Posts by Jim Teece
Dutch Bros Brews Up Retail Expansion with Consumer Packaged Goods Launch
Dutch Bros Inc. (NYSE: BROS), the rapidly expanding drive-thru coffee chain, has announced its entry into the consumer packaged goods (CPG) market. Partnering with Trilliant Food & Nutrition, a prominent coffee manufacturer with products in over 50,000 retail locations, Dutch Bros plans to offer packaged coffee and related products in retail outlets nationwide. This strategic…
Read MoreLithia & Driveway (LAD) Announces Chief Operating Officer Transition
MEDFORD, Ore., April 15, 2025 /PRNewswire/ — Lithia & Driveway (NYSE: LAD) has announced today that Adam Chamberlain will transition from his current role as Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer effective June 1, 2025 to join Mercedes-Benz as CEO of Mercedes-Benz USA. “We are incredibly grateful for Adam’s leadership as our Chief Operating Officer and the value he brought to…
Read MoreCésar E. Chávez Leadership Conference returns to SOU
Southern Oregon University’s Youth Programs department brought local high school students to the university campus recently for the César E. Chávez Leadership Conference, which began at SOU in 2012 to celebrates the late civil rights leader’s heritage and teach young people to carry on his legacy of leadership. Last month’s 14th annual César E. Chávez…
Read MoreUnorthodox path: recent SOU graduate bound for Oxford
(Ashland, Ore.) — Achieving success wasn’t the issue for Taran Cross. He had risen to the position of vice president with a Medford-based healthcare technology company, despite dropping out of college soon after he began back in 2007. But he had unfinished business and higher ambitions. “I dreamed of going to Oxford as a kid…
Read MoreNew Study Illuminates Business Expansion Dynamics in Oregon
A recent study conducted by Business Oregon, in collaboration with Oregon Business & Industry and the University of Oregon, sheds light on the factors influencing business expansion decisions within the state. The research introduces a “push, pull, and anchor” framework to categorize elements that affect whether businesses choose to grow in Oregon or elsewhere. What…
Read MoreOregon’s Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) Program Announces Entities that are Prequalified to Apply for Grants Starting April 22, 2025
Oregon will invest $689 million from federal BEAD funding to provide all unserved and underserved Oregonians with access to affordable, high-speed, reliable broadband. This milestone signals the beginning of the Scoring Phase, which will run from April 22 through May 22, 2025 for prequalified applicants. On March 14, 2025, the BEAD program closed its Subgrantee…
Read MoreOregon’s Innovation Strategy Aims to Counter Workforce Crunch
Across the United States, a demographic shift is quietly reshaping the economy—and Oregon is no exception. With baby boomers retiring in record numbers, the state faces a dual challenge: a shrinking pool of experienced workers and growing demand for services, particularly in health care. This wave of retirements is leaving behind a talent gap that’s…
Read MoreOregon’s Trade Patterns
by Damon Runberg, Business Oregon Economist There has been a lot of extra attention on Oregon trade in the last few months. To get a better understanding of the importance of trade to Oregon’s economy and how future trade wars may impact the state, let’s look at trade patterns over the last few years. In…
Read MoreSpotlight: Oregon Trade and Tariff Impacts
Trade in Oregon Trade is a critical component to Oregon’s economy and the state’s businesses. By one measure, our economy’s reliance on trade is the sixth largest in the U.S., in terms of export value as portion of state GDP. Oregon also has the sixth highest rate of exports per capita in the U.S. Oregon’s leadership in trade is due to many…
Read MoreFocus on Manufacturing : NIC Industries
NIC Industries, Inc., headquartered in White City, Oregon, is a prominent manufacturer of advanced coatings, distributing its products to nearly 90 countries worldwide. Established in 1984, the company has evolved into one of the largest privately owned enterprises in Southern Oregon and ranks among the top 25 paint and coating manufacturers in the United States.…
Read MoreSouthern Oregon’s Housing Crunch: A Growing Threat to Our Workforce and Local Economy
Southern Oregon’s Housing Crunch: A Growing Threat to Our Workforce and Local Economy In Southern Oregon, a healthy housing market is critical to sustaining our communities, supporting local businesses, and attracting a stable workforce. But as rental and homeownership costs soar across the state, Southern Oregon is not immune. The region is experiencing a tightening…
Read MoreOregon’s Multiple Jobholders in 2024
by Anna Johnson, Senior Economic Analyst, Oregon Employment Department April 8, 2025 In 2024, 127,000 Oregonians held more than one job in addition to their primary job and were considered multiple jobholders. The multiple jobholding rate – the proportion of multiple jobholders among all employed workers 16 years and older – was 6.0%, a continued increase…
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