With a search for a second headquarters beginning last year, Amazon has named the Raleigh area as a top 20 finalist out of the nearly 240 applicants across North America.
The Seattle-based electronic commerce giant is looking for a metropolitan area that has experience in technology and room for possible expansion, in addition to other factors and incentives for a new headquarters dubbed “HQ2” by Amazon. Raleigh has met these requirements with its surrounding collegiate institutions and growing population and economy.
“This announcement has created a lot of excitement for Raleigh,” said Michael Walden, Reynolds Distinguished Professor of Agricultural and Resource Economics. “Being at NC State for 40 years, there was no way Raleigh would even be mentioned for something like this back then. Nobody had heard of Raleigh except as a sleepy capital that had nothing to do after 5 o’clock. This area has just grown by leaps and bounds.”
Amazon officially named the Research Triangle as a candidate on Jan. 18, which included possible sites in Durham as well as Raleigh for a potential headquarters building. While the Triangle is the smallest area by a large margin, several aspects make the area stand out to major technology-based companies such as Amazon.
“The top aspect was that we are a well-known tech center,” Walden said. “We already have technology companies here. The Research Triangle Park was the first of its kind to attract technology research firms. Also, our topflight universities attract talent which produces technology workers. It is important that we had a reputation for technology.”
Walden also believes that there is more to what makes Raleigh and the surrounding Triangle appealing than what Amazon originally listed in its ideal list for HQ2.
“Being on the east coast might be something that Amazon is looking at,” Walden said. “The Triangle is a popular place to live and work so that would help Amazon to attract the other workers needed. We also have a much lower cost of doing business than larger cities. We now have the lowest state corporate income tax rate of any state with that tax. We also have room to expand and have no physical boundaries.”
Raleigh is the only finalist to be named out of North Carolina as the Triangle edged out cities such as Charlotte, Winston-Salem and Greensboro. Walden stated that the unique opportunity to have three research schools in the area (NC State, Duke University and UNC-Chapel Hill) might have made the Triangle the state’s best candidate. The current state of business is also appealing to big companies.
“This announcement contributes to the growth of the city and growth in economic status,” said Zak Selwaeh, a first-year studying business. “We already having a booming business in technology with Research Triangle Park, and we are a top-10 city when it comes to small-business growth. Amazon would be the icing on the cake.”
While the competition for Amazon HQ2 is full of heavy favorites in Atlanta, Washington, D.C., and Boston, Raleigh’s mention in the top 20 out of the 238 cities that applied is reason enough for city leaders to be excited for the future the area can offer.
“Raleigh is a thriving community that would be attractive for any business, large or small,” said Mayor Nancy McFarlane in a statement. “We are proud of the investments and partnerships we’ve made that enhance our many attributes, such as our world-class university system, well-trained workforce, diverse economy, strong infrastructure and emerging entrepreneurial spirit.”
According to Walden, the Triangle would reap major benefits if Amazon did choose Raleigh for HQ2. These could include an addition of 50,000 jobs and an average salary of $100,000. This would cause a large influx of new workers resulting in a commercial and building boom, which will boost the already growing economy of the area.
Because of this influx, possible negatives of HQ2 in the Raleigh area would include congestion, more construction, a rise in the already expensive housing market and the need for a better or new mass transit system.
NC State students can view this situation as a big step in a positive direction. Jobs, internships and shadowing of major businesses are growing possibilities for students already involved in the Raleigh community while at NC State.
“I believe it will add a whole integer of jobs and opportunities for a lot of different students that go to NC State,” Selwaeh said. “Whether it is in business, technology or any other field, companies will be looking for people that are available to fill those jobs.”
Whether or not Amazon decides to choose the Triangle for their new headquarters, Raleigh still has the reputation, growth and available means to be a nationally recognized city for business and technology.
“Name recognition is huge,” Walden said. “Even if we don’t go any further in this process with Amazon, the fact that we were on a list of 230 applications that is down to 20 can be used by recruiters. I think nothing but positives can come out of this.”
