New York and the Tri-State Area By Dorothy Crenshaw
Vice-President, North America, PROI
President
Stanton Crenshaw Communications and Partner
Public Relations Organisation International, Inc.
250 Park Avenue South
New York, NY 10003
New York
"The Big Apple" is just what New York is – a place where
everything seems…bigger. New York is where the mundane and the exotic,
the passive and the aggressive, the rich and the poor, the famous and the infamous
rub elbows against a vertical landscape of extremes.
Many businesses have long weighed the costs of the city against the many advantages
of locating here – its enormous available talent pool, status as an international
transportation hub, diversified industry and population, and its technology
resources, including the most sophisticated telecommunications infrastructure
in the world. In the late 1990s through 2000, the Apple became particularly
polished, as New York underwent a renaissance. Safer, cleaner, and more business-friendly
than in years, New York mounted a strong comeback after the recessionary years
of the early 1990s. It emerged as the place to be and a profitable and dynamic
place to do business.
The New York economy thrived along with the rest of the U.S. at the height
of the technology explosion, with business start-ups at a record rate, unemployment
at 6.9 percent, and not enough "smart" labor to go around. At the
end of the 90s, the borough of Manhattan alone boasted more than 350 million
square feet of office space – an enormous amount, particularly considering
its concentration at the lower end of a narrow, nine-mile-long island. Even
before September 2001, however, the local economy had begun to cool off, as
the celebrated technology boom faltered, and businesses began to cut spending.
Then, the city – and the world—was forever changed on September
11, 2001.
Months after the attack, it is difficult to capture the physical and psychological
impact of the events of September 11th in New York City. In addition to approximately
3000 lives lost, billions of dollars of damage was done, and 100,000 jobs were
eliminated from the city’s economy.
Yet, though 9/11 ripped a hole in the city’s psyche – not to mention
its economy – and the repercussions will be felt for many years, business
in New York has largely returned to a pre-9/11 pace and process.
What’s Changed
As expected, security is tighter around the city, affecting travel
schedules, some expenditures, and even occasionally slowing daily commuting
in the tri-state area, which is joined through a heavy infrastructure of bridges
and tunnels. Yet, New Yorkers, like other Americans, have become accustomed
to security alerts and are relatively patient with the security precautions
that are today’s reality.
The downtown area was hard-hit, and it has not yet recovered.
The attack on 9/11 destroyed 13 million square feet of prime office space. Downtown
business both large and small scrambled to find accommodations in midtown or
in the suburbs, and dozens are still dislocated many months after 9/11. Though
many affected small businesses received financial aid in the form of state and
city grants, hundreds of businesses ancillary to the WTC were disrupted or shut
down. Others have decided they prefer to remain outside of the downtown area,
so the city has been challeng ed to lure fresh enterprise to the vicinity.
Business activity in Silicon Alley, the New York technology center, which,
with Wall Street, had driven the local economy, has stabilized after a volatile
period.Though not as sharp as the downturn in Northern California’s
Silicon Valley, New York’s technology slump claimed many business casualties.
Many venture-backed technology companies closed their doors or consolidated,
as have several key Silicon Alley-oriented financial and high-tech trade publications.
The decline leveled off in the months following 9/11.
The City’s tourist and business services organizations are stepping
up to welcome visitors as never before. NYC & Company – the
Convention & Visitors Bureau – is ready, willing and eager to assist
professionals, from site selection to attendance building, housing and on-site
staffing. Bargain airfare rates and hotel discounts are frequent. Also, the
25% hotel tax has been repealed, making rates even more attractive. Broadway
shows are beginning to see a return to near-normal box office receipts (though
fewer tourists are attending); box office sales in the first quarter of 2002
were still lighter than in early 2001, however, so the city’s rich cultural
offerings may be more accessible than in the past.
Many residents remain traumatized and saddened by the events of 9/11.
Nearly everyone was personally affected, as most New Yorkers knew someone who
worked in the Twin Towers or the downtown financial center. "Ground Zero"
attracts visitors from all over the country and the world. Most New Yorkers
understand the interest in the site but appreciate respectful behavior and an
attitude of reverence. Though the site has not yet been converted into a memorial,
it is already being treated as one.
Despite the changes wrought by 9/11, New York’s resilience has come
through. And certain aspects of the city and its business environment remain
the same.
New York is still the undisputed capital of the business world.
Conferences, announcements and product launches here command attention; trends
begin here; and the city remains America’s gateway for both immigration
and business innovation. It remains a center for commerce, where loans, investments,
mergers and acquisitions, and other transactions of national and international
significance are conducted daily.
