Thursday, July 21, 2011

Furniture Manufacturer to Bring 58 Jobs to Burke County

State Grant Helps Ekornes ASA Locate in Morganton
RALEIGH
Jul 21, 2011

Gov. Bev Perdue today announced that Ekornes ASA, a Norwegian furniture manufacturer, will open a new facility in Burke County. The company plans to create 58 jobs and invest $1.3 million during the next three years in Morganton. The project was made possible in part by a $100,000 grant from the One North Carolina Fund.

“North Carolina continues its long and celebrated history in the furniture industry,” said Gov. Bev Perdue. “Ekornes is making a commitment to North Carolina, not just because we are the furniture capital of the world, but because our investments in education have built an experienced, highly-skilled workforce, excellent training programs and a top-ranked business climate.”

Ekornes ASA is the largest furniture manufacturer in Norway. It owns such brand names as Ekornes®, Stressless® and Svane® that are sold all over the world. Ekornes currently manufactures all furniture at six facilities in Norway.

Salaries will vary by job function, but the average annual wage for the new jobs will be $30,464 plus benefits. The Burke County average annual wage is $30,784.

“Ekornes is happy to be calling Burke County its new home in the United States” said Mr. Øyvind Tørlen, CEO of Ekornes ASA.

The One NC Fund provides financial assistance, through local governments, to attract business projects that will stimulate economic activity and create new jobs in the state. Companies receive no money up front and must meet job creation and investment performance standards to qualify for grant funds. These grants also require and are contingent upon local matches.

North Carolina continues to have a top-ranked business climate. Through Gov. Perdue’s JobsNOW initiative, the state works aggressively to create jobs, train and retrain its workforce, and lay the foundation for a strong and sustainable economic future.

Through use of the One NC Fund, more than 50,000 jobs and $9 billion in investment have been created since 2001. Other partners that helped with this project include: the N.C. Department of Commerce, N.C. Community Colleges, the N.C. Rural Center, Electricities, Burke Development Inc., the City of Morganton and Burke County.

For more information about Ekornes, visit www.ekornes.com/us.

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