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Gov. Bev Perdue today announced that QVC, Inc., a major multimedia retailer, through its subsidiary QVC Rocky Mount, Inc., will expand its distribution facility in Edgecombe County. The company plans to create 200 jobs and invest $71 million during the next five years in Rocky Mount. The project was made possible in part by a $1,000,000 grant from the One North Carolina Fund.
“There is no better validation of North Carolina’s top-rated business climate then when our business neighbors who are already operating in North Carolina decide to expand their operations, invest further and hire more North Carolinians,” said Gov. Bev Perdue. “This is especially encouraging news in a county like Edgecombe, where residents are fighting hard to rise out of the recession.”
QVC is one of the largest multimedia retailers in the world and broadcasts live in the United States 24 hours a day, 364 days a year from its studio and headquarters in West Chester, Pennsylvania. The company’s programming reaches more than 98 million U.S. households and approximately 195 million cable and satellite homes worldwide. As of the end 2010, QVC employed 541 full-time workers and 998 part-time and variable workers at its Rocky Mount facility. This project will expand the distribution center by approximately one million square feet while creating 200 new full-time jobs and over 300 part-time jobs following the scheduled completion in fall 2012.
Salaries will vary by job function, but the average annual wage for the 200 new jobs will be $30,216 not including benefits.
“The people at our Rocky Mount distribution center are a strong and dedicated team that does a great job serving our customers every day,” said John Hunter, QVC executive vice president, customer fulfillment services. “With more than 25 million packages shipped last year, the facility is clearly an important and growing part of QVC’s success. We look forward to adding jobs and building on our thriving business relationships in Edgecombe County.”
The One NC Fund provides financial assistance, through local governments, to attract business projects that will stimulate economic activity and create new jobs in the state. Companies receive no money up front and must meet job creation and investment performance standards to qualify for grant funds. These grants also require and are contingent upon local matches.
“This terrific announcement is another example of how North Carolina needs – and uses – all of its tools to grow jobs in this state,” said Sen. Clark Jenkins, of Tarboro. “Because of our incentive programs, we were able to help a company already doing business here to employ even more of our friends and neighbors.”
“Our policies of investing in education and infrastructure keep paying off,” said Rep. Joe Tolson of Pinetops. “Companies like QVC expand or move here because of our well-trained workforce and the ease of doing business here.”
North Carolina continues to have a top-ranked business climate. Through Gov. Perdue’s JobsNOW initiative, the state works aggressively to create jobs, train and retrain its workforce, and lay the foundation for a strong and sustainable economic future.
Through use of the One NC Fund, more than 50,000 jobs and $9 billion in investment have been created since 2001. Other partners that helped with this project include: the N.C. Department of Commerce, N.C. Community Colleges, Edgecombe County and the Carolinas Gateway Partnership.
For more information about QVC, including job opportunities, go to www.qvc.com.
