Wilmington economy saw a shift in the past decade, with 20,000 jobs added during that time

Late last month, Wilmington-based software company Vantaca announced plans to invest $4.9 million and add more than 100 jobs in New Hanover County.

Vantaca's growth follows in the footsteps of other growing services companies. Wilmington-based companies like Live Oak Bank and nCino have flourished in recent years, making companies like Vantaca optimistic about their future growth in the region.

"I've seen over the past 10 or 15 years in Wilmington more and more technology companies and jobs growing here," said Vantaca Chief Executive Officer Ben Currin. "We see ourselves continuing to grow and this is the right place to do it."

Vantaca provides software services that help home owner's associations manage operations. The company was founded in Wilmington in 2016 and has opted to stay in the area even as the number of clients grew from one to more than 100, according to Eric Baxley, the company's chief marketing officer.

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In the last decade, Wilmington's economy has shifted away from a primary focus on tourism toward an emphasis on professional services, according to Adam Jones, the department chair of the Economics and Finance Department at the University of North Carolina Wilmington.

The economy has diversified to include businesses specializing in financial technology, manufacturing, logistics, clinical research, food processing and warehouse and distribution, according to Scott Satterfield, the chief executive officer of Wilmington Business Development.

Close to 20,000 jobs have been added in the Wilmington area over the last 10 years, according to data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Between 2019 and 2020, the area saw a drop in the number of jobs, particularly in the leisure and hospitality sector due to the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, Jones said.

In the Wilmington area, the professional and business services sector has seen the most growth with an approximately 31% increase from 2010 to 2020. The trade, transportation and utilities sector and education and health services sector both saw a roughly 22% increase in the number of jobs over the same period. Between 2010 and 2019, the leisure and hospitality sector also saw a 22% increase in jobs.

The growth in the service sector signals a shift, Jones said.

"Wilmington is making the transition from a beach community small town towards a small city and kind of an urban hub," he said. "You're seeing those office-type jobs that support other businesses starting to grow in the region."

That shift could draw more professionals with high wage jobs to the area, which has the potential to raise housing costs and pump more money into other businesses like local shops and restaurants, Adams said.

Service sector companies need to consider how they can attract new talent, which often involves showing they can offer employees a high quality of life or quality of place, Jones said.

Quality of life along with Wilmington's location on the East Coast and amenities like health care and educational institutions have drawn businesses to the area for years, according to Satterfield.

That rings true for Vantaca. Even as the company has grown, they have chosen to remain in Wilmington because of the lifestyle the area offers. The company also has stayed in Wilmington because of the presence of other technology companies and because it regularly employs graduates of UNC-Wilmington, Baxley said.

Manufacturing is the only sector that saw a decline in jobs over the last 10 years, with a drop of 6.5%.

That drop likely stems from manufacturing companies becoming more efficient and condensing their workforce, Adams said. 

"Manufacturers are always looking to become more efficient," he said. "So they're going to squeeze out labor and automate if they can."

Adams also said that Wilmington hasn't historically had success recruiting big manufacturers to the area. Over the last 10 years, the area has seen growth in the number of small businesses, but there is still more potential for large business recruitment, Jones said.

"We've got a lot of small businesses and we're lacking some of the large employers," he said. "We have a handful of them, but not a lot yet."

Reporter Emma Dill can be reached at 910-343-2096 or edill@gannett.com.