Seattle, Washington-based Smead Capital Management, a manager of equity portfolios for institutions and asset management advisors, has announced that they will be relocating the company from Seattle, Washington to Phoenix, Arizona. The number of employees impacted by the move is unknown, but many employees appear to have a desire to stay in the Pacific Northwest.
According to a company statement, "The decision to relocate from Seattle to Phoenix was not a reactionary move caused by any of the events of the past several months." "As stock pickers, we continually evaluate our own business just as we would any of the companies that our clients own in their portfolios or the opportunities that the stock market presents us with for new investment.
"We took great care and deliberation in making this decision to relocate, which we began mentally exploring as early as two years ago. We announced our decision to move to Phoenix internally to our staff in January, long before COVID shutdowns or nationwide protests made their way to Seattle. Put simply, nothing happening or being reported in the news right now had any weight in our decision to relocate from Seattle to Phoenix."
"We love Seattle as well as the relationships and the experiences it has given us. We will miss the Pacific Northwest and everything it provided to us as a company and, on a more personal note, as individuals. Ultimately, Seattle was not able to provide the resources we sought for us to advise and serve our clients."
Although the decision was made prior to the civil unrest in Seattle, it should be noted that the Mayor and Governor of Washington failed to protect lives and property as rioters, looters, arsonists, and anarchists took over a major portion of Seattle's downtown area -- including a police department office which was abandoned by the order of the Mayor.
Change is coming. There will always be a tomorrow, no matter how much you may try to ignore it. There are no guarantees in life or promises for a bright future. Just because something bad hasn't happened yet, doesn't mean it won't. It can happen to anyone, anytime, anywhere. No one is guaranteed to wake up tomorrow and still have a job by evening. Are you now wondering, Am I Next?