Mercedes-Benz eyes Atlanta for U.S. headquarters (Savannah, Sandy Springs: Home Depot, employment)

[roxyrn]

I think that some Mercedes are made in Alabama...

[vince217]

makes sense.
you need to be located at a large airport hub... within reasonable distance to their manufacturing plant in AL.
also within reach to race tracks for driving events.

[demonta4]

Hoping that if they move, they choose to be near the airport. Maybe we can start a whole car hq type of district there.

[jero23]

Originally Posted by roxyrn

I think that some Mercedes are made in Alabama...

They are made in Vance at the Mercedes-Benz facility.

[jero23]

Originally Posted by ATLTJL

I'm not sure. I do know that tons of cars come in through Jacksonville, but don't know if there is a physical reason for it.

What I'm also not sure of is if it makes any difference for your corporate HQ to be near port operations.

I do know that Alabama really struggled with the foreign car company managers not wanting to live in Tuscaloosa. Savannah, to some degree, may face that same challenge. And to be honest, Jacksonville as well...but it's a fairly picturesque city and it has a nice beach area, so I think it has that going for it.

Tax incentives are great, but you know, corporations are run by people. And often, decisions like this are heavily influenced by where the most powerful person or people who would be affected decide they'd rather live.

With all the digital technology available today, there's very little reason why many of the companies located in New York or Silicon Valley really NEED to be there. It's often soft reasons, like where management wants to live and where they think will be easiest to recruit people.

It's quite silly for them to have been whining over Tuscaloosa when in reality the managers could have just lived in the Greater Birmingham area at the end of the day.

[LynnHarris]

Mercedes-Benz reportedly weighing leaving Bergen County for Atlanta
NorthJersey.com

"The German luxury automaker Mercedes-Benz is looking to move its 1,000-employee North American headquarters from Montvale to Atlanta, several sources said Tuesday.

If the reports are accurate, Mercedes-Benz would be the latest in a string of major companies to move their corporate headquarters from Bergen County to the South. The car-rental company Hertz moved from Park Ridge to south Florida, and the BubbleWrap maker Sealed Air is moving from Elmwood Park to Charlotte, N.C., both with the help of tax incentives from those states.

...the New Jersey Economic Development Authority said it had not received any applications for economic incentives from the company to stay in the state. A source, however, said Mercedes has been offered $40 million to $50 million in incentives to move to Atlanta.

John Boyd, a principal at the Princeton-based John Boyd Co., corporate site selection consultants, said he first heard from his real estate contacts about a month ago that Mercedes was considering Savannah, Ga.; Jacksonville, Fla.; and Atlanta as possible relocation sites.

Boyd said he has a number of clients in the auto industry, and has been told that Atlanta has emerged as the front-runner.

Boyd pointed out that Mercedes-Benz and the rival German automaker BMW, which has its North American headquarters in Woodcliff Lake, are in heated competition to lure younger consumers, the so-called millennial generation, to buy their cars. Relocating to an up-and-coming city like Atlanta might be a smart marketing ploy on Mercedes-Benz’s part, positioning it to appeal to younger consumers instead of being based in an isolated suburban campus, Boyd said..."

Full Story: Mercedes-Benz reportedly weighing leaving Bergen County for Atlanta - Business - NorthJersey.com

[BeyondInfinity]

Some articles are stating that North Carolina is in the running too: Mercedes-Benz USA Weighing Plan to Move Headquarters From New Jersey - WSJ.

[testa50]

Mercedes are mainly imported through Brunswick, not Savannah or Jacksonville. And they sure aren't moving to Brunswick.

[ATLTJL]

Relocating to an up-and-coming city like Atlanta might be a smart marketing ploy on Mercedes-Benz’s part, positioning it to appeal to younger consumers instead of being based in an isolated suburban campus, Boyd said

Does this really matter?

I have a Toyota. I have absolutely no idea where Toyota's North American headquarters is, nor do I care.

Do Millenials really make purchase decisions based on where the companies they are buying from are headquartered?

I think this guy is reaching. It's not like if Mercedes moves to Atlanta it's going to build Mercedes tower in midtown. It'll probably be in a suburb somewhere, and I don't see how that is going to connect the company to Millenials.

[JoeP]

I have a Toyota. I have absolutely no idea where Toyota's North American headquarters is, nor do I care.

Exactly, it's like they tried to come up with some talking point to say that they aren't moving because of handouts.

It'll probably be in a suburb somewhere, and I don't see how that is going to connect the company to Millenials.

Exactly, they have to reason to have a flashy hq here or anywhere else in the US. Sadly they will likely end up at Perimeter.