Hillsborough lures RV supplier HQ from Kissimmee

January 23, 2015

 
 
Ashley Gurbal Kritzer | Tampa Bay Business Journal
 
Hillsborough County has snagged a headquarters from the Orlando metro area.
 
Cody Talbert Distribution, a wholesale parts and accessory supplier for recreational vehicle dealers, service centers and campgrounds, said Friday it is moving its headquarters from Kissimmee to Plant City. It plans to invest $200,000 in the 10,000-square-foot space at 2004 Wood Court in Plant City and hire up to 30 people for technology development, technical support and distribution positions. Cody Talbert considered sites throughout the Southeast for its headquarters, according to Tampa Hillsborough Economic Development Corp. The company employs 15 people in Kissimmee.
 
Cody Talbert Distribution also maintains sales and distribution facilities in South Carolina, and has plans to build additional facilities across the U.S., which will be managed from the new Plant City operations center.
 
The deal is one of several small projects the EDC has announced recently. German lighting distributor SLV Lighting is expanding its North American headquarters near Tampa International Airport, and Big Brothers Big Sisters is moving its headquarters to Tampa from Dallas after former Tampa Mayor Pam Iorio became CEO of the nonprofit.
 
All are projected to result in incremental job growth for Tampa Bay — more than 100 jobs, if those three companies create all of the jobs they’ve promised. But what’s needed to transform Tampa Bay’s economy is a critical mass of front-office, high-paying jobs, which is why both the EDC and Tampa Bay Lightning Owner Jeff Vinik are in hot pursuit of a major corporate headquarters relocation.