New Henderson Headquarters for Creative Tent International

A military and commercial tent manufacturer that relocated its sole manufacturing facility to the City of Henderson from Lake Havasu City, Arizona held its grand opening this week in Henderson.

After working with the Las Vegas Global Economic Alliance to relocate in 2013, Creative Tent International employs about 50 Nevadans with plans to increase that number based upon production. The decision to move to Southern Nevada stemmed from the company’s need for easier resource access and expanding its market.

“The company serves a wide variety of markets, many of which are a match for the Nevada location. All these markets will be served and distributed from the Nevada facility,” the company said in a May, 2013 letter to the Nevada Governor’s Office of Economic Development. “The Las Vegas market presents a significant potential for local transactions with manufacture, sale and construction all occurring locally. We can’t be more excited about our market prospects.”

Since moving to Las Vegas, the manufacturer has exported its tents to South America, the Middle East, Africa, and Europe, said Katy Kelly, marketing and social media coordinator with Creative Tent.

“We invite customers up from South America, and they love to come here because Las Vegas is a place people love to visit,” Kelly said.

Company founders Carol Fontius and Robert Stafford said Creative Tent relocated its headquarters to Southern Nevada for several reasons:

–          Enhance access to a broader pool of workforce talent

–          Nevada matches the wide variety of markets Creative Tent serves

–          Improved logistics and access to local airports

Creative Tent’s supplies fabric structures to the U.S. military and also offers an extensive line of commercial structures that can be used by businesses in event services as well as hotels and resorts. Both are major industries in Southern Nevada.

The Las Vegas Global Economic Alliance assisted Creative Tent in securing several state tax incentives during a July, 2013 meeting of the Board of Directors of the Nevada Governor’s Office of Economic Development.

The company said on its incentive application that it will employ a wide range of workers from engineers to sales representatives with an average hourly wage of $19. Kramer also said on behalf of Creative Tent that they are “investing in Nevada for the long term” and will contribute to the growth of Southern Nevada’s economy with a projected one-year economic impact a little over $20 million, according to estimates from the Governor’s Office of Economic Development.

The new Creative Tent facility is located in the City of Henderson at 451 Mirror Court, Ste. 101 Henderson, NV 89011. The grand opening took place on Tuesday, October 21 at 3 p.m.