Question: What were your top reasons for locating here in Greater Phoenix?
Barbara Hagen
VP, Sales and Marketing
ThriftBooks
Sector: e-Commerce
Thrift Books Global LLC has been operating in Greater Phoenix since 2011. Over the years, we have found the market conditions to be very advantageous, with its geographic positioning, strong labor market and favorable business community. As our business grew on thriftbooks.com and online marketplaces that include Amazon, eBay, Etsy, AbeBooks and others, we began looking for a location where we could expand our footprint to support current and future growth. Our positive experiences over the past 10 years with Phoenix’s quality workforce and stable business environment made it clear that Phoenix is the best choice for our expansion.
All of us at ThriftBooks are excited to deepen our connection with the region, provide the residents with employment and advancement opportunities, and deliver customers everywhere a best-in-class e-commerce shopping experience.
Barbara Hagen has more than 20 years of experience as a senior marketing executive. She has an undergraduate degree in marketing from Syracuse University, an MBA in international marketing from NYU’s Stern School of Business, and an MS in data analytics, also from NYU’s Stern School. Hagen has a strong track record of success at Fortune 100 companies spanning retail, consumer packaged goods and tech, including Microsoft, Target, Best Buy and Johnson & Johnson Consumer Products.
Brandon Sammut
Chief People and Culture Officer
LiveRamp
Sector: Technology
While exploring potential locations for a new LiveRamp office, we found Phoenix has so many of the things we were seeking in a new hub. We met with the local government, landlords and other businesses in the area to confirm the cost of living was just right for our team members and would present a scalable path to growth for the business. Additionally, the quality, quantity and diversity of talent for the type of highly skilled roles we’re looking for were spot on.
During the pandemic, as we shifted to a work-from-anywhere model, we found many of our employees were already gravitating toward this region, which is in close proximity to our headquarters in San Francisco. We’re thinking beyond work-from-home now and are looking forward to building a highly collaborative, state-of-the-art office for the 300-plus employees we hope to bring on.
Under Brandon Sammut’s leadership, LiveRamp’s People and Culture team attracts and develops dynamic, curious problem-solvers — and empowers them to do the best work of their lives. Sammut is responsible for the company’s global talent strategy, drawing from prior experience in talent acquisition, talent development, strategy consulting and venture capital. He holds a BA from the University of Michigan, an MBA from Stanford’s Graduate School of Business and a Master’s in Education from Stanford’s Graduate School of Education.
Uwe Voss
Chief Executive Officer
HelloFresh
Sector: Food/Technology
As the leading meal kit company, HelloFresh needed warehousing space to support increased demand, allowing us to better serve our customers on the West Coast with fresh and delicious meal deliveries. Later this year, we will begin operating out of the new 440,000-square-foot facility located at 1850 South 71st Avenue, which will be HelloFresh’s largest shipping and fulfillment center globally. Expanding supply chain capacity enables HelloFresh to actively bring new menu features to market, satisfying new and existing customers with more recipe selections and new, convenient meal options.
We selected Phoenix to support the next phase of HelloFresh’s growth plan because it is a highly efficient logistics hub with access to major routes and provides access to the region’s strong and talented labor pool. This new facility will allow HelloFresh to strengthen our West Coast capabilities and will bring as many as 1,200 jobs over time. We also look forward to making a positive impact on the local community.
Uwe Voss is currently the CEO at HelloFresh US, where he oversees the company’s U.S. portfolio of brands: HelloFresh, Green Chef, EveryPlate and Factor. Previously, he held positions as COO and MD at HelloFresh and as an associate principal at McKinsey & Company Chicago, where he focused on serving clients across strategy and operations.
