(INDIANAPOLIS) August 28, 2019 – KAR Auction Services Inc (NYSE: KAR) announced it is investing $3.75 million in downtown Indianapolis to house the new, expanded U.S. headquarters and tech center of the company’s TradeRev business unit. The company will occupy a 45,000-square-foot space in the Century building, former home of C.H. Black Manufacturing, credited with building the first automobile in Indiana in 1891. The new investment will create 200 additional, high-paying jobs by 2023.
“The City of Indianapolis welcomes KAR and its TradeRev employees to the heart of our thriving downtown economic landscape,” said Mayor Joe Hogsett. “As the Tech Capital of the Midwest, Indianapolis will provide the perfect home for the company’s new offices and tech center, as well as access to a growing pool of talent needed to fill the hundreds of new jobs created at the location.”
KAR, a global remarketing and technology solutions provider, is one of Indiana’s largest publicly traded companies, with eight locations and approximately 2,000 employees in the state. The expansion into downtown Indianapolis follows the company’s recent opening of the KAR Global Headquarters in Carmel, Indiana. TradeRev, a digital platform that facilitates live, dealer-to-dealer vehicle auctions, was purchased by KAR in 2017 and employs more than 700 people across North America. Today’s announcement includes the creation of up to 200 additional jobs by 2023 for skilled positions in IT, finance, legal, human resources, operations and more.
“KAR’s growing North American team needed a larger space, and we were fortunate to find one with deep automotive roots,” said Jim Hallett, KAR chairman and CEO. “Our investment in the Century building provides TradeRev a collaborative, innovation-focused headquarters and tech center with a nod to KAR’s strong auto industry past. Being in the heart of downtown Indianapolis will help us attract the talent KAR needs to accelerate the digital transformation of our industry and help TradeRev remain the premier digital automotive auction platform.”
The new location in the Century building at 36 South Pennsylvania Street was home to a carriage manufacturer turned automotive manufacturer in the late 1800s and, most recently, home to technology giant Salesforce. KAR is one of several established and start-up companies that are investing in downtown Indianapolis’ expansion and contributing to the city’s technology-driven renaissance.
“KAR chose the perfect location to locate and grow its business, right here in a thriving technology hub with a robust talent pipeline,” said Indiana Secretary of Commerce Jim Schellinger. “The company’s continued commitment to growing its footprint in central Indiana helps strengthen our state’s economy and further propels Indiana’s tech community to the next level.”
Based on newly created job commitments, the City of Indianapolis supports performance-based training grants for the project pending approval of the Metropolitan Development Commission at the recommendation of Develop Indy, the economic development arm of Marion County and business unit of the Indy Chamber. The company’s plans to create up to 200 new jobs will contribute toward KAR’s 2017 commitment with the Indiana Economic Development Corporation of 400 new jobs in central Indiana.
