Virgin Mobile takes to downtown skyline for HQ, plans to hire 100
January 12, 2017 | Meghan LeVota
About six months after announcing its move to Kansas City, Virgin Mobile has selected the site of its new headquarters.
Virgin Mobile announced Wednesday that the firm signed a lease at One Kansas City Place at 1200 Main St. in downtown Kansas City. Virgin selected Kansas City as the location for its new headquarters in July as it relaunched its rebrand under Overland Park-based Sprint. Virgin hired 27 full-time employees in 2016, but hopes to hire up to 100 more this year.
“Kansas City is a national hub of entrepreneurial spirit and sophisticated start-ups, which is the perfect backdrop for our new office as we evolve the Virgin Mobile brand and elevate it to new heights,” Virgin CEO Dow Draper said in a release. “Also, this innovation district is a natural setting for a bold brand like Virgin, which does things differently and changes business for good.”
To focus on pre-paid phone sales, Sprint — then Sprint Nextel — purchased Virgin Mobile for $483 million in 2009. English business mogul Sir Richard Branson founded the Virgin Group, of which Virgin Mobile USA was a part. The conglomerate owns more than 400 companies around the world.
If Virgin creates 84 new jobs over the next five years, Missouri agreed to grant up to $1.87 million in incentives through its Missouri Works program.
“We are proud of our role, as well as our Missouri partners’, in attracting the headquarters of Virgin Mobile to Kansas City,” said president and CEO of the Kansas City Area Development Council Tim Cowden in a release. “Virgin Mobile seriously considered several major metro areas for its headquarters, but we made the case through a strong entrepreneurial and tech community along with vibrant livability, proving that Kansas City was the best choice.”
Architecture and design firm GastingerWalker& was tapped for the project. Draper said the design reflects the culture of Virgin, which he hopes will attract the right employees.
“We’re looking for pattern breakers and smart disruptors with restless start-up energy and ideas that will add real value to people’s lives through mobile products and services,” Draper said.
Virgin Mobile now has positions in customer service, mobile technology, digital marketing, branding, operations, logistics, finance, IT and engineering.
2017 Startups to Watch
stats here
Related Posts on Startland News
KCultivator Q&A: Sarah Mote inspired by radical thinkers, lowbrow humor, taking KCSourceLink social
Editor’s note: KCultivators is a lighthearted profile series to highlight people who are meaningfully enriching Kansas City’s entrepreneurial ecosystem. The KCultivator Series is sponsored by Plexpod, a progressive coworking platform offering next generation workspace for entrepreneurs, startups, and growth-stage companies of all sizes. Quiet startups fueled by overcoming struggles are always the most fascinating stories,…
KCMO adds $350K for entrepreneurs to proposed city budget after advocates’ last-minute push
Kansas City entrepreneur advocates gained more momentum Thursday in their bid to receive greater civic support for startups and small businesses. “Entrepreneurs and small businesses are the driver of the Kansas City economy,” KCMO councilman and Mayor Pro Tem Scott Wagner told Startland Thursday afternoon, following the approval of the city’s $1.73 billion budget. An…
Ties meet rocket tech: Crooked Branch refines bow ties with carbon fiber, urging fearlessness
Capitalize on what’s trendy, find a way to make it better, and the work will do itself, Paul Kaster said of his fresh-out-of-high school startup journey. Such a mindset has only elevated business for Kaster, founder of Crooked Branch Studio. The entrepreneur recently launched a line of bow ties made from carbon fiber — a…
Freightquote, Edison Factory founder-turned-investor touts ‘work ethic worth investing in’
Raise and raise relentlessly. Because in business, the sun won’t shine every day, Tim Barton told a room filled Wednesday morning with entrepreneurs and investors eagerly seeking support and insight at the 20th InvestMidwest Venture Capital Forum. The former CEO of Freightquote, who saw a $365 million exit for the company in 2014 before launching…