California seems to be a difficult place to run a business these days. One of the problems seems to be living costs are so high. Employers know they need to pay their workers a lot more.
58 Phrases Decides to Move to Greener Pastures
California is far too expensive for many businesses to operate in. Affiliate marketing firm 58 Phrases has come to that conclusion. The cost of labor in California is so high, they decided to relocate. Earlier this month, they decided to start moving 20 employees over to Austin.
There are a number of factors that led to this decision. One of them is the fact that California has just instituted a sales tax for online retailers. This has made it much more difficult for many retailers to compete.
The sales tax has hurt big online retailers such as Amazon and eBay. As bad as it is for them, it has been downright devastating for smaller firms like 58 Phrases.
Is Austin a New Hub for Affiliate Marketing?
The founder of 58 Phrases thinks the move is long overdue. The firm debated moving to Austin a long time ago, but many people were concerned with the heat.
Many other online firms are doing business out of Austin. One of the biggest is WhaleShark Media, which owns many different online coupon and retail sites.
While California is the home to Silicon Valley and many other technology centers, Austin is a technology base in its own right. The city has a huge reputation for Internet media.
58 Phrases is not the first Internet firm to set up a presence in Austin. A couple of weeks ago, Travelzoo also opened an Austin office. Travelzoo executive Chris Loughlin said he was very optimistic about the company’s future in Austin. Given its climate for Internet media, he says the firm will be able to attract the cream of the crop for Internet professionals.
Austin looks like it may be a huge opportunity for the Internet media industry. Earlier this year, Texas almost passed the same Internet tax law as California. Had it gone through, it might have ruined Austin’s ability to develop its Internet media presence. Where would affiliate marketing companies like 58 Phrases have to go?
They may have found space in New York. They could have escaped the sales tax, but the savings would have been offset by higher real estate prices. Austin is a more affordable place to do business. Combined with the strength of the Internet media base in Austin, the reduced cost of running a business make it an ideal place to run a firm.
58 Phrases Future in Austin
This move may have major benefits for 58 Phrases. They hope to be able to have a new start in Austin. Will their business be more successful there?