GOED board hears four company expansion pitches as Q1 metrics show slower wins and jobs

Governor Joe Lombardo convened the Nevada Governor's Office of Economic Development (GOED) board on May 8, 2025, where company representatives from CITEX (Saipec) International, Dealer Tire, NeuroGum and Tensorwave presented planned Nevada expansions that together promise capital investment and new jobs, and staff outlined a Q1 metrics report showing fewer wins, lower two-year job commitments and smaller near-term investment totals than the same period last year.

The presentations came during the agenda item for director approvals and introductions. Tom Burns, GOED executive director, introduced the companies and asked presenters to describe plans and answer board questions. Heather Rose introduced Saipec International (also referenced as CITEX International), saying, "The company will be investing almost $15,000,000 in capital equipment in the first 5 years and hire at least 10 employees. The first 2 years of job creation will offer an average wage of $44.50." Founder Mike Berruto said the firm is relocating manufacturing and distribution from California to an 82,000-square-foot facility in the Reno-Tahoe industrial center and expects manufacturing to begin in November 2025.

Heather Brown of the Las Vegas Global Economic Alliance (LVGEA) introduced Dealer Tire’s application for a package that includes sales-and-use tax abatement, modified business tax abatement and personal property tax abatement. Brown told the board, "Dealer Tire will have a capital investment of $2,300,000. They will create 18 new jobs within the first 24 months of operation at an average wage of $35.56 an hour." Dealer Tire’s Jerry Holman said the company is setting up a Las Vegas hub to serve western U.S. dealership networks and had already begun receiving inventory into the identified 116,000-square-foot facility.

Also presented by Brown, NeuroGum requested expansion incentives with a capital equipment investment of $295,000 and a commitment to create 32 jobs within 24 months at an average wage of $40.38, Brown said. CEO Kent Yoshimura described NeuroGum as a producer of functional chewing gum and mints and said current manufacturing is in Canada; the company is pursuing distribution and eventual manufacturing operations in Southern Nevada.

Tensorwave (sometimes rendered "Tenser Wave" in meeting remarks), introduced by Brown and represented by co-founder Peter Tomasek, requested sales-and-use, modified-business and personal-property tax abatements for a Las Vegas headquarters. Brown summarized: "Tensorwave will have a capital equipment investment of a million dollars. They will create 60 new jobs within the first 24 months of operation at an average wage of $58 an hour." Tomasek said the current application covers a headquarters; the company intends to return to GOED later with a separate data-center application.

Those company presentations prompted brief board questions about facility size, the timing of manufacturing, and community and workforce ties (for example, Tensorwave’s commitment that employees interested in leadership must live in Southern Nevada). Several presenters described ongoing partnerships with local universities and workforce programs.

The board also reviewed GOED’s Q1 metrics presentation by Steve Sheets, GOED research manager. Sheets reported 10 “wins” in Q1 2025, down from 11 in the comparable quarter last year, and said the 51 committed jobs in two years and 261 five-year buildout jobs represent a marked decline versus the same period in 2024. Sheets highlighted that the average hourly wage for the quarter was $33.61, higher than the statewide average of $32.51, but that total assist-company committed investment for the 10 companies was $84.3 million, lower than $322 million in Q1 2024 (noting that two large abatements last year were high-investment data centers).

Board members and staff debated causes and responses. Commissioner Deborah Jacob said, "I'm not gonna sugarcoat this. I'm disappointed in the performance." Sheets and Director Burns framed the results in the context of a more uncertain national and international market, citing withdrawals of several prospective companies in recent weeks and larger geopolitical and tariff-related headwinds. Burns told the board, "We over the summer, we will be updating the state plan," and said GOED will present proposals to the board in August to reflect current tools and market conditions.

Board members also discussed common reasons prospective firms did not land in Nevada, which GOED staff said include lack of shovel-ready sites, local permitting and zoning challenges, niche workforce availability for specific occupations, and broader economic uncertainty. Sheets noted anecdotal input that paid-family medical leave considerations have influenced some prospect decisions.

Votes at a glance: the board approved the February 6, 2025 meeting minutes by voice vote with no recorded opposition; it approved the appointment and reappointment of three directors and one new director to the Nevada Battle Born Growth board (motion moved and seconded; voice vote; no nays recorded); and the board approved adjournment at the meeting close.

The meeting also included two procedural notes: agenda item 5a was deferred to a later meeting, and staff said members will be asked whether they prefer electronic delivery of future board packets. Burns and staff announced that GOED will attend SelectUSA and that the Battle Born Growth venture program has surpassed $11 million invested in startups since October 2022.

The board did not take formal abatement votes on the four company introductions during this meeting; the companies presented information for director-level review and to answer board questions. Director Burns said several of the director-level approvals are handled administratively and that companies will return for additional approvals if/when required.

GOED staff will return to the board with a refreshed state plan and proposals over the summer and continue outreach at the SelectUSA conference and with regional partners.