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Economy of Atlanta

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The Coca-Cola world headquarters

The Atlanta economy is the 10th largest in the country and 18th in the world with an estimated 2014 GDP of over $324 billion. Atlanta is one of ten U.S. cities classified as an "alpha-world city" by a 2010 study at Loughborough University,[1] and ranks fourth in the number of Fortune 500 companies headquartered within city boundaries, behind New York City, Houston, and Dallas.[2] Several major national and international companies are headquartered in metro Atlanta, including seven Fortune 100 companies: The Coca-Cola Company, Home Depot, United Parcel Service, Delta Air Lines, AT&T Mobility, and Newell Rubbermaid. Other headquarters for some major companies in Atlanta and around the metro area include Arby's, Chick-fil-A, Earthlink, Equifax, First Data, Foundation Financial Group, Gentiva Health Services, Georgia-Pacific, NCR, Oxford Industries, RaceTrac Petroleum, Southern Company, Mirant, and Waffle House. Over 75% of the Fortune 1000 companies have a presence in the Atlanta area, and the region hosts offices of about 1,250 multinational corporations. As of 2006 Atlanta Metropolitan Area ranks as the 10th largest cybercity (high-tech center) in the US, with 126,700 high-tech jobs.[3][needs update]

Dominant sectors

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The top employment sectors in Metro Atlanta are (November 2011, excludes agriculture):[4]

Sector Employees (thousands)
Trade, transportation, and utilities 530.3
Professional and business services 391.4
Government 311.9
Education and health services 282.3
Leisure and hospitality 218.3
Manufacturing 146.5
Financial activities 128.5
Other services 90.5
Construction 83.9
Information 73.7
Mining and logging 1.4

Finance

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Federal Reserve Bank in Midtown Atlanta.

Atlanta has a sizable financial sector. The Federal Reserve System has a district headquarters in Atlanta; the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta, which oversees much of the deep South, relocated from downtown to Midtown in 2001.[5] Wachovia announced plans in August 2006 to place its new credit-card division in Atlanta,[6] and city, state and civic leaders harbor long-term hopes of having the city serve as the home of the secretariat of a future Free Trade Area of the Americas.[7] Before being acquired by BB&T in 2019, SunTrust Banks, the seventh largest bank by asset holdings in the United States,[8] had its home office on Peachtree Street in downtown.[9]

Invesco Ltd., an independent investment management company is headquartered in Atlanta, and has branch offices in 20 countries. Its common stock is a constituent of the S&P 500 and trades on the New York stock exchange. In December 2013, Invesco reported assets under management (AUM) of $778.7 billion.[citation needed]

Healthcare and biomedical

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Atlanta has a growing hi-tech community[10] and is also home to a growing Biotechnology sector, gaining recognition through such events as the 2009 BIO International Convention.[11] Atlanta is also the headquarters of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission Region II.

Adjacent to Emory University, the city is also home to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), with a staff of nearly 15,000 including: engineers, entomologists, epidemiologists, biologists, physicians, veterinarians, behavioral scientists, nurses, medical technologists, economists, health communicators, toxicologists, chemists, computer scientists, and statisticians. CDC has 10 other offices throughout the United States and Puerto Rico, and other staff in 45 countries around the world.[12]

Manufacturing

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The auto manufacturing sector in metropolitan Atlanta has suffered setbacks recently, including the closure of the General Motors Doraville Assembly plant in 2008, and the shutdown of Ford Motor Company's Atlanta Assembly plant in Hapeville in 2006. Kia, however, has opened a new assembly plant near West Point.[13] Hyco International Inc, one of the world's largest manufacturers of hydraulic cylinders, is headquartered in Atlanta.[14]

Kitchen decor company Appliance Art, Inc. is based in Atlanta. It was founded in 2008 by Grant T. Smith.[citation needed]

