Greater Richmond Partnership assisted 53 companies, bringing 2,058 jobs

During the 2012-13 fiscal year, the Greater Richmond Partnership (GRP) supported the creation of 2,058 new jobs and $276 million in new capital investment in the Richmond region.

Results for the GRP, the economic development group for the counties of Chesterfield, Hanover, Henrico and the city of Richmond, were announced Thursday night during its 19th annual meeting at the North American headquarters of Allianz Global Assistance in Henrico County.

“The 2012-2013 fiscal year proved to be significant for economic development, with large projects coming to the area, employing thousands of local residents,” said Gregory H. Wingfield, CEO and president of the Greater Richmond Partnership.
 
This year, the GRP supported a total of 53 projects. Of that number, the business attraction team assisted 17 new and expanded companies, including Aditya Birla Minacs, The Vitamin Shoppe and Innovative Diagnostic Laboratory. Collectively, these companies plan to create 1,384 jobs and invest $192 million in the Richmond Region – a big chunk of the region’s total.

Since 1994, the year it was created, the GRP said it has assisted more than 445 new companies to the region that have created $8.1 billion in capital investment.

During the presentation, Wingfield addressed recent organizational changes with the Greater Richmond Chamber, including the GRP’s new funding structure. “Our new fundraising strategy will be to raise monies annually for a three-year marketing plan starting in 2014 and completing in 2017. We are seeking $2.1 million from the private sector for this three-year plan, or about $700,000 annually.”

Mike Nelson, CEO of Allianz Global Assistance, said his company wants to be the first to contribute once the campaign begins in January. To show his support, he presented Wingfield with check, although the amount was not disclosed.

“As we move into our last year of this current funding cycle, our resources have remained the same, if not slightly decreased,” Wingfield said after the presentation. “The economy has changed the landscape of business, but we can’t continue to recruit large employers such as Sabra, MWV and Amazon without public and private investment.”