Forbes Ranks Lafayette No. 11 in Best Small Places For Business
Journal & Courier (press release), IN (July 7, 2011) – Sandwiched between Waterloo, Iowa, and Grand Junction, Colo., Lafayette is ranked No. 11 on the latest Forbes listing of the Best Small Places for Business and Careers.
The ranking is included in Forbes 13th annual list of Best Places for Business and Careers.
Among small cities, Manhattan, Kan., is ranked No. 1. Bloomington, at No. 16, is the only other Indiana city on the top 25 list.
Raleigh, N.C., tops the list of 50 large metropolitan areas for the Best Places for Business and Careers. Indianapolis is ranked No. 43.
Large or small, the criteria for the evaluation were the same.
Metrics that were considered include job growth - past and present - costs of doing business and living, income growth and projected economic growth. Other factors that were used include crime rates, cultural and recreational opportunities and annual college rankings.
"In most of these hot hubs you'll find a strong university or two, providing rich cultural life and the kind of technology transfer that sparks entrepreneurial activity - giving that educated population lots of reasons to stick around," said Kurt Badenhausen in his Forbes article on the rankings.
The Reaction
"Being based in Lafayette, Ind., has been key to the growth of our business. Our proximity to Purdue University has been a tremendous asset in terms of recruiting and retaining top employees," said Robert Theodorow, the owner of Stormfront Productions Inc., a full-service online media consulting agency located in downtown Lafayette. "We have been able to set up relationships with various departments and recruit (Purdue) students. This has allowed us to work with exceptional students and convert them to full-time status upon graduation.
"Additionally, Lafayette is an affordable location for starting and operating a business. While a good percentage of our work is done locally, we are able to better compete on a national level by offering lower service rates than agencies located in other cities. This has helped us grow our business considerably over the last several years while keeping our overhead relatively low."
To Learn More
More information about the ranking is available at www.forbes.com/best-places-for-business