Media and communications

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CNN Center

The city is a major cable television programming center. Ted Turner began the Turner Broadcasting System media empire in Atlanta, where he bought a UHF station that eventually became WTBS. Turner established the headquarters of the Cable News Network at CNN Center, adjacent today to Centennial Olympic Park. As his company grew, its other channels—the Cartoon Network, Boomerang, TNT, Turner South, Turner Classic Movies, CNN International, CNN en Español, HLN, and CNN Airport Network—centered their operations in Atlanta as well (Turner South has since been sold). Turner Broadcasting is a division of WarnerMedia. In 2008 Tyler Perry established his studios in Southwest Atlanta; and in 2010 EUE/Screen Gems opened soundstages in Lakewood Heights, south Atlanta. (See also: Film industry in Georgia) The Weather Channel, owned by a consortium of NBC Universal, Blackstone Group, and Bain Capital, has its offices in the Cumberland district northwest of downtown Atlanta.

Cox Enterprises, a privately held company controlled by James C. Kennedy, his sister Blair Parry-Okeden and their aunt Anne Cox Chambers, has substantial media holdings in and beyond Atlanta; it is headquartered in the city of Sandy Springs.[15][16] Its Cox Communications division, headquartered in unincorporated DeKalb County,[17] is the third-largest cable television service provider in the United States.[18]

Film and television

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Further information: Media in Atlanta, Category:Films set in Atlanta, List of television shows set in Atlanta, and List of HGTV television shows set in Atlanta

Atlanta has gained recognition as being a center of TV and film production, it being determined by Gocompare.com to be in the top 10 of the most popular cities in the world where films and TV shows have been filmed.[19] Atlanta is a major center of television production and is the hub of the nation's third-largest film industry. Atlanta counts the presence of Techwood Studios, which produces content for the Turner Broadcasting family of stations; since 2008 the Tyler Perry Studios in Southwest Atlanta; and since 2010 the EUE/Screen Gems soundstages in Lakewood Heights, south Atlanta. Atlanta is the setting for popular TV shows such as the Real Housewives of Atlanta and Tyler Perry's series. Due to Perry, the "Housewives", and others, Atlanta is also known as a center of black entertainment in the U.S.[20]

Films set in Atlanta include two pictures that were awarded the Oscar for Best Picture:, Gone with the Wind (1939) and Driving Miss Daisy (1989). Other films set in Atlanta include Little Darlings (1980), Sharky's Machine (1981), Outbreak (1995), Tyler Perry's Meet the Browns (2008), Life as We Know It (2010), Contagion (2011), and Baby Driver (2017).[citation needed]

Well-known television shows set in Atlanta include House of Payne and Tyler Perry's Meet the Browns from Tyler Perry Studios, The Real Housewives of Atlanta, the CBS sitcom Designing Women, and numerous HGTV original productions. Since moving to BET for the 2011 season, The Game - as of January 2012 the highest rated ad-supported sitcom ever on cable - has been shot in Atlanta.[21] Williams Street Productions has produced multiple Adult Swim series as well as Freaknik: The Musical at their Midtown Atlanta studios.

Horror and zombie themes

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Atlanta is the filming location for many horror-themed productions, including the TV series Goosebumps and its sequel Goosebumps 2: Haunted Halloween, Teen Wolf, The Walking Dead, Vampire Diaries, and the 2009 comedy Zombieland. In addition, the horror festival Atlanta HorrorFest is held yearly in October, and features the Buried Alive Film Fest,[22] bands, and a zombie walk. These factors prompted Atlanta magazine to dub the city the "Zombie Capital of the World",[23][24] and The New York Times to recognize Atlanta's stature in the genre.[25]

Logistics

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Delta Air Lines headquarters

Delta Air Lines is the largest employer in the Atlanta metro area.[26] Their 34,500 Atlanta-based employees include airport staff, flight crews, and those who work at the headquarters adjacent to the airport. Delta operates the world's largest airline hub at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport and, together with the hub of competing carrier Southwest Airlines, has helped make Hartsfield-Jackson the world's busiest airport, both in terms of passenger traffic and aircraft operations. The airport, since its construction in the 1950s, has served as a key engine of Atlanta's economic growth.[27]

