Here are the California companies that relocated to Dallas-Fort Worth in 2020

It has become increasingly common for companies large and small to move their headquarters or other significant offices or operations out of California. Texas, and especially Dallas-Fort Worth, have been the beneficiary of many of the moves in the last decade-plus, and 2020 was no exception.

If anything, the COVID-19 health crisis and the resulting economic meltdown accelerated the exodus from California and the trek to DFW.

Despite some companies’ pausing of expansion and relocation projects due to the pandemic and meltdown, the generally less heavy-handed approach Texas took to business closures and government-mandated restrictions in efforts to curb COVID’s spread highlighted the contrasting business environments in California and the Lone Star State.

Adriana Cruz, executive director of Economic Development and Tourism for Gov. Greg Abbott’s office, summarized the phenomenon in a business summit in September:

“We started getting calls from CEOs on the East coast and the West coast saying, ‘We’re shut down. We really like the common sense approach that Gov. Abbot and Texas are taking. It seems to make a lot of sense. We’re questioning why we’re located where we are,'” Cruz said in the statewide online summit.

Here are some of the California companies that relocated to DFW in 2020, or announced plans to relocate or expand in North Texas:

CBRE 

CBRE Group Inc. (NYSE: CBRE), the world's largest commercial real estate services and investment firm, moved its headquarters from Los Angeles to Dallas.

The company already was a major player in DFW with at least four offices in North Texas, including its main office at 2100 McKinney Ave. in Uptown. Dallas was already home to CBRE's largest U.S.-based workforce of about 3,150 people. 

CBRE's presence in Dallas has been steadily growing since 2006 when the company, at the time known as CB Richard Ellis, acquired Dallas-based developer Trammell Crow Co. for $2.2 billion. CBRE's top executive, President and CEO Bob Sulentic, was a former Trammell Crow chief executive. Sulentic said in a 2018 interview with the Business Journal that he spends more than 40 weeks per year on the road and calls both Dallas and Los Angeles home.

Several other top CBRE top executives were already based in Dallas when the HQ shift was announced, including the company’s CFO Leah Stearns, global chief operating officer Chris Kirk, global CEO of real estate investments Mike Lafitte and chief administrative officer Chandra Dhandapani. Lafitte has since added the title of CEO of developer Trammell Crow Co., which is one of CBRE’s largest subsidiaries.

Counting CBRE, Dallas is now home to 11 Fortune 500 headquarters. CBRE is the latest Fortune 500 giant to relocate to North Texas. The company holds the No. 128 spot on the 2020 list.

“This move means we have now drawn five Fortune 500 headquarters relocations to North Texas within the past five years, an incredible testament to the strength of our region as one of the best places in America for all people to live, work, and do business,” Dale Petroskey, president and CEO of the Dallas Regional Chamber, said in a statement to the Business Journal.

CHARLES SCHWAB

Financial services heavyweight Charles Schwab Corp. in October said it expects to move its corporate headquarters designation from San Francisco to Hillwood's Circle T Ranch in Westlake effective Jan. 1.  

The announcement came on the heels of Schwab closing its acquisition of TD Ameritrade, creating a financial services goliath.

Even before the combination, Schwab had more than 2,500 employees at its Westlake campus and roughly 2,000 employees in Southlake at TD Ameritrade’s location. The locale was picked and designed as a more centrally located hub, and the process is expected to take between 18-36 months from the close of the transaction, a Schwab spokesperson said.

The combination of the two companies creates a firm with about $6 trillion in client assets across 28 million brokerage accounts.

TITANS OF CNC

Advanced manufacturing company Titans of CNC is moving its workshop and training academy from California to North Texas with a new building in Flower Mound, according to the company’s founder.

Titan Gilroy, founder and CEO of the company that bears his first name, said in a YouTube video he’s moved to Texas because he’s “going big.”

“Flower Mound, Texas, mmm,” Gilroy says in the video. “Leaving California, coming to Texas. It’s so good. I’m super-excited.”

Gilroy also says in the video that he will be hiring in Flower Mound, although he doesn’t quantify the potential job impact.

Gilroy said the new building in Flower Mound, which is a large warehouse with 27-foot-high ceilings, will serve as a machine shop, education facility and video production studio.

In the video, Gilroy said he’s making the move because Texas is “a manufacturing state” and that taxes and the cost of living there are low. He has already bought a house outside of Dallas that is larger and cost less than his home outside Sacramento, he says. Gilroy said he has asked his employees to make the move with him, and he said they could afford to buy homes in Texas.

