CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Charlotte-based payment automation company AvidXchange announced Wednesday its grand opening of a new headquarters just south of Salt Lake City in Utah; but, company CEO Michael Praegar assures local workers that the move is solely an expansion, not a relocation.
AvidXchange aims to grow the company to add over 200 jobs over the next five by pouring $35 million into its westward expansion. Praegar desired to create a presence for the company out West in order to improve customer service for their large consumer audience in western states.
The company acquired Piracle, a Salt Lake City-based developer of management tools, in 2014. AvidXchange enjoyed its collaboration with the local workforce after merging, admiring the skills of Piracle employees and how they would be well suited to benefit the customer service aspect of the growth of AvidXchange.
“Having another market to pull (talent) from is key,” said Praegar regarding how impressed he was with the work carried out in Utah since 2014.
Additionally, having a headquarters on the West coast will alleviate issues with the difference of time zone for customers in Western states. AvidXchange also plans to create jobs in software development, product development and customer support to aid company operations.
Yet, Praegar insists that the development of 200 new jobs in Utah will not take away jobs from those currently employed by AvidXchange in Charlotte. The Charlotte location will remain the primary headquarters for the company, as it employs over 1,000 workers.
“We won’t be relocating. But as we grow, there will be more of a focus on adding new roles in the Utah market. We expect probably there will be more of a mixture of growth in both places,” according to Praegar.
Praegar co-founded AvidXchange in 2000, and since then, he has watched it gain exponential success over the years, both internally and through partnerships with hidden gems of technological manufacturing companies, such as Piracle and Ariett, a similar business management automation company located in Massachusetts.
The announcement of the company’s expansion follows its local relocation of Charlotte employees to newly constructed offices in the AvidXchange Music Factory just last year. Its 200,000-square-foot offices are complete with Xboxes, shuffleboard, gyms and basketball courts to keep company morale high.
The AvidXchange Utah offices will also include similar amenities, like a gym, game rooms, patios and standing desks, within the 30,000-square-foot space.
As of summer 2017, AvidXchange was valued at $1.4 billion, deeming it one of Charlotte’s “unicorns” — used to describe privately-owned companies worth over $1 billion. Industry experts expect the company to continue growing in the next few years.
