Testimonials from Industry Leaders
Manufacturing: Topeka is proud to have companies such as Frito Lay, Reser's Fine Foods, Josten's Printing and Publishing, Hallmark Cards, Goodyear Tire & Rubber, BNSF Railway Company, and the list goes on. All these companies have tapped into a well kept secret in Topeka, Kansas… an available workforce that reaches into a five county MSA, an abundance of water and available infrastructure, and a community that stands ready to assist as their business grows. Call us today and let us tell you more about our community and available sites, as well as our local incentives that make Topeka, Kansas stand out above the rest.
 "Although Reser's Fine Foods has 12 plants throughout the country, our strongest presence is in Topeka. Our experience with the Topeka workforce has been extremely positive. Since opening our 35-employee salad facility in Topeka in 1991, we have grown to three facilities in Topeka, with a total of more than 765 employees."
—Tony Kunis, General Manager, Reser's Fine Foods, Inc.
Back Office Operations: Topeka and Shawnee County provides an abundance of college and technically educated employees, providing a well educated workforce needed to have your operations up and operational in a short period of time. Within Topeka/Shawnee County, we have three major universities providing post secondary education — Washburn University, Baker University, and Friends University. But don't stop there, once you look outside of our great city, within an hour or less, the area holds nationally known state universities such as Kansas State University, Kansas University, Emporia State University. Topeka holds many opportunities for an educated workforce that stands ready to fill your employment needs.
 "Lohmann & Rauscher made the strategic decision to locate our North American headquarters in Topeka based on our ability to better serve the U.S. market and our customers from a central location. We have customers on both coasts. Also, the cost of running a business is not as high in Topeka as it would be on either coast."
—Michael Hall, President, U.S. subsidiary of Lohmann & Rauscher International
Warehousing and Distribution: Imagine having your warehouse/distribution center located in the middle of a major east/west highway that runs end to end across the nation. And then think, wouldn't it be perfect if this location also had a major north/south highway as well. Your dreams have come true! Topeka, Kansas sits in the middle of the nation with Interstate 70 (east, west) and Interstate 35 (north, south) making it effortless to move your product to the marketplace. With fuel costs continuing to rise, Topeka, Kansas just makes sense. We hope you will join others that currently call Topeka home…. US FoodService, Payless ShoeSource, Target, Ritz Camera/Boaters World, and many more. Call us today and let our staff show you all of the assets our community can hold for your company.
"Our central location — with shorter distances to both coasts and shorter shipping times — allows us to sell a fresher product. This helps us to compete both regionally and nationally. We ship our freshly roasted specialty coffee beans to all 50 states."
—Fred Polzin, Co-Founder, PT's Coffee Company
Bio Science: We are quickly becoming known as the nation's preferred location for animal and life sciences companies. Currently our state supports a presence for 40% of the animal health market across the nation, and is quickly emerging as a top region for animal and life sciences companies to locate — just ask Hill's Pet Nutrition. Topeka is home to their research and development center as well as their corporate offices. Located in the region are five leading veterinary technician and research laboratory training facilities, making available a trained and ready workforce for your company's needs.
Determined to be a national competitor in the bioscience arena, the Kansas Legislature overwhelming passed the Kansas Economic Growth Act (KEGA) which provides support for the bioscience industry. A funding mechanism in KEGA, tied to future growth in the industry, is expected to generate over $500 million over the next 10 to 15 years. These funds may be utilized to develop the bioscience research-to development continuum, drive the commercialization of bioscience discoveries, and support the growth of the biosciences industry base.
Other Industry Advantages
- Topeka's cost of living consistently ranks 8 to 9 percent below the average based upon the ACCRA Cost of Living Study.
- Well educated workforce. The percent of Topeka's population (25 years and over) having a bachelor's degree or higher is greater than the national average.
- Outstanding higher education opportunities are available at Washburn University in liberal arts, law, and business with university enrollment over 7,300. The University is ranked sixth in the Midwest among public master's level universities.
- Kansas is a right-to-work state.
- The Kansas 1st initiative adds value to companies by helping to recruit, analyze jobs, and screen potential employees for employment opportunities.
- Kaw Area Technical School works with employers to develop specific training programs.
Local and State Incentives
- up to a ten year property tax exemption on real property
- no property taxes on machinery and equipment newly acquired or placed into service in Kansas after July 1, 2006
- training funds
- industrial revenue bond financing
- state income tax credits
- Kansas Bioscience initiatives expected to generate over $500 million over the next 10 to 15 years
- additional local incentives based upon number of jobs, average hourly wage and capital investment
Infrastructure: Topeka has the infrastructure today for the business of tomorrow-central geographical location, availability of land at very competitive rates, excellent transportation network with I-70, I-35 and I-75, rail and air systems, accessibility and reliability of power, and one of the most sophisticated and reasonably priced telecommunications system in the nation.
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