Music instrument retailer Sweetwater Sound announced plans Thursday for a $23.5 million expansion of its Fort Wayne headquarters that could create up to 316 high-wage jobs by 2015.
The company said in a news release it plans to expand its facility at U.S. 30 and Kroemer Road by 110,000 square feet to house its warehouse operations and sales and marketing departments.
“Indiana has been a great place to start and grow a company,” Sweetwater President Chuck Surack said in a statement. “We continue to grow because of a great workforce locally and also because we've been able to attract talent from all over the country to move here and work.”
Sweetwater, which started in the 1970s as a recording studio in Surack's home, now employs more than 400 people at its Fort Wayne headquarters. Last year, the company reported its sales increased by 20 percent.
Sweetwater said it plans to hire people across the company, including distribution, sales, marketing and administrative jobs. It already has begun the hiring process for some of the jobs, the release said.
The Indiana Economic Development Corporation offered Sweetwater up to $2.75 million in performance-based tax credits for the expansion, the release said. The company could not claim the tax incentives until it starts hiring.
Gov. Mitch Daniels pointed to Sweetwater's expansion as proof of Indiana's business-friendly climate.
“It is always a great day when we can tout the success of a homegrown company like Sweetwater Sound,” Daniels said in a statement. “With less red tape and lower taxes, Indiana is not only creating a growth structure for existing businesses to flourish but a framework to cultivate future successes.”
Fort Wayne also will consider granting the company property tax abatement.
Sweetwater last expanded on its 66-acre campus in 2006, adding a 40,000-square-foot distribution center, recording studios and technical training center.
