Regional Chamber Exhibitors Bullish on Local Economy
BOARDMAN, Ohio – Exhibitors at this year’s Business Showcase appeared upbeat about their economic prospects.
About 100 businesses had displays at the event, reported Bergen Giordani, director of special events for the Youngstown/Warren Regional Chamber. The event was held at Mr. Anthony’s Banquet Center.
Several business representatives -- although not all of them -- credited the oil and gas industry’s growth in the region with their improved performance.
Business is up 20% to 30%, said Julie Van Devender, senior adviser with Edward J. Lewis Inc., a commercial and industrial real estate firm with offices in Youngstown and Warren.
Van Devender, who borrowed tubs of her son’s Lego building blocks to set on her table as a “conversation starter,” reported that shale oil and gas companies are accounting for some though not all of the inquiries she is receiving. They aren’t necessarily all drilling companies but companies that provide support services or products.
“We’ve seen a nice pickup in office as well as medical,” she added. “Now the Boardman Medical Pavilion is fully leased, and that is encouraging.” One result is “some upward pressure on rents,” which had been under “downward pressure” for so long, she noted.
She is concerned that as building inventory is depleted and potential tenants and buyers look for space, the market for modern inventory will get more competitive.
“The big trouble that we see right now is the disconnect between the construction and development costs and the existing inventory,” she said. “If the building doesn’t exist [customers are] looking at other marketplaces.”
AT&T, which has invested $212 million in cell towers and stores in Ohio, is seeing a shift away from land lines to wireless phones, said Stephen Kristan, director of external affairs for AT&T Ohio. Over the last three years land lines are down 30% and over the past decade 67%, so 32% of Ohio homes no longer even have a landline, he said.
“The big push is for wireless. People want more and more wireless,” he said.
Chuck Lamping, manager of the Boardman AT&T store, said shale business is definitely having an impact. He noted a company recently came in to get a business plan and connect all the employees it is hiring through AT&T Wireless. That growth started about three months ago.
Crowe's Cabinets, now located in Lowellville, will mark its 35th anniversary in 2013, and will be moving to Western Reserve Road in a few months, according to Tim Crowe, general manager. “We need more space. We’re getting bigger,” he said.
Part of that growth is from the company, which primarily manufactured and distributed cabinetry for commercial customers, establishing a residential arm three years ago. The residential segment represents about 3% to 5% of Crowe’s overall business, yet it is profitable, he said.
“It’s definitely started strong,” he remarked. “Even in a down market, we were able to make it a profitable side of our business fairly quickly.”
While many people may be turned off by the ongoing political campaigns as they enter their final weeks, FortyTwo Inc., Boardman, which provides lighting and other services, is profiting from the presidential contest.
“Every four years we get a bump,” said Tony Ferrello, president. As a government-approved contractor, the company has two crews in Ohio and Virginia doing work for the Obama for America campaign, a contract that doubled the company’s business this year, he said. Thursday, while he was at the Business Showcase, he had a crew at rocker Bruce Springsteen’s event for the Obama campaign.
Even taking the political work out of the equation, however, business is up, Ferrello added. Although the number of jobs hasn’t increased much, customers are asking for more services at the events they do stage, after cutting back in 2008 and 2009, he said.
Raptis Coffee, Warren, has seen its business pick up, in part because more people drink coffee in the fall, said Rotini Raptis, owner. Previously focusing on the business-to-business segment, the company in recent years has moved into grocery stores and other outlets, accounting for additional growth, and is selling products on its website.
“We do gift boxes now and we do a lot of different flavors,” Raptis said. Her father started the business because “even though the Great Depression people still went out to get a cup of coffee. It’s something that’s just always there," she said.
Copyright 2012 The Business Journal, Youngstown, Ohio.