Top employers in Metro Atlanta

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Employer Number of employees
Delta Air Lines 34,500
Emory University / Emory Healthcare 32,095
The Home Depot 16,510
Northside Hospital 16,000+
Piedmont Healthcare 15,900
Publix 14,753
Wellstar Health System 15,353
Kroger 15,000+
AT&T 15,000
United Parcel Service 14,594
Marriott International 12,000+
Children's Healthcare of Atlanta 9,000
Cox Enterprises 8,894
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention 8,403
The Coca-Cola Company 8,000
Southern Company 7,753
Grady Health System 7,600
SunTrust Banks 7,478
Georgia Tech 7,139
State Farm 6,000
Turner Broadcasting System 6,000

Source: Metro Atlanta Chamber of Commerce, Top 25 Metro Atlanta Employers (2018–2019)[28]

List of companies headquartered in Metro Atlanta

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The following is a list of the most notable companies that were founded or have their corporate headquarters in Atlanta or the surrounding metro area.

Housing market

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According to the Case–Shiller index, home prices in Atlanta increased 19.1% between March 2012 and March 2013.[51]

References

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  1. ^ "The World According to GaWC 2008". Globalization and World Cities Research Network. GaWC Loughborough University. Retrieved April 29, 2009.
  2. ^ "Cities with 5 or more FORTUNE 500 headquarters". CNNMoney.com. April 8, 2009. Retrieved April 5, 2010.
  3. ^ "AeA ranks Atlanta 10th-largest U.S. cybercity". Bizjournals.com. June 24, 2008. Retrieved April 5, 2010.
  4. ^ "Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Dept. of Labor, Nov. 2011 preliminary figures" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on January 14, 2012.
  5. ^ Bowers, Paige (December 7, 2001). "Beers built marble monument for Fed. Reserve". Atlanta Business Chronicle. American City Business Journals, Inc. Retrieved September 28, 2007.
  6. ^ Rauch, Joe (August 21, 2006). "Wachovia to put headquarters of card subsidiary in Atlanta". Birmingham Business Journal. American City Business Journals, Inc. Retrieved September 28, 2007.
  7. ^ "Atlanta: gateway to the future". Hemisphere, Inc. Retrieved June 26, 2007.
  8. ^ "The Largest Banks in the U.S." (chart). The New York Job Source. June 30, 2006. Retrieved August 22, 2007.
  9. ^ Sarath, Patrice. "SunTrust Banks, Inc". Hoovers. Archived from the original on August 24, 2007. Retrieved August 22, 2007.
  10. ^ "Top 10 High-Tech Companies to Work for in Atlanta". Unpakt.com. 5 January 2016. Retrieved 16 October 2017.
  11. ^ McGirt, Dan (January 11, 2010). "Plans for the 2009 BIO International Convention in Atlanta, Georgia". BIOtechNOW. Archived from the original on November 2, 2010. Retrieved January 11, 2010.
  12. ^ "CDC's Origins and Malaria". Retrieved March 23, 2011.
  13. ^ Duffy, Kevin (August 9, 2007). "Supplier to build at Kia site in West Point". Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Archived from the original on June 28, 2012. Retrieved August 22, 2007.
  14. ^ "SEC Info - Hyco International, Inc. - IPO: 'S-1' on 5/12/06". www.secinfo.com.
  15. ^ "Cox Enterprises, Inc. Reaches Agreement to Acquire Public Minority Stake in Cox Communications, Inc. Archived 2009-07-09 at the Wayback Machine" Cox Enterprises. October 19, 2004. Retrieved on July 4, 2009.
  16. ^ a b c d "City Council Districts Archived January 17, 2010, at the Wayback Machine." City of Sandy Springs. Retrieved on July 4, 2009.
  17. ^ "Atlanta Headquarters." Cox Communications. Retrieved on April 22, 2009.
  18. ^ "About Cox". Cox Communications, Inc. Archived from the original on August 15, 2007. Retrieved August 22, 2007.