INCORA

Aviation supply chain company Incora is moving its global headquarters from southern California to Fort Worth, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott’s office announced Sept. 15.  

Incora, previously known as Wesco Aircraft Hardware Corp., already has two offices in Fort Worth and is planning a $6 million capital investment at the new facility that would have up to 239 workers initially and more down the line.

Fort Worth’s Economic Development Department has developed a $1 million incentive package to attract the company.

As part of the package, the company commits to initially relocate 239 jobs in about 53,000 square feet in the former FAA headquarters building at 2601 Meacham Blvd. The company will make a minimum of $4 million in building improvements and $1.5 million in business personal property investment in the building. Then, in 2022, the company plans to bring 300 additional jobs, another $4 million in tenant improvements and $1.5 million equipment investment for the 40,000 square feet of additional space in the building. 

The 539 total jobs bring with them an average salary of $75,000 and a minimum salary of $44,000.

FACEBOOK (expansion)

Facebook is expanding its massive data center in Fort Worth, the world’s largest social-networking company announced this week.

Facebook is starting construction on 170,000 square feet at the site and it's expected to continue through 2022, according to a company statement.

The expansion represents an investment of roughly $200 million, and, when complete, the site will have more than 2.6 million square feet after an investment of over $1.5 billion.

The company has more than 150 workers there today and will have about 200 jobs there, counting Facebook employees and contractors, when the expansion concludes.

Facebook broke ground on the site in 2015, and it’s been under continuous construction. The company uses its data centers around the world to handle growing demand by its users as they post photos, send messages and live-stream videos. 

DZS

DZS, a company that helps wireless and broadband networking, is shifting its home base to Plano from Oakland.

The networking tech pioneer made the move this year to launch a new 5G R&D center. DZS has more than 700 workers and plans to keep some operations in California.

The firm has leased almost 14,000 square feet of office space in the Legacy Place East building at 5700 Tennyson Parkway. Renovation of the space is scheduled for completion early next year.

"Moving headquarters is always disruptive, but layering on top of this the challenges of the pandemic certainly created a whole new level of complexity," Geoff Burke, chief marketing offer for DZS, told the Business Journal. "Everything has had to be reconceived and executed in a new way. The logistics of physically moving had to be re-thought. Hiring has moved to virtual interviews and a whole new way of onboarding. Record keeping has changed and will continue to evolve ... and the biggest challenge is keeping all employees safe and healthy while keeping operations open and moving forward."

In early March, DZS announced the move, calling it an opportunity to reduce operating costs.

UBER (expansion)

Any discussion of relocations and expansions underway wouldn’t be complete without mentioning Uber, which in 2019 announced intentions to fill an entire 450,000-square-foot office building at The Epic, a mixed-use development in Deep Ellum by Westdale Real Estate Investment and Management and KDC. 

Uber's office tower is under construction and in the meantime the San Francisco-based ride-hailing company has leased 168,000 square feet at another office tower, also at The Epic.

Uber received $36 million in state government incentives for what is billed as a “new U.S. general and administrative hub.”

The Dallas area was also named a key player for Uber Elevate, an air taxi push by Uber. Uber this month (December) said it is transferring ownership of its air taxi effort to Joby Aviation, a partner in the field. It's unclear what job impact that move will have in Dallas.

SUNRIDER (expansion)

Torrance, California-based Sunrider International, a global health and wellness brand, broke ground in October on a new 1 million-square foot manufacturing facility in Midlothian.

The project is expected to be completed by mid-2022 and will house the company’s manufacturing and research and development operations, which are being relocated from Los Angeles. The move will not impact the company’s world headquarters in Torrance.

The company is investing $56 million into the facility, which is expected to create at least 210 jobs. The facility will sit on a 71-acre plot of land in the Midlothian Business Park in Ellis County. Sunrider is the first company to construct a facility within the park.

The move will help Sunrider better serve its customers throughout North America and the world, company officials said.

“The relocation to Texas and subsequent closure of our facilities in Los Angeles will position Sunrider for sustainable, long-term growth, which will benefit our global network of associates and customers,” said Eric Chen, vice president of global manufacturing for Sunrider, in a prepared statement.

Jonathan Beutler, director of public affairs at Sunrider, told the Business Journal that multiple cities in Texas and along the West Coast were considered for the new facility. North Texas and Midlothian eventually won out thanks to the area’s easy access to logistics routes and its central location within the U.S.