Thinking about where to relocate your business? It’s no question that finding a new place to relocate can be tough, but one place that’s open for business is Saint Paul, Minnesota. Saint Paul has an engaged, connected, and vibrant business community with access to talent for every and any type of work. More innovative businesses are moving to the city, including one company that recently moved its headquarters and 120 employees to Saint Paul’s Midway area from Hudson, Wisconsin. Meet Alula.
Alula creates innovative technologies in the home security and automation industry that provides security for their customers’ homes and businesses. Alula was founded by the merger of two companies: Resolution Products and ipDatatel. Both companies were major players in the home automation and security industries, and their merger in 2017 marked a key partnership in advancing the technology in these fields. Now, their commitment to innovation has led them to create one of their newest products: BAT Connect. BAT Connect takes an existing home security system in a house and makes it compatible with smartphones and newer devices.
Alula’s decision to move to Saint Paul was carefully considered among many different options, but there were several things about the city that appealed to their team, according to CEO Brian McLaughlin. “We found Saint Paul to be very accommodating from the Mayor on down. There’s been tremendous outreach from the community, whether it’s Full Stack or others, and a lot of ambition around business, commerce, and technology.” Indeed, Saint Paul’s business environment, vibrant tech culture, and Mayor Melvin Carter’s vision for the city are all strong reasons why Minnesota is known as the Startup Capital of the North.
One of their biggest reasons for Alula’s move was to tap into the talent pool of the metro area. “When we looked at our growth plans, aspirations, and the people-power we needed to get the growth going forward, we realized that we needed to be closer to the center of talent: technology, manufacturing, engineering, but also closer to the universities,” McLaughlin said.
Saint Paul is the second-largest city in Minnesota and at the core of the 3 million-person Minneapolis-Saint Paul metro area. Saint Paul alone is home to 11 colleges and universities, and there are 30 located in the metro area including the University of Minnesota. 39% of Saint Paul residents have a college degree. The City has also boosted the education of its workforce by backing programs such as MSP TechHire, focused on in-demand technical skills.
Alula’s philosophy towards attracting top talent explains why they chose to relocate to Saint Paul. “If you’re going to compete in high tech, and you’re going to get the younger developers and the young professional talent, you have to have an inviting environment, because there are too many options out there,” McLaughlin explained. “You have to have a place that has values, is collaborative, and has access to what you want to do in life.” Saint Paul’s robust business ecosystem and vibrant culture facilitates an exciting environment for businesses and people alike. This is especially true for Alula as one of their key values — a commitment to innovation — has led to several breakthroughs.
Alula’s move to Saint Paul has marked a shift in their business prospects and their internal culture. Local food trucks visit Alula frequently, there’s a variety of local restaurants and breweries in the Midway area (including McLaughlin’s favorites, The Naughty Greek and Cafe Biaggio in the Creative Enterprise Zone), and many spaces dedicated to the arts and sports in the city (such as The Ordway Center for the Performing Arts, Minnesota United Football Club’s home Allianz Field, and the Palace Theatre).
Saint Paul is a great place to start or scale-up your business, and innovative companies like Alula are here to join Saint Paul’s vibrant entrepreneurial community. Learn more about doing business in Saint Paul and how the city can support you by contacting the Business Resource Center at (651) 266–6600.