Cedar Park Lures James Avery Craftsman 2nd HQ, Creating 100 Jobs

CEDAR PARK, TX — Renowned Texas-based James Avery Artisan Jewelry. will build its second headquarters in Cedar Park creating more than 100 local jobs spurred by economic inducements approved by city council members on Thursday.

The agreement was approved during the regular city council meeting Thursday night, June 27. The performance-based agreements used to lure the facility to Cedar Park — the jeweler's second headquarters site — is expected to create 102 jobs with average salaries of $75,000, city officials said.

To lure the company's headquarters site to be located at the northeast corner of the 183A Frontage Road and Scottsdale Drive, Cedar Park Development Corp. officials agreed to invest $507,500, payable over the course of five years, funded by a 3/8 of a cent from local sales tax. The financial incentives package is contingent on agreed-upon performance goals by the company, officials noted. Moreover, James Avery Craftsman will invest $13 million in capital expenditures with construction of a 35,000-square-foot office headquarters in Cedar Park, including land, building and other improvements.

Mayor Corbin Van Arsdale shared a personal memory underscoring the iconic status of James Avery Craftsman in Texas: “I do not have many memories from when I was four or five years old,” Mayor Van Arsdale said, “but one memory I do have from the 70s is when my dad came home with a piece of jewelry for my mom. We didn’t have a lot of money back then so it was a big deal for him to bring a piece of jewelry. It was a four crossed James Avery charm and I remember being about four or five years old, playing with that charm. Well, I went home and saw her last weekend and she was wearing that charm.”

James Avery Artisan Jewelry CFO Paul Zipp said Cedar Park is a good fit for the company’s new second headquarters: “We looked at not only the physical site, but the community we would be moving into – that the topographical aspects and the community culture would be familiar. We seek to maintain the company culture that we all enjoy in Kerrville, and that Mr. Avery established over many decades.”

No mere corporate giveaway, the city's financial incentives are contingent on corporate performance that includes hiring levels, city officials said. To that end, James Avery has pledged to create 65 jobs in its first year in Cedar Park alone. Under the agreement, there is a relocation bonus for up to 25 existing employees and the company projects annual job growth of 10 employees per year over the following few years.

Over a five-year period, the company projects 102 full-time employees with a collective annual payroll of $7.65 million. The financial incentives agreement also stipulates construction of the new office headquarters must be completed by the end of July 2021, officials noted.

Council also authorized a Chapter 380 agreement with James Avery providing up to $18,000 in rollback taxes for the built-out property.

In addition to James Avery capital expenditures investment in Cedar Park along with new sales tax and new property tax revenues, the economic benefit to Cedar Park is 23.1 percent rate of return with a payback period of 4.1 years on the project, city officials said.

James Avery Artisan Jewelry

The company was started in 1954 by James Avery in a two-car garage in Kerrville, Texas. In 2007, Mr. Avery retired as CEO and handed the reins to his son Chris. Today, the company describes itself as a vertically integrated, family owned company still located in the heart of the Texas Hill Country. It's a multi-channel retailer with 83 James Avery stores (including one located in Cedar Park’s 1890 Ranch shopping center), and in five other states. James Avery jewelry is also available in more than 215 Dillard’s stores in Texas and 28 other states, with each piece crafted in the jewelry company's Texas workshops.