AquaFence considers move to Tampa as city named among top 5 for business headquarters in survey

Tampa named top 5 for business headquarters

A life-saving business is eyeing Tampa as its new United States headquarters. It comes after Tampa was named a top destination to set up business headquarters by a Site Selection survey. FOX 13's Danielle Zulkosky reports. 

TAMPA, Fla. - A life-saving business is eyeing Tampa as its new United States headquarters.

AquaFence is a Norwegian business that makes flood barricades that were most notably used to protect Tampa General Hospital from storm surge during the 2024 hurricane season. AquaFence Chief Revenue Officer Patrik Hansson said these barricades changed the way the hospital functioned during the storm.

RELATED: Tampa General Hospital adding AquaFence again this year to prevent storm surge

"She asks, ‘can I give you a hug?’ And she got a little bit emotional," Hanson said. "She said, 'I just want to say thank you. My mother was at the Tampa General during the hurricanes, and she did not have to evacuate.'"

What they're saying:

Now, that company is considering making a bigger commitment to Tampa Bay by moving their US headquarters from the New York area to Tampa.

"Florida, considering all the hurricanes and everything that's going on down here, this was a natural move," Hanson said. "And especially, we wanted to be closer to our clients."

MORE: Crews install AquaFence around St. Pete’s most critical lift station

No word yet on plans to officially move their American headquarters to the sunshine state, but leaders said it has a lot to offer.

"We're going to continue to have a presence in Hoboken and in the Northeast, and Tampa was our next step to expand in the U.S.," Hanson said. "We are having plans on moving potentially our headquarters down here to Tampa."

Dig deeper:

This all comes as Tampa is named a top destination to set up business headquarters by a Site Selection survey. This survey heavily favored Southern cities.

"It's such a business-friendly environment over here, and everyone wants, like I said before, they want you to succeed," Hanson said. "It's a great place to be. It's a great place to do business."

READ: Credit scores are down in all 50 states: Here's where they dropped the most

Tampa came in fifth in a four-way tie for the spot between Richmond, Kansas City and Houston.

"It's a very, very big city with a small-town feel," Hanson said. "And, it feels that everyone that we talk to genuinely wants to help us and wants to be a part of the success of not only AquaFence, but every other business."

Tampa Mayor Jane Castor, in a statement, said, "The milestone is a reflection of the momentum our community has built together. We’re creating an environment where businesses thrive, families succeed, and big ideas feel right at home."

What's in Tampa's future?

The Site Selection Survey named tax policy and workforce as the top two elements of a state's business climate.

"We have some really good, exciting, good universities here in Tampa, so the access to good, young talent was also very, very important to us," Hanson said.

What's next:

The survey said the number one workforce challenge in the coming decade is labor shortages. Florida helps companies solve this issue as a top state where people are moving, according to data from U-Haul.