Foreign Investment remains Strong in Tampa Bay

International firms are finding that Tampa Bay is an ideal location for their U.S. headquarters or manufacturing facilities.

The 2009 Tampa Bay Foreign Direct Investment Study, conducted by the Tampa Bay Partnership, identified 394 foreign owned companies from 34 nations, operating across 18 industries in the seven-county region. The 394 companies identified have 824 locations in our region, of which, 135 are U.S. headquarters operations.

The Tampa Bay Partnership’s Foreign Direct Investment Study, which identified foreign business investment in the Tampa Bay region as of second quarter 2009, was commissioned to provide data on key international operations in the Tampa Bay market as well as to identify future investment opportunities. Data from the study will be used to increase international business opportunities in the Tampa Bay region.

“The study shows that the Tampa Bay region has attracted significant and varied investments from great companies from around the world,” said Bronson Thayer, International Chair of the Tampa Bay Partnership. “These companies employ thousands of residents and contribute greatly to the economic vitality of our communities.”

The 394 foreign owned companies identified in the study employ over 37,000 people in Tampa Bay and have sales of $13.6 billion. Foreign owned firms with a presence in Tampa Bay include world class companies and industry leaders such as Cott Beverages, TRAK Microwave, Gerdau USA, BIC Graphics and CAE USA Inc.

“One of the key findings of the study is the significance of international trade for these firms. Over half of both their sales, as well as their procurement of parts and materials, are through international customers and suppliers. It’s not surprising therefore, that these companies highlighted the Port is one of the top location advantages for this region,” said Richard Wainio, Port Director and CEO, Tampa Port Authority.

“Having this type of business intelligence on companies already in our region helps us to be strategic in our development of quantifiable information and passenger forecasts. We then use the information to make presentations to the airlines when we meet with them to demonstrate that there is a sustainable demand in certain markets for additional International Air Service,” said Louis Miller, Executive Director of the Tampa International Airport.

Through its “JOBS!” initiative, the Tampa Bay Partnership is focused on understanding and identifying opportunities going forward to stimulate and strengthen the Tampa Bay economy through the creation of jobs.

“It is clear that as we look for answers, we must cultivate the relationships and resources identified throughout this study,” added Thayer. “Our ability to reset our economic conditions rely on our actions to expand the types of investments made into our region from these types of companies,”

Among the advantages named by executives of their location in Tampa Bay included climate/weather, large consumer market, easy and cheap distribution of products and services, ports, airports, location of a key industry cluster, central location and favorable cost of doing business.

A previous Foreign Direct Investment Study was conducted in 2004 which identified 113 companies and only 19 countries.