BUSINESS FOCUS \\\ OFFICIAL PUBLICATION OF COMMERCE LEXINGTON INC. | MAY 2021 | VOLUME XXIX, ISSUE V MEMBER BENEFIT Small Businesses Can Save on Health Insurance Through HealthSolutions - See Page 10 - INSIDE THIS ISSUE: Cities Collaborate Series: Lexington, Asheville & Chattanooga Share Ideas @330: Standard Operating Procedures Austin Leadership Visit Registration KY Tops South Central Region for 2020 E.D. Projects Per Capita www.CommerceLexington.com BUSINESS FOCUS May 2021: Volume XXIX, Issue V INSIDE THIS ISSUE: ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT: Association of Chamber of Commerce Executives 4-6 KY Tops South Central Region for Projects Per Capita 2016 Chamber Economic Development: Coming Out of the Pandemic of the Year STAT: How Are NAICS Codes Used in Economic Dev.? Business Focus is published once a month for a total of 12 issues per year by Commerce Lex- PUBLIC POLICY: ington Inc., 330 East Main Street, Suite 100, Lexington, KY 40507. Phone: (859) 226-1600. 7 2021 Session Provided Big Takeaways for Businesses 2021 Chair of the Board: Ray Daniels, President EVENTS: Equity Solutions Group Register Now for Austin, Texas Leadership Visit 8-11 Publisher: @330 Series: Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) Robert L. Quick, CCE, President & CEO Cities Collaborate Series: May 5th, 12th and 19th Commerce Lexington Inc. - Features Lexington, Chattanooga & Asheville Editor: Mark E. Turner Communications Specialist: Liz Bennett Printing: Post Printing CONNECT: Mail Service: SouthEast Printing & Mailing Service, LLC (2610 Palumbo Drive) 12-15 Leadership Central Kentucky Visits Scott Co. Virtually Leadership Lexington Arts Day Session Recap Subscriptions are available for $12 and are in- AMBASSADOR: Brooke Wheatley, WLEX-TV cluded as a direct benefit of Commerce Lexing- Welcome New Commerce Lexington Inc. Members ton Inc. membership. Business Focus (USPS 012-337) periodical postage paid at Lexington, Member Personnel Announcements Kentucky. POSTMASTER: Send address corrections to Business Focus, Commerce Lexington Inc., P.O. Box 1968, Lexington, KY 40588-1968. WHAT 2 WATCH 4 Display Rates For DISPLAY RATES in Business Focus, con- tact Kelly Bates at (859) 226-1612 or [email protected], and an ac- count executive will contact you. Register Now for Austin Member Benefit: Leadership Visit | Nov. 15-17 Save on Health Insurance Personnel Updates Submit your company’s awards and mile- stones or personnel changes and additions to [email protected]. Person- How SOPs Can nel news might include promotions, additions, awards and milestones, recognitions and cer- Help Your Business tifications and/or appointments. Information is published only as space permits. Melia Realty Group Presents May 18th @330 Series: Upcoming Member Mixer Events Standard Operating Procedures May 6 | June 8 | July 7 2 BUSINESS FOCUS MAY 2021 THIS IS WHAT’S POSSIBLE The logistical lift to vaccinate a community and Vaccines bring with them the promise and countryRSHUDWLQJHIƓFLHQWO\DQGHIIHFWLYHO\LVQRWDQHDV is incredible. Supplies take time to move.\ potential of lives saved and extended. They offer Scheduling multiple doses of vaccines, ensuring a glimpse into a future that we hope is one step volunteers are in place and keeping a large clinic closer to normal – sooner, rather than later. The University of Kentucky plays an important role, process, nor will it be without its inevitable bumps in partnering with the state and Fayette County in the road. meeting this challenge in this moment. At Kroger Field, UK is vaccinating more than 2,000 But we will get there. We are renewing our pledge people a day – a testament to the power of working as partners and as a community to do that together. together. Teams from throughout campus – health care, athletics, emergency operations, health corps, public relations, marketing and brand strategy and That is who we are – the University of, for and many others – as well as hundreds of volunteer students, faculty and staff from our health care with Kentucky. colleges have joined forces to help the state and our community, and we will expand this reach. | uky.edu An Equal Opportunity University ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT /// SUBMITTED BY CLX ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT DIVISION: GINA GREATHOUSE, CHERYL KLEVER & KATIE VANDEGRIFT Kentucky Tops South Central Region for 2020 E.D. Projects Per Capita The entire year of 2020 caused numerous changes but 2020 also proved how resilient Kentucky is, and in the business climate changing the shape of that virtue most certainly applies to our business economic development. Though the past year community,” said Governor Andy Beshear. “Even with brought no shortage of obstacles, Kentucky all the pandemic’s uncertainty, companies announced