Clayco, a construction and design firm, is expanding its St. Louis operations through the purchase and renovation of a north St. Louis County building.
The business purchased the former Express Scripts site located near North Hanley Road and Interstate 70. The building will undergo renovations and is anticipated to be ready by October.
During an announcement Monday in Jefferson City, Clayco founder Bob Clark said Missouri is the “easiest state to do business with.”
“Our employees want to be here, they want to stay here. And we've been having terrific success recruiting people to the state of Missouri,” Clark said. “It's affordable, it has a diverse economy, it's a welcoming community, and we could not be more excited to be growing our platform in the St. Louis region and in the state of Missouri.”
Though Clayco is headquartered in Chicago, it was founded in the St. Louis region and employs around 600 people in the area.
Clark said those employees are scattered across four different locations.
“To get all of our people under one roof is a great opportunity for the business,” Clark said.
He said some of the renovations will include making the building more environmentally friendly and providing a full food service facility for employees.
The expansion, a roughly $50 million investment, is anticipated to add about 400 new jobs over a six-year period, meaning the building will house 1,000 employees.
According to the Missouri Department of Economic Development, Clayco took advantage of the state’s business incentives.
Michelle Hataway, acting director of the department, said Clayco will benefit from the Missouri Works program and the Business Use Incentives for Large-Scale Development or BUILD program. Together those incentives add up to a little over $18 million.
Speaking during the announcement, Gov. Mike Parson said companies are choosing Missouri due to its “inviting business climate.”
“These investments from major employers like Clayco are encouraging signs that our hard work to strengthen our economy is producing real results,” Parson said. “Results that are creating jobs, improving lives and making a real difference for hardworking Missourians not only in the St. Louis region, but all across our great state.”
