Cincinnati, OH — REDI Cincinnati and JobsOhio today announced fast-growing online auto retailer Carvana has acquired more than 100 acres in Trenton, Ohio. Carvana plans to develop a new service and distribution facility there, creating a projected 400 new jobs. The company plans to invest more than $24 million to build a 200,000-square-foot facility at the Trenton Industrial Park, where the company will inspect, repair, and store vehicles for customers who shop carvana.com.
“Carvana has been growing extremely rapidly over the last several years, and we are working to bring The New Way to Buy a Car® to even more customers all the time,” said Carvana Vice President of Inventory Strategy Brian Boyd. “As part of our efforts to scale the business, we’re looking forward to working with REDI Cincinnati and JobsOhio to open a vehicle inspection and reconditioning center, and becoming a member of the Trenton community.”
Known for its easy, transparent online car buying experience, Carvana plans to build an inspection, reconditioning and distribution facility that is strategically positioned within the company’s national logistics network to help service their growing customer base. Carvana allows customers to shop more than 20,000 vehicles on Carvana.com, as well as finance, purchase, then select as-soon-as-next-day touchless home delivery or Car Vending Machine pick-up. Carvana vehicles are inspected, reconditioned and photographed in 360-degrees at its inspection centers, like the one planned in Trenton, so customers get a detailed, high-definition virtual tour of every vehicle. Additionally, every vehicle comes with a seven-day return policy, so the customer can live with their vehicle for a week and ensure it fits their life.
“Economic development projects that involve more than 100 acres—like Carvana’s—are few and far between, which is why the collaboration with all our partners was so important,” said Kimm Lauterbach, REDI Cincinnati president and CEO. “Preparing a large site like this one for development requires a substantial effort from many partners, and I’m proud to see that work pay off with Carvana’s investment in Trenton. Support from JobsOhio and the Ohio Development Services Agency was instrumental in making this project a success.”
In 2009, the City of Trenton began to seriously improve and market the Trenton Industrial Park, upgrading the utilities and road system to make it more attractive for potential end-users. It worked with the OKI Regional Council of Governments and the Ohio Department of Transportation to secure financial support from federal and state agencies for upgrades to Wayne Madison road to improve access to the site. Before attracting Carvana, Trenton used the SiteOhio program to gather insights on the site, resulting in recommendations to improve utility and road infrastructure to make it a more desirable location for investment. SiteOhio is an initiative designed to support local communities with the work of preparing a site to be immediately ready for development by an end user. Carvana received a Job Creation Tax Credit from the Ohio Development Services Agency and an economic development grant from JobsOhio. Butler County and the Port Authority also supported the project with an Enterprise Zone and sales tax incentive.
“What these required improvements did to make the Trenton Industrial Park usable for these buyers cannot be overstated,” said James Foster, economic development director for the City of Trenton. “Our partnership with REDI Cincinnati and JobsOhio was a tremendous asset in facilitating the work that needed to be done. Thanks also goes to Butler County for supporting this project and making the Trenton Industrial Park a desirable place to do business. The City of Trenton is pleased to welcome Carvana and I’m thankful for the team effort that made it possible.”
About Carvana
Founded in 2012 and based in Phoenix, Carvana’s (NYSE: CVNA) mission is to change the way people buy cars. By removing the traditional dealership infrastructure and replacing it with technology and exceptional customer service, Carvana offers consumers an intuitive and convenient online car buying and financing platform. Carvana.com enables consumers to quickly and easily shop more than 20,000 vehicles, finance, trade-in or sell their current vehicle to Carvana, sign contracts, and schedule as-soon-as-next-day delivery or pickup at one of Carvana’s patented, automated Car Vending Machines.
The Regional Economic Development Initiative (REDI) Cincinnati is the first point-of-contact for companies locating or growing in the 16-county region at the heart of southwest Ohio, northern Kentucky, and southeast Indiana. REDI Cincinnati is supported by top business leaders and community partners and staffed by a team of economic development experts who are uniting the Cincinnati region to compete globally. The future is bright, and we’re building it, right now. Join us at REDICincinnati.com.
About JobsOhio
JobsOhio is a private nonprofit economic development corporation designed to drive job creation and new capital investment in Ohio through business attraction, retention and expansion. The organization also works to seed talent production in its targeted industries and to attract talent to Ohio through Find Your Ohio. JobsOhio works with six regional partners across Ohio: Dayton Development Coalition, Ohio Southeast Economic Development, One Columbus, REDI Cincinnati, Regional Growth Partnership and Team NEO. Learn more at www.jobsohio.com. Follow us on LinkedIn, Twitter and Facebook.
For more information, contact:
Matt Englehart, JobsOhio
(614) 300-1152
englehart@jobsohio.com
