Shutterfly Invests $23+ Million in Ohio Facility to Enhance Product Offerings

Company Name: Shutterfly, Inc.
Company Profile: Shutterfly, Inc. is a leading retailer and manufacturing platform for personalized products and communications. Shutterfly Consumer and Lifetouch help consumers capture, preserve, and share life’s important moments through professional and personal photography, and personalized products. The Shutterfly brand brings photos to life in photo books, gifts, home décor, and cards and stationery. Lifetouch is the national leader in school photography, built on the enduring tradition of “Picture Day”, and also serves families through portrait studios and other partnerships.
Company Website: www.shutterfly.com/lifetouch-pictures

Project Summary:

• Type of Project: Expansion
• Jobs:
  • Jobs committed: 100
  • Jobs retained: 172
• Capital Investment: $23,200,000

Company Need:

Shutterfly is one of the world’s leading digital-photo product companies and acquired Galion’s Lifetouch in 2018; and with it, the Galion Lifetouch plant in Crawford County. Since 1995 when Lifetouch had taken over a former photo studio, the Galion site has been producing Lifetouch photography products for church communities, and over the past several years expanded to include preschool and studio photography.

Now, Shutterfly will be supporting not only multiple Lifetouch product lines, but also include Shutterfly brand products, including personalized photo books, calendars, cards and wall art.

Testimonial:

“Our business is deeply connected to the local labor market and the Galion community, and we’re pleased to provide stability for current employees while expanding in the future.” – Dave Bull, vice president of manufacturing, Shutterfly Inc. 

Why Ohio?

The company selected to grow at the Crawford County plant because Shutterfly officials recognized the region’s competitive business climate and highly skilled labor pool as significant factors in the site selection process. Additionally, the location puts production even closer to customers in the northeast corridor of the U.S., improving efficiencies and speed for customers in the region.

Ohio has a thriving technology environment made up of startups, Fortune 500 and 1000 companies, and everything in between. Ohio’s favorable business climate includes record budget reserves, a strong credit rating and a favorable tax climate, providing stability and cost-savings for businesses invested in the state.

JobsOhio awarded the company a grant to support the expansion of the facility. In addition, the Ohio Development Services Agency approved a Job Creation Tax Credit. Both the Regional Growth Partnership and Grow Crawford worked collaboratively with JobsOhio throughout the process in securing the project for Galion.

Collaborators:

Regional Growth Partnership, Grow Crawford, JobsOhio and the Ohio Development Services Agency