PHOENIX (BRAIN) — Accessories brand Serfas has completed its move from Orange County, Calif., to a larger headquarters and warehouse facility in Phoenix.
The company now occupies two buildings totaling 33,000 square feet: one for sales and warehousing, the other for R&D, marketing and product management, said John Denson, Serfas' general manager. Serfas was previously in 22,000 square feet at its longtime home in the Southern California community of Rancho Santa Margarita.
"We were tapped on space," Denson said.
With the move out of California, the company reaps significant business-cost and tax advantages. But more important, said Denson, Serfas gains a friendlier regulatory environment in Arizona.
"With California and all the red tape, we couldn't see ourselves expanding. We couldn't even do our parking lot sale at the end of the year," he said. "Some of the objections we had from the city and state, we felt, limited our opportunity for growth."
Serfas lost three of its 30 employees in the move, but the company has already made a handful of new hires in areas including sales, purchasing and marketing. It also plans to add several warehouse jobs in the coming months.
Though moving a business to a new state has been a daunting task, Denson said, Serfas has already seen one dividend: Arizona retailers are doing more business with the brand. "I've had dealers call and say, 'We're just down the road from you. We're going to support you 100 percent.' There's a definite camaraderie from the dealers around here. I want to say thanks to all the dealers who've shown their support," said Denson.
