2021 March/April Connection

NEW YEAR, RENEWED MOMENTUM

The F RST Stop on Your Way Home

Melissa Keeling

NMLS# 1671843

979-260-0434 | mkeeling@ffin.com

Apply online at: ffin.com/melissa-keeling

Melanie Motley

NMLS# 510014

979-260-2153 | mmotley@ffin.com Apply online at: ffin.com/melanie-motley

Sierra Cunningham NMLS# 1824464

979-260-2176 scunningham@ffin.com Apply online at: ffin.com/sierra-cunningham

PRESIDENTIAL PERSPECTIVES

GLEN BREWER PRESIDENT & CEO

Howdy, As we happily leave 2020 behind us, your Bryan-College Station Chamber of Commerce is looking ahead to a year of recovery for our businesses. We encourage all of our businesses to continue to comply with Operation Restart guidelines as vaccines begin to roll out to the public. We know we are not there yet, but hopefully we are beginning to see the end of this pandemic.

Your Chamber of Commerce understands that you must plan ahead for your business even when our local circumstances seem to change from day to day. The Chamber’s Economic Outlook Conference will be held on February 24th after a one-month delay. The conference will be a combination of a socially distanced live event along with a virtual component. Our speakers will share their thoughts about the year ahead and what we may expect. Because seating will be limited, I would encourage you to secure a virtual ticket to acquire all the information presented at this data-driven conference.

We want to thank Matt Prochaska, the President and CEO of the Brazos Valley Economic Development Corporation, who will speak at our Economic Outlook Conference and has provided important economic information in this issue of Connections. We also thank all those at the Texas A&M Private Enterprise Research Center for the analysis and presentation of our COVID-19 survey numbers.

As we have previously stated to our Chamber membership, we must continue to work on our safety and recovery efforts, along with consumer confidence and employment issues. We can help each other by continuing to buy local and patronizing other Chamber members. A strong local economy helps all of our businesses. By keeping our dollars in the Brazos Valley, we are helping stabilize our cities and county tax base, as well as strengthening the financial fitness of fellow Chamber members. Shop local – shop Chamber!

CHAMBER OF COMMERCE

BOARD OF DIRECTORS

GREG ZWEIACKER

Board Chair

WADE BECKMAN

Chair-Elect

PHIL SHACKELFORD

Immediate Past Chairman

JASON CORNELIUS

Vice Chair of Leadership

AMY RESTIVO

Vice Chair of Finance & Physical Resources

DOUG FRENCH

Vice Chair of Business Development

WALTER HINKLE

Vice Chair of Community Enhancement

BARBIE PATTERSON

KELLY AGENT

SIDNEY BACKSTROM MONICA BROWN

AUSTIN BRYAN JOHN BUSH

GEOFFREY CHRISTIAN

New Chamber Members

JOHN C. “JACK” CULPEPPER III

BELINDA DOBSON

ZACH ETHERIDGE

JILL GALLAGHER

JORDAN JANUSE

BO MILES

DEMOND OLIVER

BARBIE PATTERSON

HEATH POOLE

MARIE PORTALES RODRIGUEZ

ASHLEY SANDERS

PAT SHIELDS

AGUSTIN TREVINO

Vice Chair of Membership Enhancement STAFF

GLEN BREWER President/CEO

ROYCE HICKMAN Community Liaison

CARRIE ARCHER Manager of Membership

TOM TILTON Manager of Finance

JORDAN PRIHODA Manager of Business Programs

TAYLOR MANGOLD Membership Investment Representative

TAYLOR CLARK Communications Coordinator

ALLISON BATTE Special Projects Coordinator

LINDA ESPIRIQUETA Receptionist

AGGIELAND FINANCIAL SOLUTIONS 2127 William J. Bryan Pkwy Bryan, TX 77802 (512) 501-8260

gtfcu.org/financial-solutions CHARLES SCHWAB & CO 711 University Drive East, Suite 300 College Station, TX 77840 (979) 599-5140 schwab.com

ARMSTRONG PROPERTIES

1551 Greens Prairie Rd. , Suite 101A College Station, TX 77845 (979) 777-4471 armstrongpropertiestx.com

12TH PARK RV RESORT 6245 Raymond Stotzer Pwky College Station, TX 77845 (979) 220-0167

