Canon USA
Picture this: You’re touring Suffolk County, Long Island, and taking great landscape and waterway pictures with your new, state-of-the-art mirrorless EOS Canon camera. You’ve just finished getting some great shots and are back on the Long Island Expressway approaching Exit 49 when suddenly you realize you are looking at the North American headquarters of your camera’s namesake, Canon USA. In February 2013, Canon USA opened the doors to its 668,296- square foot, 52 acre, LEED Gold-certified, campus-like facility located on Suffolk County’s western border near Long Island’s technology corridor.
Canon USA, which oversee the parent company’s operations in North, South and Central America, had been leasing multiple office building space on Long Island for over 40 years. With business continually expanding, Canon USA needed to find a permanent home that offered a single location for all its employees in a campus setting as well as room for future expansion. Senior management wanted to remain on Long Island. After finding a location in Suffolk County that met the company’s needs, Canon immediately contacted the Suffolk IDA to begin looking at options that would make developing the headquarters financially feasible. The Suffolk IDA brought all the players to the table, including local and state economic development agencies as well as the local utilities. The result was approximately $100 million in economic incentives.
How Suffolk IDA Helped Canon USA
- Property Tax Abatement
- Mortgage Tax Exemptions
- Sales Tax Exemptions
- Approval in 30 Days
- Assistance with other Agencies
For Seymour Liebman, executive vice president and general counsel for Canon USA, the people and location were a major factor for the company to remain on Long Island. Ninety-five percent of the employees at Canon USA live on Long Island and comprise a diverse, talent-pool of workers that Canon wanted to retain.
We have found that there’s a highly qualified, educated workforce that lives very close to our facility. When we hire them, they’re extremely happy because now they have a five or ten minute commute. From their point of view, they can now spend a lot more time with their family instead of spending time commuting.
Developing a headquarters is only a snapshot of the impact Canon USA has had on the region. Canon USA is committed to being socially responsible and making the world a better place. The Suffolk IDA is proud to call them a partner. Whether you’re based in Suffolk or thinking about moving your operations here, make us your first call. We’ll bring all the key players together, discuss financial incentives, help you with workforce training and recruitment and be a partner to you, every step of the way.