New Ross distribution center could bring 1,400 jobs to Randolph County

Ross Stores Inc. plans a regional distribution center that could generate 1,400 new jobs in Randolph County.

The Fortune 500 company, which operates discount retailer Ross Dress for Less, plans to create 852 jobs and build a $450 million distribution center in the Randolph city of Randleman by the end of 2026, according to officials with the state Department of Commerce’s Economic Investment Committee, which met Tuesday to approve an incentives package for the retailer. The project also has the potential to create an additional 550 jobs through a third party, officials said.

The state approved an incentives package valued at $12.9 million, including a jobs grant worth $7.6 million. The jobs grant would be paid to Ross over several years if the company hits employment targets. Over the course of the 12-year term of the grant, the project is estimated to grow the state’s economy by $1.4 billion, state officials said. The company is expected to hire the 852 workers over five years, through 2031.

The state incentives come in addition to city and county incentives totaling about $39.7 million.

The 1.7 million-square-foot southeastern hub would be the ninth distribution center for Ross. The facility, which will would on 330 acres, would be used for warehousing, fulfillment and packing operations, the state said. The company currently employs about 2,150 retail employees in stores throughout the state.

“We are excited about the opportunity to build out a new distribution facility in North Carolina to support our growth initiatives over the long term,” Rob Kummerer, executive vice president of supply chain for Ross Stores, said in a statement.

The company considered another site in South Carolina, where the company already has two distribution centers. State and local officials there also offered the company an incentives package.

The positions in Randolph County are expected to pay an annual average wage of about $46,800 — roughly equal to the county average, according to the state Department of Commerce. The new jobs could create payroll impact of more than $39 million for the region each year, the state said.

“Ross is joining a region of the state that is experiencing rapid growth,” N.C. Commerce Secretary Machelle Baker Sanders said in a statememt.

Randolph and surrounding counties have been a magnet for companies expanding manufacturing and distribution operations. They’ve been attracted in part because of the talent pool and the area’s relatively low land costs, access to north-south and east-west Interstates, as well as incentives offered by state and local officials.

In Guilford and Randolph counties, HondaJet and Toyota have invested in facilities that are expected to add billions of dollars to the state economy and employ thousands of North Carolinians.

In October, Toyota said it would more than double the size of a massive electric vehicle battery factory the automaker has been building in Randolph County. The company’s $14 billion factory, which is between Greensboro and Pittsboro, is expected to eventually employ more than 5,000 people. The state offered hundreds of millions of dollars in incentives for that project — an investment that has spurred residual growth of contractors and services in the area.

A Fujihatsu & Toyotsu Battery Components, a partnership between Fujihatsu Tech America and Toyota Tsusho America, said in February it would create 133 new jobs at a new electric vehicle battery manufacturing facility in the Randolph town of Liberty. FTBC is investing $60 million in the project, which will support Toyota’s battery manufacturing unit.

In neighboring Chatham County, Vietnamese electric vehicle maker VinFast is building a 780,000-square-foot plant, where it plans to create thousands of jobs. In 2022, state officials approved $1.2 billion in incentives for the project, which was estimated to grow the state’s economy by at least $71.59 billion over 32 years. The company has since scaled back its initial plans.