AGGIE RELO APARTMENT LOCATING 212 North Bryan Avenue, Suite 103 Bryan, TX 77803 (979) 353-0010

BLU FIN SUSHI FUSION 2305 Longmire Drive, Suite 200 College Station, TX 77845 (979) 680-0199

CORE IMAGE GROUP 1700 George Bush Dr. E., Suite 200 College Station, TX 77840 (979) 985-3021

BAR & GRILL 4421 Texas Ave Bryan, TX 77802 (979) 846-2625 Visit us on facebook @Yesterdays

SOCOWORK

1551 Greens Prairie Rd., Suite 101A

College Station, TX 77845 (979) 402-5540 socowork.com

DOWLING ELECTRIC, INC. 6955 Coyote Run Bryan, TX 77808 (979) 774-3745

GLADNEY AUTOMOTIVE SOLUTIONS LLC 2421 Harvey Mitchell Parkway S College Station, TX 77840 (979) 645-6113 MINUTI COFFEE 1501 University Drive East College Station, TX 77840 (832) 766-8331

EXPLORETEXAS.COM 1095 Evergreen Circle, Ste 200 The Woodlands, TX 778380 (281) 455-8336

FINETTA TEA 2606 Texas Avenue Bryan, TX 77803 (979) 703-2383

HOTWORX COLLEGE STATION 1902 Texas Ave South College Station, TX 77840 (979) 485-5206

HUGS AND HEALING 5714 Easterling

BUSINESS AFTER HOURS

and wrap up around 7 pm. See you at the next event!

CHAMBER PHOTOS

COVID-19 Business Impact Survey

Just prior to the holiday season, the Private Enterprise Research Center (PERC) at Texas A&M University teamed up with the Bryan/College Station Chamber of Commerce to send out the second round of PERC’s Business Impact of the Covid-19 Pandemic Survey, a survey designed by PERC to measure the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on local businesses. This survey effort was funded by Texas A&M University via the Office of the Provost. The first round was distributed by the Chamber during the period June 8-16, 2020 and provided a first look at how area businesses and organizations were coping with capacity regulations, shutdown ordinances, and changes in revenue brought on by the pandemic. Almost 500 unique responses were received from varying business categories.

The second round of the survey was sent out by the Chamber to its members during the period of November 2-6, 2020. Both rounds of this survey were conducted against a backdrop of unprecedented economic conditions. Nonfarm employment, one indicator used to assess the health of our local economy, dropped 10.3%, a loss of 12,900 jobs, from February to April 2020. Then for this second survey, after a rise in August, nonfarm employment numbers fell again in October to 118,600, still only 95% of February’s count.

Seasonally adjusted taxable sales are another important indicator of local economic health. This indicator fell 15.7% between February and April, rose again, then suffered another drop in September. In October, taxable sales rebounded and were up to 91% of February’s level.

Another widely studied economic indicator for the local area, the unemployment rate for the College Station-Bryan metropolitan statistical area (or MSA), also saw dramatic changes during this period. Beginning from a near-historic low of 2.8% in February, it jumped to a staggering 9.3% in April, then began a long slow decline, ending up at 4.9% in October. It should be noted that despite these large changes, the unemployment rate for College Station-Bryan MSA has remained one of the lowest in the state.

Like the first survey, the follow-up survey included questions pertaining to operations and supply chain, workforce, and finance. A total of 217 follow-up surveys were completed. These included responses from a number of businesses in the original survey group as well as responses from new respondents. The results, summarized briefly below, show that while we have a ways to go before we get back to where we were last February, we are at least on the path to recovery.

OPERATIONS AND SUPPLY CHAIN

There are signs of improvement on several sets of questions in the area of operations and supply chain from the first survey in June to our November survey. The average operating percentage was up from 75% in June to 81% in November. In November, 84% of businesses were opened to the maximum extent allowed, a 4% increase from June. The availability of supplies and the ability to deliver products and services were also up in November relative to June, although both were below 90%. While business’ operations, employment and revenues are still down relative to February, things are moving in the right direction.

WORKFORCE

Half of the November respondents had no change in pre-COVID to November employment numbers, while 16% had an increase in employment and 24% had a decrease of more than 25%. In November, 12% of businesses had employees not reporting for work compared to 25% in June. Employees are returning to the workplace,

as businesses reported that on average 19% of their employees were working from home in November, down significantly from the 29% reported in June.

