Central Texas has always lured small and mid-size companies seeking lower costs of living than the coasts, alongside a stout talent pool that can support a wide variety of industries. Yet, as the December announcement that Oracle Corp. had shifted its HQ to Austin showed, the capital city is now fair game for everyone from the Fortune 500 down to “solopreneuers.” Economic development insiders expect relocations will continue this year and say they could play a major role in helping the economy rebound from the pandemic.
Check out the details of some of those relocations below. The list is arranged with the newest announcements on top and will be updated periodically throughout the year.
- Harmonate, a financial-technology company making software to accelerate private capital document processing and data analysis, announced March 23 plans to move to Austin from San Jose, California. As of late March, the company had about 20 employees, with four in the Austin area, including its CEO and CTO.
- CrowdStreet Inc., a real estate investment marketplace, announced March 19 that it will be relocating its headquarters in June to Austin. The 110-employee company will maintain its current office in Portland, and it’s adopted a hybrid work approach that allows employees to work from anywhere. The immediate impact to the Austin job market is unclear, but the company plans to add 80 positions by the end of the year.
- NinjaRMM LLC, which makes remote-monitoring and management software that allows businesses to keep tabs on their tech devices, told Austin Business Journal that is has moved its headquarters to Austin from San Francisco. The company had 17 employees in the Texas capital as of mid-March, of more than 200 employees worldwide. Dozens of hires were planned in Austin.
- Eleiko, which makes workout equipment, relocated its U.S. headquarters to Austin from Chicago. It has leased more than 52,000 square feet in South Austin for offices, distribution and a strength and condition center. As of early February, the company had about a dozen people on the ground in the Texas capital. Eleiko’s global headquarters remains in Sweden
- ZP Better Together LLC, a software maker also known as ZP, relocated to Austin from Rocklin, California, according to a Jan. 28 announcement, along with divisions ZVRS and Purple Communications. ZP’s companies provide video relay technology and interpretation services for those who are deaf or hard of hearing, which allows people to communicate in real-time through an interpreter using video software. The company, which already had a call center in the Austin area for more than 20 years, leased 24,000 square feet at a Northwest Austin office park. About 150 employees will work there — both new and relocated from California — of the more than 2,800 people employed nationwide by the company.
- QSAM Biosciences Inc., a biotechnology company developing cancer treatments, relocated to Austin from Palm Beach, Florida. The company announced the move Jan. 28, at the same time it reported raising $2.5 million with a series B stock offering led by California-based Checkmate Capital Group. Founded in 2004, QSAM makes nuclear medicines for cancer treatment and plans to use the new money to start clinical trials for its radiologic cancer therapy product, CycloSam. Douglas Baum is CEO.
- Alpha Paw LLC, a company selling pet supplies online such as dog beds and dog car safety seats, and its Victor’s Doggy Cookies division relocated from Las Vegas. Ramon van Meer is CEO of Alpha Paw and his young son, Victor, is founder, CEO and head chef at Victor’s Doggy Cookies. While their businesses were based in Nevada, they moved to the Texas capital from San Francisco. Ramon van Meer estimated in January the company would hire about 12 people.
- Sentry Kiosk Inc., which makes autonomous machines that can help prevent the spread of Covid-19 in workplaces by screening people and taking their temperatures, relocated from Minnesota. More than a dozen employees were based out of Austin as of January and roughly 20 to 30 more hires were expected within 12 months. Founder Joe Caldwell was also searching for additional real estate and a permanent CEO.
- Precision Global Consulting Ltd., a firm that helps companies place contract workers and serves as employer of record for those looking to hire, relocated to Austin from New York City. A spokeswoman said in a January email that the company had four members of its leadership team in Austin, including founder and CEO Adam Coleman. The company has maintained an operations hub in New York City and also has teams working elsewhere in the United States as well as in Canada and Europe. “2020 allowed us to revaluate what was important both personally and professionally,” Coleman said in a statement. “It became very clear that the strategic decision to relocate our HQ to Austin Texas would have major long-term positive benefits for the business and clients and workers we serve.”
- Ametrine Inc., which manufactures camouflage for the military, relocated from Maryland. The company expected to investment $3 million in a facility at 900 E. Old Settlers Blvd. in Round Rock and create 140 jobs with an average salary of $75,000, and in return was set to receive incentives totaling $345,000 in annual payments over five years.
- Digital Realty Trust Inc., a giant in the realm of owning and operating data centers used by major technology companies, relocated to Austin from San Francisco. The company has had data centers in the Austin area for years, at MetCenter in Southeast Austin. But now Digital Realty (NYSE: DLR) has leased space for a corporate office at 5707 Southwest Parkway. Erich Sanchack, executive vice president of operations, said in a January statement that roughly a dozen employees would be based at the new corporate office, with plans to grow. The company said it had more than 4,000 customers around the globe and its market capitalization, as of Jan. 25, was more than $40 billion.
- Loop Insurance, a technology company offering a new kind of auto insurance, relocated to Austin from Washington, D.C. The company also closed a $3.25 million funding round led by San Francisco-based venture capital firm Freestyle VC. Co-CEOs John Henry and Carey Anne Nadeau founded the company in July 2020.
- Truelytics, a company making software for wealth managers, relocated to Austin from Boston. The company, founded in 2017, made the move to tap into the plentiful “skilled and affordable labor” of the Texas capital as it sought to build out its sales and marketing efforts during a “second phase of growth,” CEO Jeremi Karnell wrote in a Jan. 8 blog post.
- Amazing Magnets LLC, a magnet manufacturer and distributor, relocated from Anaheim, Calif. It plans to invest $5.5 million into a new headquarters and production facility in Round Rock. The company company expected to have 25 employees in Round Rock by the end of 2021, with plans to double its team in 2022. Most of its current staff are moving to Texas.
- 8VC, a venture capital firm with a portfolio that includes investments in companies such as Hims and Oculus, relocated to Austin from San Francisco. While the move was announced in November, a source told Austin Business Journal in January that the firm, led by CEO Joe Lonsdale, had taken 10,000 square feet of office space at 1221 South Congress Ave., just south of Music Lane.