...and it's a local company...

[KJHburg]

^^ I agree that is why I publicized it a bit but some Charlotte developers should really jump on this.  How about Crescent and their garage at the Ally Bank Center?  the Ascent promised this and they can still do it with this company's help.  and Orlando while warmer than Charlotte is not tropical and there are plants suited for each climatic zone.