Primary businesses are the backbone of the South Sound economy, and the Economic Development Board for Tacoma-Pierce County is going the distance to support their success and ensure they stay here and grow.

The EDB’s Business Retention and Expansion (BRE) program directly engages with local primary businesses in Tacoma-Pierce County. Its primary focus is to help companies that are looking to expand or relocate or are in a target industry.

The EDB’s efforts to support and nurture those businesses pays big dividends, as evidenced from its 2024 BRE stats:

• 61 BRE visits to existing primary businesses.
• More than $628,000 in grants secured to help existing businesses grow their operations.
• 21 expansion projects opened.
• 3 project expansions won.
• $5 million in private capital investment.
• $192 million of private capital investment in the pipeline.
• 390 jobs retained and 480 new jobs created.

Cultivating homegrown opportunities in the new year

To continue to drive economic impact and transform Pierce County’s future, here are the EDB’s BRE goals for 2025:

1. Expand BRE engagement: Conduct at least 100 BRE visits to foster stronger relationships with local businesses and identify opportunities for retention and growth. These annual, confidential BRE retention visits are crucial to identify what businesses need and coordinate responses with potential partners, including local governments, workforce development agencies, utilities and other economic development organizations.
2. Focus on expansion projects: Open and actively manage 15 expansion projects and prioritize those with significant potential for job creation and private investment.
3. Secure grant opportunities: Identify and pursue state, federal and private funding opportunities to facilitate grant applications for businesses.
4. Advance capital investments: Advance the $200 million private capital investment pipeline to provide resources and remove barriers to success.
5. Enhance workforce development: Partner with institutions like Joint Base Lewis-McChord, anchor institutions, local colleges and workforce boards to retain and create jobs and support workforce alignment with high-demand industries.
6. Support foreign direct investment (FDI): Connect Pierce County businesses with global investors and facilitate international business attraction efforts to expand FDI opportunities.
7. Promote export growth: Provide export assistance to BRE companies to help them expand into international markets, particularly in Asia and other key trade regions.
8. Strengthen marketing and communication: Deliver quarterly updates to stakeholders to emphasize progress on BRE visits, expansion projects, FDI and export initiatives.
9. Build strategic partnerships: Deepen collaboration with utilities, transit authorities, anchor institutions and key trade organizations to drive economic development. The EDB also plans to facilitate quarterly connection meetings to align regional strategies.

“The EDB’s Business Retention and Expansion goals for 2025 are an ambitious and impactful approach to sustaining and growing Tacoma-Pierce County’s economy,” EDB Vice President of Business Retention and Expansion Maddie Merton said. “The focus on expanding BRE engagement, prioritizing expansion projects, securing grants, and fostering foreign direct investment and export growth will create a robust foundation for business success.”

Additionally, Merton said, the BRE program will build on strategic partnerships and enhance workforce development that support the region’s goals for long-term economic growth.