RENO, Nev. — Matthew Gould is often asked where he’s going to be in five years. While he admits that’s hard to predict, one thing he is certain of: he’ll be in Reno.
Gould is the cofounder of Unstoppable Domains, a tech startup that launches domain names — for both payments and websites — on blockchain technology.
The fast-growing company, which relocated its headquarters from San Francisco to Reno in March, was one of four new-to-the-region businesses announced by the Economic Development Authority of Western Nevada on Aug. 12.
“I really have come to love this city over the past year,” Gould said during a virtual press conference. “We all enjoy it here. The quality of life is so much better than what we could get almost anywhere on the West Coast.”
Unstoppable Domains is backed by Draper Associates, one of the leading U.S. venture capital firms. The startup has raised a total of $5.2 million in funding over two rounds, according to Crunchbase.
Gould said the company, which currently has 20 employees, plans to hire more than 70 additional people to staff its Reno office.
“From a business perspective, Nevada just makes sense. There’s a lot of sunshine and no taxes,” he said. “We’re glad to be a part of the tech scene here.
I’m looking forward to contributing to the tech scene here in Nevada.”
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Another company adding to the tech scene in Northern Nevada is Discover Podium, a SaaS company dedicated to delivering career advancement solutions for leaders in transition.
According to previous NNBW reports, CEO Jacob Warwick said the company currently employs 14 people and intends to at least double its staff in the next 18 months.
The startup, which is in the process of raising capital, has much larger plans after that.
“With that capital round, we intend to bring 200 to 300 jobs to Reno in the next five years, which is very exciting,” he said Aug. 12.
According to EDAWN, the jobs will carry an average wage of $80,000.
EDAWN on Aug. 12 also welcomed two cosmetic companies to Northern Nevada.
Cosmetics brand theBalm is relocating its corporate headquarters from California to Reno, making a capital expenditure investment of about $5 million, per EDAWN.
“We do believe Reno is the right place for us to grow,” Heather Lourie, COO of theBalm, said at the press conference. “We’ve been in California for many years and right now we’re expanding, we’re bringing a lot of manufacturing into our business, and we believe Reno is a great environment to do that.”
In fact, theBalm’s “really aggressive hiring plan” includes filling 250 positions over the next two to three years at its new distribution facility in Reno, Lourie said. She added that the company has already hired 15 full-time employees the last two weeks and plans to hire 50 more over the next four months.
“We’re excited to bring on the manufacturing,” Lourie said. “It’s strange times, but through the strange times, we’re making some really significant strategic moves with our business. We do believe what we’re all experiencing in the short-term will lift. And we look forward to growing here in the long-term here with Reno. We’re excited to be here.”
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The fourth company announced Aug. 12, Mary Kay, is one of the most recognized beauty brands in the world. The multi-billion dollar company, which has over 1,500 product and technology patents, is opening a new distribution center in Reno to serve the West Coast.
The company plans to hire 50 employees at full build-out of the 72,000-square-foot facility, expected to be up and running in September.
“Mary Kay recognized that a facility in Reno could serve as a critical piece of our distribution optimization plan for the U.S.,” Nathan Moore, president of the North American region of Mary Kay, said in a statement. “… We’re particularly excited about the facility’s forklift battery technology, which will allow for more safety and efficiency in our distribution process.”
In all, the four companies plan to create more than 600 jobs.
“These announcements are especially important, given our high unemployment rate,” EDAWN CEO Mike Kazmierski said during the press conference. “Now, over 20,000 of our neighbors and our friends (are unemployed), with the expectation that many of the jobs lost in the recent downturn will not return.
“These new companies will continue to reinforce our collected efforts to diversify our economy.”
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