ROLLING OUT THE RED CARPET: Global carpet company breaks ground on new headquarters
Jaipur Living, a family-owned, India-based carpet company globally known for its handmade rugs, broke ground Tuesday on its new $22.3 million headquarters in southwest Cherokee County.
When completed in May 2017, phase 1 of the headquarters and warehouse will bring about 100 jobs to the community.
Cherokee County commissioners, development authority and chamber of commerce members met at the 23-acre site for the groundbreaking at Cherokee 75 Corporate Park along Highway 92.
Phase 1 is 180,000 square feet, with plans to add an additional 170,000 square feet by 2020, bringing even more jobs to the community, company officials said at the groundbreaking ceremony.
Jaipur Living first started in the city of Jaipur in India with two looms, has grown to more than 50,000 artisans who hand-make and distribute carpets and textiles to companies such as Kate Spade, Pottery Barn, Crate & Barrel and locally known Woodstock Furniture from their Norcross facility.
With the increase in demand and revenue from what was $2.8 million annually a decade ago to $37 million in 2015, Jaipur Living has “outgrown their existing facilities” and has chosen Cherokee County as its new location for expansion.
Jaipur Living President Asha Chaudhary said it was a pleasure to have so many city, state and county officers join them for the momentous celebration in their next journey.
“Through our partnership with our artisans who are really the soul of our brand, the company now has blossomed into one of the largest exporters of rugs and textiles in India,” she told the gathering.
As a local brand, the new facility will help position Jaipur not only to serve the company’s expanding international base but also support the company’s future growth and success, Chaudhary said.
“As we continue this project it is going to be expected to take place in two phases with the completion of our larger 350,000-square-foot facility in 2020,” she said.
“And we are hoping to contribute to the economic development of Cherokee County, the city of Woodstock and the state of Georgia with the creation of new jobs with truly competitive wages.”
Marshall Day, chairman of the board for the Cherokee Office of Economic Development, said developers have worked on getting Jaipur to locate to Cherokee County for three years.
“I read one time that patience is a virtue and so then is persistence,” he said at the groundbreaking. “It started in humble beginnings in 1978 and really grew into one of the top exporters in carpet in India. Their operations in Norcross have been successful, but they needed more space. Those are the kind of problems we like to solve.”
The move will bring $20 million in investments to real and personal property, Day said.
“About 95 people will relocate here from Norcross and about 20 hires will come out of Cherokee’s work force, which as you all know is as good as it gets,” he said. “The average wage will be in excess of $50,000 so there will be a lot of creative people here and we are looking forward to that. We expect this company to be very successful with the economic recovery that we are enjoying now. People have to have rugs because they are building houses and we look forward to your success and thank you for coming to Cherokee County.”
A major portion of Cherokee 75 Corporate Park lies within the state Opportunity Zone which offers businesses who locate there a maximum state job tax credit of $3,500 per job created. As a result, COED has seen increased prospect activity and has been able to attract new industry along the I-75 and Highway 92 corridor.
Commission Chairman Buzz Ahrens said Cherokee is a great county and Jaipur Living is a great company.
“You mentioned sharing the future,” he said. “One of the things we talk about at the county is shaping the future. They go together and this is a perfect example of that.”
Chaudhary said her family has been amazed and humbled by the company’s rapid expansion in recent years, both in size and the distribution channels it serves, as well as in the organic growth of their product lines.
“There is so much momentum for the company, and at this stage in our evolution, the change underscores our vision for Jaipur as a true lifestyle brand, one that will continue to revolutionize the home industry with a transformative business model centered on our passion for people, product and design,” she said.