Zim announces $30M expansion

Zim American Integrated Shipping Services Co. LLC will invest $30 million to expand its U.S. headquarters in Virginia Beach, creating several hundred jobs over the next five years, Gov. Glenn Youngkin announced Tuesday.

The expansion includes a move from Norfolk, where the company has had its U.S. headquarters since 2001. Zim is a publicly-held subsidiary of Israeli international cargo shipping company Zim Integrated Shipping Services Ltd. The company employs about 280 in Norfolk.

“It was a priority for Zim American Integrated Shipping Services Co. LLC to retain its headquarters in the commonwealth and secure employment opportunities in the Hampton Roads region for years to come,” Youngkin said in a statement. “Virginia is a leader in supply chain management thanks to our infrastructure, robust transportation network and world-class Port of Virginia, and Zim is a vital shipping partner that advances our position in this important industry. We are pleased that Zim will continue its growth in the commonwealth.”

Founded in Israel in 1945, Zim is a global container liner shipping company with operations in more than 90 countries and it serves more than 34,000 customers at more than 300 ports. The Hampton Roads Alliance helped recruit Zim to the region 22 years ago. The company completed its move to Norfolk from the World Trade Center in New York City two weeks before the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attacks, according to a news release from the Virginia Economic Development Partnership.

“The Hampton Roads Alliance congratulates Zim on its growth plans and its decision to continue to headquarter its United States operations here in the Hampton Roads region,” Doug Smith, president and CEO of the Hampton Roads Alliance, said in a statement.

In December 2022, ZIM purchased a 70,000-square-foot office building on 4.16 acres from 4425 Corporation Fee LLC for $12 million, according to a January announcement from Cushman & Wakefield | Thalhimer, which brokered the sale of the property at 4425 Corporation Lane. According to an economic impact study prepared for the company by Old Dominion University’s Dragas Center for Economic Analysis and Policy, Zim added about $1.16 billion to the state’s economy between 2009 and 2019.

“We are very pleased with the purchase of this first-class new office building, which will serve our growing shipping business in the U.S., a pivotal country for our strategy and our global network,” Zim President and CEO Eli Glickman said in a statement. “The new office will provide a first-rate work environment for our valued employees, as they continue to deliver our signature personal, top-quality service to customers. This office expansion is vital to Zim’s commitment to the North American market and to the expansion of our capacity in the region with our new LNG- Green Energy vessels fleet.”

VEDP worked with Virginia Beach, the Hampton Roads Alliance and the General Assembly’s Major Employment and Investment Project Approval Commission to secure the project. Youngkin also approved a $1.4 million grant from the Commonwealth’s Opportunity Fund to assist Virginia Beach with the project. Zim is eligible to receive benefits from the Port of Virginia Economic and Infrastructure Development Zone Grant Program. Virginia competed against several other states for the project.

“The Hampton Roads region’s strategic location and proximity to the Port of Virginia will help align Zim American Integrated Shipping Services Co. LLC for further growth in the U.S. market, and we are proud that this global shipping leader will remain and expand in the commonwealth,” Virginia Secretary of Commerce and Trade Caren Merrick said in a statement. “A pro-business environment, robust workforce and effective collaboration are the hallmarks of economic development in Virginia, and this significant project will make the commonwealth even more attractive for additional investments in the logistics sector.”