Success Stories

OROS uses NASA technology to create technical apparel that can withstand extreme temperatures. The company relocated its headquarters from Cincinnati to Portland to take advantage of our region's incredible access to the outdoors and our large pool of highly qualified talent. "Portland is the technical apparel hub of the world," says Rithvik Venna, OROS' co-founder and chief operating officer. 

"Greater Portland Inc was incredible throughout this whole process," says OROS co-founder and CEO Michael Markesberry. 

"They ultimately are the reason we decided to move here," says Venna.

Element Six, a division of U.K.-based De Beers Group, is a synthetic diamond manufacturer building a $94-million advanced manufacturing facility in Gresham's Vista Business Park. The 60,000 square-foot facility will initially employ about 60 full-time engineers, technicians and other employees. 

Element Six General Manager Adam O'Grady said when the firm was looking for a site for a new state-of-the-art manufacturing facility, they quickly zeroed in on the Northwestern U.S. for its cool climate and low power costs. 

Greater Portland Inc helped connect Element Six with individual communities in the region, and the shovel-ready Gresham site won out, helped by the City of Gresham's quick permitting process and by the site's proximity to the Portland International Airport. 

"Without GPI providing the interface between us and possible locations that we could build our facility, that process would have been drawn out a lot longer, it would have been a lot more difficult, we could have ended up somewhere very very different."

RealWear makes hands-free, voice-controlled head-mounted computers that use augmented reality, allowing workers to capture imagery, view documents and more on the fly. Started in Silicon Valley, the company moved its headquarters to  Vancouver in 2017. Greater Portland Inc and the Columbia River Economic Development Council (CREDC) provided the company with a large amount of data necessary for the relocation decision. 

RealWear Co-founder and CEO Andy Lowery said the area struck him for three reasons: the region was beautiful, the community appealed to him, and the economics made sense. 

"It made sense from an economic point of view to grow a business in this region versus other West Coast alternatives," he said.

10net engineers, builds and operates digital media infrastructure, providing clients such as Lululemon, Bosa Development, QuadReal, and Subaru with state-of-the art digital experiences. The Vancouver, B.C.-based firm chose to open its first stateside office in Portland in 2018, and now its office in the Central Eastside serves as its U.S. hub. 

Tina Finan, 10net's chief financial officer and chief operating officer, said their new office gives them access to an amazing talent pool, and the team appreciates the transportation options and culture fit. 

Finan said she appreciated the quick introductions the Greater Portland Inc team made for 10net, especially in the software and tech communities. 

"They just connected us with all the right people," she said.