FINANCE

Similar to June’s 69%, 67% of November’s responding businesses reported lower weekly revenues as a result of Covid-19. Also similar to June, 58% of businesses applied for the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP). Of the businesses that applied, 98% received funding. As of November, 54% of firms had applied for PPP loan forgiveness, and of these applicants, 19% had the entirety of their loan forgiven, 69% had applied for loan forgiveness and were awaiting a response, and the remaining firms had a portion of

the loan forgiven or had another outcome. Of the businesses that received a PPP loan but had not yet applied for loan forgiveness, 85% indicated that they planned to apply by the end of the year. The financial condition for both sets of responding businesses, although down, were stable.

Both surveys also asked businesses about their expectations for the future. At 60%, the majority of the November respondents expect to be in the same or better condition in 2021 than in 2019, while 40% expect to be in worse condition. In June, the percentage was actually higher at 65% of firms expecting to be in the same or better position in 2021 compared to 2019.

While eye-opening, this lowered optimism must be put into the proper context. By June, businesses had weathered stay-at-home orders, a statewide mask ordinance offered a measure of safety, and

a rebound in May’s employment and sales growth offered a glimpse of economic recovery. By November, 63% of businesses reported that September and October revenues were down compared to the same months in 2019. In a typical year, the fall football season is the biggest money-maker for many local businesses, especially those in the hospitality and entertainment industries. The change in expectations could also be due to having a different set of businesses respond to the second survey.

Overall, with the help of the B/CS Chamber, PERC’s Business Impact Surveys are a community resource. The survey results

provide business leaders, city and university officials, and our peers with a better understanding of how these unprecedented times have affected the businesses community in Bryan and College Station.

The full reports from the initial and follow-up survey can be found at perc.tamu.edu/publications.

AUTHORS ASHLEY BULLOCK, CARLOS NAVARRO, DENNIS JANSEN, ANDREW RETTENMAIER

NEW YEAR RENEWED MOMENTUM

We at the Brazos Valley Economic Development Corporation (BVEDC) are reflecting on the work of the past year and looking ahead to what we can accomplish as a community in 2021.

Last year, a new BVEDC record was set by our team for the total number of project proposals submitted. We worked diligently on 71 new projects in 2020 and 75 projects continued from years past.

The Brazos Valley Economic Development Corporation (BVEDC) is reflecting on the work of the past year and looking ahead to what we can accomplish as a community in 2021. We are incredibly proud of the way the Brazos Valley has come together in the midst of unprecedented adversities caused by the global pandemic.

The BVEDC is a single point of contact for our community’s economic development and is funded by Brazos County, the Cities of College Station and Bryan, Texas A&M University, and private investors through our Invest Brazos Valley group. We assist businesses in launching, growing and locating here without regard to jurisdiction.

In 2020, the BVEDC’s targeted outreach efforts included dozens of in-person and virtual recruitment visits with companies, regional commercial brokers, international site selectors and industry consultants. We continue to partner closely with the Office of the Governor to be top of their list for projects relevant for our region. Last year, a new BVEDC record was set by our team for the total number of project proposals submitted. We worked diligently on 71 new projects in 2020 and 75 projects continued from years past.

These projects are larger and more impactful than ever. From 2019 to 2020, average capital expenditure per project increased by 136%. Average jobs per project increased by 185%. Average occupied space per project increased by 431%. While we may not win every project, and companies of all sizes are impactful on our community, these numbers are indicative of a trend towards growth for the Brazos Valley.

Our community is in the third year of implementing its economic development strategic plan to help ensure our region is as vibrant and attractive to business leaders currently in our community and those yet to come. The strategy identified three target sectors in which to focus our recruitment efforts: applied research and development, professional and technical services, and engineered materials and components. In 2020, projects in these industries made up approximately half of our active project portfolio, with the manufacturing and distribution industries in the Brazos Valley continuing to thrive and making up the other half. The global health crisis put a renewed focus on the expertise of the biotechnology industry and pharmaceutical research, and

our region received increased interest, investment and attention. Our growing Biocorridor provided ample opportunity for lifesaving research and development. In March 2020, FUJIFILM Diosynth Biotechnologies Texas (FDBT) announced a $120 million expansion to their College Station operations. The Texas Economic Development Council awarded this project the state’s Community Economic Development Award, honoring the Brazos Valley over all of Texas’s major metropolitan regions.

