Governor Steve Beshear and U.S. Rep. Hal Rogers joined EOS USA and community officials for a ribbon-cutting celebration marking the company’s new flagship customer-service call center and its addition of 150 jobs in southern Kentucky’s Pulaski County.
“EOS USA will make a great addition to Pulaski County and to the Commonwealth,” said Gov. Beshear. “It says a lot about the community and the opportunities offered by the state that the company has chosen Somerset for its flagship customer care call center.”
“We are thrilled that EOS USA is investing in our region and instilling confidence in our workforce to meet the needs for these tech-based jobs,” said Congressman Rogers. “With the implementation of high-speed, high-capacity broadband coming to our region, southern and eastern Kentucky will soon be able to accommodate any high-tech business in the county of their choice.”
Collecto Inc., doing business as EOS USA, provides accounts-receivable management and business-process outsourcing services. The company is investing nearly $4 million in the project.
EOS established its call center in Somerset, leasing a 20,000-square-foot facility in the Valley Oak Technology Complex. The company chose Somerset for its economical operating costs and skilled workforce.
“It has been an absolute pleasure to work with the state and local organizations over the past year to select, renovate and staff this new customer care center,” said Paul Leary, president and CEO of EOS USA. “This facility will be a key component in the continued success of our company, which has been providing customer care services for nearly 25 years.”
EOS USA is a subsidiary of the German-based company EOS Group, a worldwide leader in the receivables management and outsourcing industry. EOS Group operates 50 companies in 26 countries and has more than 9,000 employees. EOS USA employs nearly 1,200 people in North America.
Pulaski County has played a significant role in growing Kentucky’s economy. Since January 2008, the county announced 33 new and expansion projects, which project to create 1,190 jobs and more than $110 million in new investment.
“We are pleased to welcome EOS USA to Somerset,” said Sen. Chris Girdler, of Somerset. “The company’s significant investment and the estimated 200 new jobs created will be a huge boost to our local economy. We appreciate all the hard work that went into making this great new partnership.”
“We are very excited to welcome EOS USA to our region. This is a great step forward in making our economy stronger,” said Pulaski County Judge-Executive Steve Kelley. “We have a great fit between the services offered by EOS USA and the workforce needed to provide those services. This venture is a great example of what can be accomplished when we work together across geographical, agency and party lines. A special thank you to Governor Beshear for helping us make this partnership a reality.”
To encourage the investment and job growth in the community, the Kentucky Economic Development Finance Authority (KEDFA) preliminarily approved the company for tax incentives up to $2 million through the Kentucky Business Investment program. The performance-based incentive allows a company to keep a portion of its investment over the agreement term through corporate income tax credits and wage assessments by meeting job and investment targets.
In addition, EOS is eligible to receive resources from the Kentucky Skills Network. Through the Kentucky Skills Network, companies are eligible to receive no-cost recruitment and job placement services, reduced-cost customized training and job training incentives. Last year, the Kentucky Skills Network trained more than 84,000 employees from more than 4,100 Kentucky companies.
For more information on EOS USA, visit www.eos-usa.com.
A detailed community profile for Somerset (Pulaski County) can be viewed here.
Information on Kentucky’s economic development efforts and programs is available at www.ThinkKentucky.com. Fans of the Cabinet for Economic Development can also join the discussion on Facebook or follow on Twitter. Watch the Cabinet’s “This is My Kentucky” video on YouTube.