Despite the fact that large corporations account for less than two percent
of all New York businesses, this sector consists of many of the world’s
largest, richest, and highest-profile corporations, such as Philip Morris, Citicorp,
Chase Manhattan, Merrill Lynch, and American Express. These companies, in addition
to Verizon, Con Edison, AT&T, and the city’s universities, are some
of the tri-state area’s largest employers. The finance, insurance and
real estate sectors remain among the city’s most powerful drivers of the
local and regional economy.
Yet, in terms of growth, the service sector has experienced the greatest increase
in employment over the past decade. Within the services area, healthcare, business,
engineering, management, and education are the most prominent, with wholesale/retail
following closely behind them. Manufacturing continues to play a major role
in the local and tri-state economy; though there has been some reduction, Manhattan
and its neighboring boroughs are home to thousands of manufacturers, many of
whom have taken advantage of government initiatives such as Economic Development
Zones.
New York is the largest employer for the apparel industry next to Hong Kong;
the center of the New York apparel industry is the celebrated "garment
district" along Seventh Avenue between 34th and 42nd streets. Most garment
manufacturing in the area, however, has moved to the outer boroughs such as
Brooklyn, Queens, and the Bronx. New York ranks second only to California in
the manufacture of baking products, and the Bronx is a key shipping and distribution
center to the entire eastern commercial corridor.
New York’s financial district has changed, but the city is working
hard to recover. In late March 2002, Merrill Lynch moved back into its
Wall Street area headquarters, with much fanfare. Many of the downtown area’s
former flagship tenants, such as American Express, have since returned as well.
Former media mogul Michael Bloomberg, who was elected Mayor as Rudolph Giuliani’s
anointed successor, is working with many organizations such as the Lower Manhattan
Redevelopment Corporation to institute an aggressive program of incentives to
induce redevelopment, and there are major public-private partnerships that will
attract business investment, development, and new tenants to the downtown area.
The City’s goal is to not only recover its status as the financial capital,
but to encourage new infrastructure by the healthcare and biotech industries,
to name two.
New York is very much the center of the media, arts and entertainment
world. As a quick tour of Times Square will illustrate. The New York
Times still anchors one of the most famous areas of the world; it is now
joined by Reuters, NASDAQ, ABC, Bertelsmann, Conde Nast, and of course,
Broadway. The national television and radio networks, newspaper, book, and magazine
publishers are primarily located in Manhattan, although the borough of Queens
has considerable production facilities. AOL/Time Warner, Viacom, General Electric,
and other media companies remain among the area’s biggest media names
and largest employers.
And, New York has more advertising, marketing, and public relations shops per
square mile than any other city in the world. Businesses continue to use the
marketing communications and media industry’s presence to their advantage
in obtaining news coverage—even if recent events have reshaped how coverage
is presented or sought. More than ever, New York media is notorious for placing
its subjects under the microscope, so it is advantageous to be media savvy.
New York’s business community is efficient. More than ever,
this is the rule of thumb as New York seeks to reassure business that it is
in a perpetual 24/7 business mode. Meanwhile, New Yorkers, long celebrated for
aggressive behavior and a tough, down-to-business attitude, have softened to
be more accommodating to visitors, but they have retained a "get-it-done"
attitude towards business.
New York remains an international community. Its population has
become more diverse in the last 10 years than at any time since the turn of
the last century; more languages are spoken in the borough of Queens than in
any other part of the nation. And, even given a downturn in tourism, it is evident
that, following September 11th, New York belongs to the world. The city was
the site of the Global Economic Forum, and its status as the home to the United
Nations is more visible than ever.
New York remains one of the most progressive business centers in the
world. More so than in most metropolitan areas, women are leaders in
a variety of industries, and every ethnic, sexual and religious persuasion is
not only represented, but also generally accepted in business circles and the
community at large. The city’s population of 7.4 million people is, if
not a melting pot, then an encyclopedia of cultures, languages and religions,
a crucible where creativity and intensity spills over into every aspect of business
life. This diverse population provides businesses a vast pool of human resources
and market opportunities.
The Tri-state Area
New York, Connecticut and New Jersey make up the tri-state area and offer corporate
headquarters, such as General Electric in Connecticut and Lucent Technology
in New Jersey, within a short drive from the city. Renowned as a business hub,
the greater New York area is known for its consumer electronics and technology
corridor in New Jersey, as well as the many multinational pharmaceutical corporations
that have US and global headquarters there.
Summary
By understanding the nuances of New York business and life in the Big Apple,
companies can anticipate business trends and situate themselves for success.
New York remains not merely an international business center but a capital for
achievement –a high-risk, high-reward environment that attracts talent
and investment, and that bestows success on those who take advantage of its
resources and energy.
Doing
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