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Seattle Expansion Equates to HQ2 Presence for Salesforce
Salesforce’s recent $15.7-billion acquisition of Tableau Software is likely to translate into a number of impacts that serve to drive Seattle’s commercial real estate market. To start with, the announcement that the San Francisco-based software company will plant a flag in Seattle speaks volumes about its intentions to compete with rivals Amazon or Microsoft for a headquarters-type real estate profile. It also will be a quest for top talent.
In prepared conference call remarks discussing the deal, Salesforce co-founder and co-CEO Marc Benioff (pictured) said, “Seattle will become our second headquarters of Salesforce. It’s going to be our HQ2, if you will.”
Salesforce’s Seattle presence already encompasses more than 1,000 workers. The acquisition of Tableau adds talent, as well as gives Salesforce a key geographic foothold in a region long coveted by Benioff. It also serves notice that the West Coast has emerged as a larger tech hub, spanning from the Bay Area and now to Seattle.
NKF’s Kevin Shannon says, “It’s another example of a major Northern California technology company recognizing the talent and comparative affordability of the Puget Sound region. Many Bay Area tech companies like Facebook and Apple have already replicated their Bay Area footprint on a smaller scale in Seattle. Office space and housing is approximately 60% the cost of the Bay Area while after tax income levels are similar.”
Tableau’s HQ will remain in Seattle’s Fremont neighborhood in NorthEdge at 1621 N. 34th St., across Lake Union from Amazon’s HQ and Google Cloud’s new complex. The data visualization company has roughly 2,000 employees in three Puget Sound locations.
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