continued to attract new jobs and projects despite thousands of quality opportunities for Kentuckians. challenges facing companies worldwide. Site Selection Building an economy that works for everyone remains magazine’s annual Governor’s Cup rankings for 2020 a top priority. We made progress last year, and we positioned Kentucky atop the South Central region, have already seen encouraging signs that our and third nationally, for qualifying projects per capita. economy is prepared to take a big leap forward in The Commonwealth also placed seventh overall in 2021.” total projects, the highest of any state with a The Commerce Lexington Inc. Economic population under five million. Lexington placed in the Development team and the Bluegrass Alliance top 10 in both the per capita and overall rankings for metros with regularly engage in conversations with site selection consultants to population between 200,000 and 1 million. demonstrate the regions key assets relevant for valuable economic growth “The past year has been one of undeniable challenges and hardship, and prosperity. Economic Development: Coming Out of the Pandemic The Commerce Lexington Economic Development team has been meeting monthly with our Bluegrass Alliance Partners from the nine-county region via Zoom. Our goal is to begin in-person meetings in May. Currently, we are planning direct mail outreach to consultants over the next two quarters and aim to close the year out with a return-to-normal event in Atlanta. Our regional group has been together for over 25 years. While informal in nature, it has been very successful in building trust and partnerships. Commerce Lexington receives many RFP’s from consultants and works to organize responses in a regional nature. BY THE NUMBERS: For 2021 year-to-date, Commerce Lexing- ton’s Economic Development Division has responded to calls from: LG&E & KU Thriving in Virtual E.D. World In March, our economic development partner, LG&E and KU, presented an New Business: 13 new prospects inter- analysis of global economic outlooks and recent trends in corporate location ested in finding a new location or expand- decision-making, hosted by Global Location Strategies (GLS), a premier site ing in the Lexington area. selection firm specializing in intensive manufacturing and industrial facilities. Client Visits to the Lexington Area: 1 Didi Caldwell - one of the world’s most authoritative site selection and incentive negotiations experts specializing in capital-, labor- and resource- Existing Business Visits: 26 intensive manufacturing projects – shared her expertise about the importance Existing Business Attempts: 102 of communities being prepared for all types of site visits. Our team learned Total Active Projects: 42 that whether virtual or in-person, having shovel-ready available land and vacant buildings is now even more important than ever. Economic Development is occurring at light speed post-COVID. 4 BUSINESS FOCUS MAY 2021 5)&13&.*&3%&45*/"5*0/3&4063$& ™ THE PREMIER DESTINATION RESOURCE -&9*/(50/#-6&(3"44 LEXINGTON/BLUEGRASS .COM Experience the heart of the Bluegrass at Kentucky’s equine attractions Visit Horse CountryCountry today - The gates are open HORSE A family farm dedicated to providing visitors a great experience. Visit the Apple Orchard Café,Orchard KY Proud Gift Shop & Orchard Play Area. Berea I Georgetown I Lexington I Midway I Nicholasville I Paris I Richmond I Winchester &WFOUT*"UUSBDUJPOT*4IPQQJOH*%JOJOH*3FMPDBUJPOEVANS We’re Ready to Help You Welcome Visitors and Locals Looking for Unique Places to Shop, Dine and Have Fun in the Bluegrass! CALL US TODAY!! 859-351-6728 ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT /// STAT: What is NAICS & How is It E.D. Team Participates in Leadership Used in Economic Development? Lex. Economic Development Day The North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) is the In the past, our Economic Development team hosted an in-person ses- standard used by Federal statistical agencies in classifying business sion during Leadership Lexington’s Economic Development Day session to establishments for the purpose of collecting, analyzing, and publishing demonstrate a high-level overview of economic development and provide statistical data related to the U.S. business economy. NAICS uses a insight about what our team does daily. Traditionally, the class divided into hierarchical structure. The broadest category for an industry is a 2- ‘communities’ and ‘companies.’ Each group was provided directions ‘how digit code with each category following growing in detail and becom- to’ navigate the site selection process. Communities were given an oppor- ing more specific. tunity share valuable information to attract a company and simultaneously, NAICS codes are used in a wide variety of ways. Federal statistical