Progressive said it plans to fill 1,000 jobs at its offices in Tampa this year, and an unspecified number of additional jobs at its office in St. Petersburg. In Tampa, the insurance company will be hiring for positions in customer sales, service, multi-product sales, claims representatives, bilingual Spanish sales and customer service, a news release said. Progressive also is hiring 270 people to fill property claims, property customer service and IT jobs in both St. Petersburg and in Nashville, Tennessee. Nationally, the company is hiring 8,000 people in 2020. The Progressive Group of Insurance Companies (NYSE: PGR), based in Mayfield Village, Ohio, is among the largest employers in both Pinellas and Hillsborough counties.
Almost two-thirds of the small businesses in the Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater metro area are profitable, a new survey from LendingTree finds. A relatively high level of profitable companies is among the factors that led LendingTree to rank the local area No. 3 in the U.S. for best metro for new small businesses. Just over one-third of the companies here, 35.4 percent, are less than six years old. About 74 percent of local businesses have less than $1 million in revenue and 95.8 percent of them have less than 250 employees. Among the 50 metros LendingTree looked at, Seattle ranked No. 1 and Memphis was No. 50.
Visitors to Pinellas County brought in more than $64 million in tourist development taxes in 2019. That was an all-time high and a 9 percent increase year-over-year, according to Visit St. Pete/Clearwater. The tax, also called a bed tax, is a a 6 percent tax collected on accommodations in Pinellas County rented for less than six month. Proceeds fund tourism marketing programs, as well as beach nourishment, construction on stadiums and museums, and reserves to be used in the event of an emergency. Crossing the $60 million mark means the destination generated more than $1 billion in hotel revenue in 2019, another first, VSP said.
More than 400 people will lose their jobs when organic grocery chain Earth Fare closes its stores. The company detailed the number of layoffs it expects in notices filed with the Florida Department of Economic Opportunity and posted Monday on the DEO website. Today is the last day of business for the store at 7774 113th St. N. in Seminole, where 96 employees are affected. The Oldsmar store, with 64 workers, and the Lutz store, with 87 workers, will close tomorrow. Stores also are closing in Lakewood Ranch (95 workers) and in Ocala (75 workers). Earth Fare was in negotiations to refinance its bank loans and to sell the company, when the potential buyer withdrew, the financing fell through and the largest supplier discontinued product shipments, the company said in its WARN notice.
Jeff Vinik, chairman and governor of the Tampa Bay Lightning, has created Vinik Sports Group, a new company to manage sports and entertainment assets. VSG is the parent company to the Lightning and the umbrella brand for three new business verticals, a news release said. One of them is VSG Commercial Sales, which handles sales for the Lightning and oversees multimedia rights for the University of South Florida's athletic department as well as a digital media company, The Identity Tampa Bay. Another new vertical is VSG Facilities, which manages and operates Amalie Arena, Yuengling Center on the USF campus and startup hub Embarc Collective. The third is VSG Live , which manages all events at Amalie Arena and Yuengling Center and has an agreement with the Tampa Sports Authority to serve as a ticketing solution for select events at Raymond James Stadium.
AccuSoft, a Tampa technology company, has launched OnTask, a new business unit focused on the growth of its document automation tool. Steve Wilson, who was vice president of product at AccuSoft, was named president of OnTask. OnTask is different from the other 20+ products at AccuSoft because it is targeted toward end-users rather than developers, Wilson said in a news release. "OnTask speaks to a different market, and needs a different strategy than we've used for other products in the past 28 years," Wilson said. OnTask helps businesses transform email and paper-based functions into efficient digital processes, as the St. Pete Catalyst reported when we talked to Wilson about OnTask last year.
Superior Group of Companies Inc. has begun to be negatively affected by actions taken to address and limit the spread of the coronavirus. Those actions include travel restrictions and limitations affecting the supply of labor and the movement of raw materials and finished products, Superior said in an annual report filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. "If available manufacturing capacity is reduced as a result of the coronavirus, it could negatively affect the timely supply and pricing of finished products," the report said. Superior (Nasdaq: SGC), based in Seminole, sources products from China for use in uniform manufacturing and promotional products. The company reported $376.7 million in net sales for 2019, up 8.7 percent from 2018. Net income slipped in 2019 to $12.1 million, or 79 cents a share, compared to $17 million, or $1.10 a share, in 2018.
United Insurance Holdings Corp. boosted revenue 14 percent in 2019, to $825.1 million, but reported a net loss of $29.9 million, or 70 cents a share. During the fourth quarter of 2019, the company paid what CEO John Forney said were "unusually high claims." "2019 was a tough year for our company, and Q4 epitomized that," Forney said in a news release. "But we are starting 2020 in a very strong position with regard to our rate actions, reserve strength, capital adequacy and reinsurance placement. I'm excited for what lies ahead in 2020 and beyond." United Insurance (Nasdaq: UIHC), a property and casualty insurance holding company that does business as UPC Insurance, is among the largest companies based in St. Petersburg, with plans to build a new headquarters downtown.
Cycle Brewing in St. Petersburg ranks No. 19 on a new list of "Best Brewers in the World." RateBeer.com included Cycle Brewing, at 534 Central Ave., among the top 100 brewers worldwide. Also on the list are Cigar City Brewing in Tampa (No. 5) and Angry Chair Brewing in Tampa (No. 78). The full list is here.
Tampa International Airport did business with 192 women-owned and minority-owned companies in fiscal 2019. Those companies earned about $24.7 million in contracts tied to construction projects and $14.2 million on other goods and services, according to the airport's new diversity report. "We take seriously our role as an economic engine for the region – and this includes all businesses," Joe Lopano, CEO at TIA, wrote in the report. During fiscal 2019, TIA was named Airport of the Year by the Airport Minority Advisory Council. See the full report here.
PikMyKid, a Tampa company with a mobile app and platform that makes school transportation more efficient, is one of four companies awarded a total of $300,000 to address transportation challenges in Michigan. The $60,000 award for PikMyKid comes from PlanetM, the mobility initiative of the Michigan Economic Development Corp. PikMyKid will work with several rural schools in mid-Michigan to drive innovation in student safety, Pat Bhava, CEO and founder, said in a news release. PikMyKid currently serves schools in more than 42 states and seven countries.
The Cheesecake Factory will open at Westfield Countryside this fall. The restaurant, known for its extensive menu and desserts, will be located between JC Penny and Macy's in the Clearwater shopping mall, a news release said. It's the restaurant's first Pinellas County site. The Cheesecake Factory (Nasdaq: CAKE) also has locations at International Plaza in Tampa and Westfield Brandon.
