<img height="1" width="1" style="display:none" src="https://www.facebook.com/tr?id=192888919167017&amp;ev=PageView&amp;noscript=1">
Friday, March 29, 2024
March 29, 2024

Linkedin Pinterest

Strictly Business: Vancouver vibe lacks, as many in tech see it

By Gordon Oliver, Columbian Business Editor
Published: March 29, 2015, 12:00am

When high-end digital pen maker Wacom sprung the news this month that it would bail from Vancouver for a glitzier corporate address in Portland’s Pearl District, company spokesman Doug Little acknowledged the move would be a loss to Vancouver and its technology business sector.

But Little quickly shifted to an enthusiastic defense of the Japanese company’s relocation decision. Portland offers more visibility than Vancouver, an opportunity for a retail outlet, and a vibe that will fire up the company’s creatives, he said. “Let’s face it,” said Little. “Vancouver is a bedroom community to Portland.”

No one in Clark County’s political or economic development circles wants to hear those words. They and their predecessors have worked for decades to attract technology jobs, with considerable success over time. An early wave of tech companies that set roots in the county include Hewlett-Packard, Logitech, and Sharp Laboratories, as well as Wacom. All offered professional jobs and healthy paychecks, and they produced a healthy crop of civic leaders.

The new tech world, heavily populated by small and ever-changing software companies, is something different. The energy of this industry peaks in the Silicon Valley and Puget Sound regions. But the right mix of vision, entrepreneurial spirit, and local support services can give rise to a software company or tech startup just about anywhere, and many have great potential for growth. The challenge is to nurture these startups when they sprout, and to keep them from leaving when they grow.

Until recently, Portland lost many of its promising tech companies to the lure of Silicon Valley. But Portland is now itself a magnet, and even the iconic “Big Pink” Bancorp building in that city’s downtown is filling up with technology entrepreneurs.

Few tech startups have developed or landed in Vancouver. There are exceptions. DiscoverOrg, a provider of sales leads information to technology vendors, recently relocated over 100 employees from east Clark County to downtown Vancouver. It was a rare win for the city and its downtown, which has seen little job growth.

Mostly, Vancouver serves as a lower-priced locale for back-office services of tech firms looking to avoid high rents in Portland or other tech hub cities. Tripwire, a Portland-based provider of software security systems, recently opened a downtown Vancouver support staff office with 22 employees. The company wanted to draw from the local talent pool of workers who want to avoid Oregon’s income tax and the grueling Portland commute. The local employees love downtown Vancouver’s lower-key vibe and are happy with their new home, says Ed Kraft, a company vice-president.

So far, not everyone is feeling that downtown vibe, and tech employers say they have trouble drawing Portlanders to work in Vancouver. Perhaps the energy of a new urban waterfront will change the city’s image, and a Wacom of the future would decide to stay in Vancouver, says Mike Bomar, president of the Columbia River Economic Development Council.

With that project and other much-needed redevelopment, Vancouver would have a living room that would make it a bedroom no longer.

Loading...
Columbian Business Editor