  19. ^ Ho, Rodney. "Atlanta is the 10th most popular city for TV and film production in the world". myajc.com. Cox Media Group. Retrieved 1 July 2018.
  20. ^ Severson, Kim (November 25, 2011). "Atlanta Emerges as a Black Entertainment Mecca". The New York Times.
  21. ^ "'The Game' Returns Huge for BET with 7.7 Million Viewers". Tvbythenumbers.zap2it.com. 12 January 2011. Archived from the original on 12 January 2011. Retrieved 16 October 2017.
  22. ^ "Buried Alive Film Fest - Atlanta Independent Horror Film Festival". Buriedalivefilmfest.com. Retrieved 16 October 2017.
  23. ^ Heckert, Justin (September 2011). "Zombies are so hot right now". Atlanta.
  24. ^ Mathis, George (October 19, 2012). "Atlanta the new 'zombie capital'". Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Archived from the original on October 30, 2011.
  25. ^ Brown, Robbie (October 18, 2011). "Zombie Apocalypse? Atlanta Says Bring It On". The New York Times.
  26. ^ "View the Largest Employers in Metro Atlanta: MAC". www.metroatlantachamber.com. Retrieved 2023-11-09.
  27. ^ Allen, Frederick (1996). Atlanta Rising. Atlanta, Georgia: Longstreet Press. ISBN 1-56352-296-9.
  28. ^ "View the Largest Employers in Metro Atlanta: MAC". www.metroatlantachamber.com. Retrieved 2021-11-20.
  29. ^ "Software firm AirWatch announces 800 New Jobs in Atlanta." Retrieved on January 25, 2013.
  30. ^ "Contact Us Archived October 25, 2010, at the Wayback Machine." American Megatrends. Retrieved on May 6, 2009.
  31. ^ "At&T Mobility Llc." Manta. Retrieved on May 19, 2009.
  32. ^ "Axiall Company Page." Retrieved on September 2, 2013.
  33. ^ "Company Fact Sheet." Chick-fil-A. Retrieved on May 19, 2009.
  34. ^ "Atlanta Headquarters." Cox Communications. Retrieved on April 22, 2009.
  35. ^ "Cox Enterprises, Inc. Reaches Agreement to Acquire Public Minority Stake in Cox Communications, Inc. Archived 2009-07-09 at the Wayback Machine" Cox Enterprises. October 19, 2004. Retrieved on July 4, 2009.
  36. ^ "Contact Us Archived 2009-10-29 at the Wayback Machine." Cox Radio. Retrieved on April 24, 2009.
  37. ^ "Contact Corporate." Delta Air Lines. Retrieved October 17, 2008.
  38. ^ "Zoning Ordinance of Atlanta, Georgia Sheet No. 14-128 Archived August 24, 2008, at the Wayback Machine." City of Atlanta. Retrieved October 17, 2008.
  39. ^ "[1]"
  40. ^ "Corporate and Financial Overview Archived October 2, 2011, at the Wayback Machine." The Home Depot. Retrieved on April 24, 2009.
  41. ^ "Invesco moving global HQ to Atlanta." Atlanta Business Chronicle. Retrieved on April 12, 2011.
  42. ^ "About MailChimp." MailChimp Website. Retrieved on May 9, 2016.
  43. ^ "2014 Metro Atlanta Top Employers" (PDF). 6 February 2015. Archived from the original (PDF) on 6 February 2015. Retrieved 9 January 2019.
  44. ^ "Simmons Company History Archived 2008-12-10 at the Wayback Machine."
  45. ^ Paul, Péralte C. (November 19, 2009). "Sony Ericsson moving HQ to Atlanta amid cuts". The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
  46. ^ "Travelport Locations List Archived 2013-03-13 at the Wayback Machine." Retrieved on September 1, 2013
  47. ^ "Contact UPS: United States." United Parcel Service. Retrieved on May 19, 2009.
  48. ^ "Vision Airlines Announces New Low-Fare Atlanta-Louisville Flight Service" (PDF). 17 July 2011. Archived from the original on 17 July 2011. Retrieved 9 January 2019.
  49. ^ "Contact Us Archived 2010-04-27 at the Wayback Machine." Waffle House. Retrieved on May 19, 2009.
  50. ^ "Yellow Pages parent opens new HQ in Atlanta suburb." St Louis Post Dispatch. Retrieved on September 13, 2012.
  51. ^ Schmit, Julie (May 28, 2013). "Home price jump is more rebound than bubble". USA Today.
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