Henrico EDA program will help international businesses get foothold

The Henrico Economic Development Authority is launching a global business gateway program for internationally headquartered companies seeking to establish a presence in the United States.

The Henrico Global Business Gateway, which the EDA announced Tuesday, will provide international businesses with office space for up to three staffers each in the upcoming Gather Workspaces coworking location at Innsbrook, set to open in early 2025, as well as wraparound business services.

“The idea is that they would have a home for 12 to 18 months,” said Anthony Romanello, executive director of the Henrico EDA. “And then, as they bring people on, as they sort of grow their U.S. business, they would move into a larger facility, hopefully in Henrico but certainly somewhere in the Richmond region.”

Richmond-based Gather, which has coworking properties in Hampton Roads and the greater Richmond area, is currently renovating the interior of its roughly 19,000-square-foot space at 4101 Cox Road. Raleigh, North Carolina-based Highwoods Properties, an office real estate investment trust, is its landlord.

“The idea with going in with Gather is that they’ve got a whole ecosystem,” Romanello said. “They’ll be there with other businesses. There’s coffee and telephones and conference rooms and a Xerox machine and all kinds of access to services, so you walk in, and it’s ready to go. The other thing is that there’ll be the opportunity for B2B because they would be in there with other businesses.”

The Henrico EDA is signing a membership with Gather, reserving 20 seats for the gateway. Under the two-year agreement that the EDA can renew, it will pay about $110,000 a year. Similar to subleasing, companies in the gateway will then join Gather as members under the EDA, paying it a subsidized rate.

“We are excited to have the Henrico Global Business Gateway join our newest community,” Gather CEO Doug White said in a statement. “Gather West End will provide these entrepreneurs with the environment needed to continue their growth and development. We are honored to partner with Henrico EDA on this important endeavor.”

The Henrico EDA will work with partners to offer wraparound services for companies in the gateway, including:

• Business consulting services like market research, search engine optimization and website marketing services;
• Professional services like legal counsel, immigration consulting, and marketing, accounting and real estate services;
• Specialized workforce partners for recruiting and hiring staff;
• Business development organizations and networking;
• Startup community and capital/financing partners;
• And tailored relocation assistance for company leadership or staff and their families.

The EDA is gathering partners in preparation for the gateway’s 2025 launch, although Long & Foster Real Estate is already on board to help with relocation services.

The first gateway program participant will be African fintech firm Rego.

“We are profoundly humbled to be the pioneering participant of the Henrico Global Business Gateway,” Yogo Dubois, founder and CEO of Rego, said in a statement. “Henrico’s strategic location, conducive business environment, proactive governance and the extensive support from the Henrico Economic Development Authority have been instrumental in the process of our establishment in the beautiful county of Henrico.”

Although localities elsewhere have “soft landing” programs similar to the Henrico Global Business Gateway, Henrico’s program has distinguishing factors, Romanello said.

“Where ours really stands out is the partnership with Gather and that we would be putting our new international companies in a coworking environment so that they’ve really got that opportunity for B2B interaction,” Romanello said, “and we’ve really got this whole suite of wraparound services that we’re going to be able to provide them.”