Arnall Golden Gregory is the presenting sponsor of Global Atlanta's Germany Channel. Subscribe here for monthly Germany newsletters.
Hamburg, Germany-based shipping giant Hapag-Lloyd is no stranger to metro Atlanta, with two locations in the city already employing about 500 people.
Judging by an announcement this week, the company’s experience must’ve been satisfactory so far, as it decided to double down on an existing plan to consolidate operations here.
The 150-year-old German firm will put its North American headquarters at a 125,000-square-foot office at the Three Ravinia building in Dunwoody, not only bringing existing employees from the offices in Kennesaw and Peachtree Corners together, but also investing $18 million and adding another 250 jobs in disciplines like finance, marketing, human resources, IT and more.
Some of those roles will be occupied by employees transferred from other Hapag-Lloyd offices around the U.S., while others will be new hires, according to a spokesperson who could not yet provide a breakdown between the two.
“We are excited to create a new home for Hapag-Lloyd in North America,” Uffe Ostergaard, president of Hapag-Lloyd’s North American region, said in a news release. “Our new headquarters will allow us to bring more of our team together, under one roof, to better serve our customers and expand career pathways for our staff. We look forward to growing, and thriving, in Atlanta.
The company began talking bout consolidation in the city in 2018, when the $7 billion of United Arab Shipping Co. provided Hapag-Lloyd with a newly opened customers support center in Gwinnett County. Instead of shutting down operations after the merger, a $5.5 million investment promising 360 jobs was announced.
One of the top shipping companies in the world, Hapag-Lloyd operates a fleet of 257 containers ships with a total transport capacity of 1.8 million TEUs, with service to 600 ports around the world. The company itself also has 13,900 employees in 418 offices in 137 countries.
Pat Wilson, commissioner of the Georgia Department of Economic Development, visited the company’s headquarters in Hamburg during a November mission to Germany.
The news of Hapag-Lloyd’s latest investment comes at a time of German largesse in the Peach State, including from Hamburg: In November, recycling firm Aurubis, also based in the city, said it would put a $340 million copper smelting plant in Augusta, Ga. Just this week, the German state of North Rhine Westphalia said it would put an investment and trade office in Georgia.
The Pendleton Group is the presenting sponsor of Global Atlanta's Economic Development Channel. Subscribe here for monthly Economic Development newsletters.