In July 2020, the federal government reserved production capacity at FDBT’s College Station facility to mass manufacture COVID-19 vaccines. The $265 million task order accelerated planned expansion by helping fund new equipment for use in the

current pandemic and in future emergencies.

Other Brazos Valley Biocorridor companies saw success in 2020. G-CON Manufacturing, iBio, CardioQuip and Zoetis all continued to grow and make new announcements to strengthen their leadership and production capacities in their respective fields.

Clockwise L to R: FDBT Scientist, Cardioquip Ribbon Cutting, TEDC Certificate of Achievement for Economic Excellence presented to BVEDC, Fujifilm groundbreaking ceremony.

In this challenging year, our team made a point to have regular and significant conversations with our region’s existing companies to ensure they had the resources they needed to weather this year’s crises. Our team completed more than 200 business retention and expansion contacts with local companies. In 2020, the BVEDC was also proud to have welcomed 14 new members into our Invest Brazos Valley program.

We do not take our community’s penchant for entrepreneurship for granted. We are dedicated to local start-ups,

founders and innovators. In 2020, our Board of Directors approved a partnership with Make Safe Tech Inc., a non-profit helping launch companies focused on defense and first responder technology. We supported two local pitch competitions held virtually this past year: the inaugural Safe Tech Invitational and the Texas A&M New Ventures Competition, which saw a record number of Brazos Valley-based competitors and winners.

With the team at Texas A&M’s Private Enterprise Research Center (PERC), we have released another 12 months of the Brazos Valley’s “Economic Indicators” report, which takes the pulse of our economy by showing data across a number of key metrics. In March, the focus of these reports pivoted toward the impact of the pandemic on the Brazos Valley.

In 2021, the BVEDC will continue our partnership

with Brazos Valley-based Texas FilmWorks with new videos showcasing our region’s advantages, including one specifically focused on our biotechnology industry. Combined with a redesign of our website set to debut later this year, this will provide a compelling virtual front door to companies considering the Brazos Valley from across the nation and the world before they even step foot in Brazos County. As always, the BVEDC team is here to serve you and is invested in your success. We have so much gratitude for you as a partner and neighbor.

MATT PROCHASKA PRESIDENT/CEO

The Floor is Yours...

Brazos Valley African American Museum

The Brazos Valley African American Museum is open daily with free admission through February for Black History Month. The Brazos Valley African American Museum is opening a new exhibit entitled “Southern Champions of Civil Rights”. The exhibit is a collection of stories of Black history. The museum is open Tuesday through Friday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Saturday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Admission is free.

First Financial Bank

The Board of Directors of First Financial Bank, N.A., announced the promotion of Nora P. Thompson to President of First Financial Bank, Bryan/College Station Region. The addition of Nora to the leadership team of Ivan M. Olson, Regional CEO, and Timothy N. Bryan, Regional Chairman of the Board, strengthens the bank for future growth and is a well-deserved promotion for Nora. “We are thrilled to recognize Nora, who consistently demonstrates her commitment to our bank, our customers, and our community,” said Bryan. “Our Brazos Valley communities will continue to be a key growth driver for First Financial, and we are certainly pleased to have a banker of her caliber continuing to lead the efforts of the Region along with Ivan Olson.”

Grand Station Entertainment

Grand Station Entertainment is now offering Axe Throwing! PARTY with Grand Station! They will help you have a fun and exciting experience with any celebration you bring to Grand Station.

US Dermatology Partners

Dr. Terry Jones is retiring after over 30 years serving dermatology patients as the founder of US Dermatology Partners. Dr. Jones was honored as a Top Doctor by TXTopDocs in 2018 and 2020.

Texas A&M University System

The Texas A&M University System is set to open its second academic building at the RELLIS Campus in Bryan. The building’s opening marks the completion of the second phase of the RELLIS Academic Complex. The building built in phase I opened in August 2019. The 48,000 square-foot building cost $28 million and features an auditorium, a learning resource center, classrooms, laboratories, faculty offices, and spaces for students. The building also provides space for engineering labs and classrooms designated for upcoming engineering programs.

DELUXE RIBBON CUTTINGS

BRYAN / COLLEGE STATION

CHAMBER OF COMMERCE

P.O. BOX 3579

BRYAN, TX 77805-3579

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