Rejoice: Perrigo to Expand its Allegan Headquarters and Hire People

Let’s talk about some good economic news, shall we? Despite all the gloom and doom out there right now, there are plenty of American companies that are kicking some a*s.

As many of you know, I spend a considerable amount of time in Southwest Michigan (between Holland and Kalamazoo- mainly) because I have family in Allegan.

Allegan is the county seat of Allegan County and has a population of about 5,000 (as of the 2000 census.) The entire county has a population of about 100,000 residents.

Allegan is also the home of growing generic drug and over-the-counter manufacturer, Perrigo Company (PRGO).

Perrigo makes, for instance, the Walgreens or Wal-Mart brand pain reliever you buy in the drugstore when you don’t want to buy the more expensive Tylenol brand. The company was founded in Allegan in 1887 by Luther Perrigo and now employs over 6,000 people around world.

While Allegan remains the corporate headquarters, the company has facilities in Israel, Mexico, the UK, Germany and China.

Perrigo To Expand Their Headquarters

Perrigo just announced that it is going to expand its headquarters and add up to 400 new jobs.

In a town of 5,000, that’s a big deal. And these aren’t just run of the mill Wal-Mart jobs. These pay decent wages. From MSNBC:

A 30,000-square foot expansion of its headquarters will be coupled with a 20,000-square foot employee training center expansion. Perrigo is expected to receive an $8.4 million tax break from the Michigan Economic Growth Authority.

Many of the 400 new jobs are expected to be skilled, technical positions that will pay an average of $881 per week.

Other news sources said the jobs would include engineering, accounting and other “professional” type jobs in addition to the technical positions.

Perrigo Gets Tax Breaks

The city of Allegan also is giving Perrigo tax breaks to the tune of $1.4 million but from a jobs perspective- and what the extra 400 positions could mean for the city- that seems like a solid investment.

The tax credits seem to have helped Perrigo decide to stay in the area. Perrigo employs 2,569 people in Michigan. It would have been a huge loss to see some of them leave the state. From the Western Michigan Business Review:

Perrigo “very seriously” considered New York and New Jersey for expanding its offices, said Arthur Shannon, Perrigo’s vice president of investor relations and communications.

The MEGA tax credits contributed to the decision to expand in Michigan.

“The state of Michigan wanted to keep us here,” Shannon said. “Doing what we’re doing shows we are committed to this area.”

Southwest Michigan has historically had quite a few pharmaceutical jobs. Pfizer has been laying off employees at its facilities in Kalamazoo. According to the Western Michigan Business Review, Perrigo will look to hire some of those trained employees:

“We’ve hired aggressively after other layoffs,” Shannon said. “We’re always looking for quality people.”

Is this a success for Southwest Michigan? It sounds like it.

Perrigo has been growing steadily in recent years as the market for generic drugs picks up as over-the-counter medications come off of patent protection.

Perrigo: another American success story.

(By the way- do you know anyone who is a longtime shareholder of Perrigo? 20 or 30 years? Please have them contact me! I’m interested in their buy and hold story. Thanks!)