Wacom Technology Corporation, a leading manufacturer of digital pen and touch input technologies, announced on Thursday that the company’s Americas headquarters has officially relocated from Vancouver to Portland.
The company now occupies the top three floors of the Pearl West building in Portland’s Pearl District. In a press release, the company said the new 55,000-square-foot space breeds collaboration and inspiration through an interior design that is modern, open, roomy, colorful and filled with natural light.
“This is an incredibly exciting time for Wacom and our move to Portland signals another huge milestone in our 33-year history as a company,” said Aaron Atkinson, Wacom COO. “Getting closer to our customer base locally as well as globally is paramount to our brand strategy. The creative spirit of Portland, its growing tech sector and our rich history here in the Pacific Northwest were obviously prime factors in our decision to move here.”
The move to Portland doesn’t mean that the company is completely leaving Vancouver behind. While most of Wacom’s local employees will now work out of the Portland headquarters, approximately 10-20 staff members will continue working in Clark County at the company’s Vancouver Repair Lab.
“We love Vancouver,” Atkinson told the VBJ when the move was originally announced. “We’ve spent many years here, but I think with the technology boom and the visibility of the creative sector in the area we’re moving into – it was just a little bit greater and heightens our visibility as a company. That was really the primary driving factor [in moving].”
Wacom has had a presence in Vancouver since the late 1980’s.
Experience Center coming soon
In addition to claiming the top three floors of the Pearl West building, Wacom will soon be opening a 3,400-square-foot “Experience Center” on the building’s ground floor.
The company plans to use the space to not only feature its line of professional and consumer-based creative input devices, but also for seminars, workshops, and to further facilitate the creative endeavors of the local community.
“With our Experience Center we’ve taken another step towards our mission to make the world a more creative place,” said Stefan Kirmse, Wacom’s senior vice president of corporate brand and communication, in a press release.
The Pearl West building, Wacom’s new headquarters, is located at 1455 NW Irving Street in Portland.
