Whiting & Davis | Rhode Island Commerce

Whiting & Davis

The Company

Whiting & Davis, LLC, founded in Massachusetts in 1876, manufactures and sells metal mesh fabrics, jewelry, fashion accessories and safety equipment. The company produces specialty mesh fabrics for clients in the jewelry, clothing, and shoe businesses, including Tiffany & Co., Swarovski, Donna Karan, Alexander Wang, and others. Its architectural fabrics are used by architects and interior designers in window treatments, room dividers, partitions, wall coverings, etc. Whiting & Davis now manufactures safety equipment under its Sigma Protection LLC brand. The company is now concentrating on selling its fine and fashion jewelry straight to customers using its existing online platform and through its first planned brick-and-mortar sales location, which is set to open in 2017 at Patriots Place in Foxborough, MA. Whiting & Davis seeks additional space to reduce outsourcing of finishing steps needed to sell products directly to its customers.

Approved Incentive

Whiting & Davis is proposing to purchase an 18,000-square-foot building in East Providence to relocate its current operations from a leased, 13,000-square-foot, manufacturing facility in Attleboro Falls, MA. The company would bring its 20 existing, full-time employees to the new East Providence location and has committed to maintaining at least 15 full-time employees in Rhode Island for a term of 12 years. The company would be eligible for tax credits for the 15 full-time employees only. The new, Rhode Island, full-time employees will have a median annual salary of $36,889, with actual salaries ranging from $27,434 to $100,000. The Commerce Corporation is recommending awarding Whiting & Davis an estimated $255,221 in tax credits under the Qualified Jobs Incentive Tax Credit Program. Because manufacturing is considered an economically fragile industry, the corporation recommends a reduction in the qualifying wage threshold below Rhode Island’s current area median income of $18.77 per hour.  

Explanation

  • Whiting & Davis is seeking to grow to a larger facility to support additional emphasis on producing customer-ready products which require additional manufacturing steps.
  • The company would invest approximately $55,000 in relocation costs to an 18,000-square-foot building in East Providence.
  • Whiting & Davis will relocate the company’s existing 20 employees to the East Providence facility and commits to maintain at least 15 new, full-time employees under this application.
    • In response, the corporation has negotiated Qualified Jobs Incentive Tax Credits to the company valued at approximately $255,221 for the 15 new jobs.
    • The recommended term of the tax incentive agreement is 10 years, and Whiting & Davis has indicated that it will commit to maintaining the new jobs in Rhode Island for at least the 12 years required.
    • Subject to the award of this incentive package from Rhode Island, Whiting & Davis has agreed to relocate and add the new, full-time positions in Rhode Island.
  • Based on a third-party analysis, over the 12-year period, Rhode Island is projected to realize a projected net increase of $500,000 in personal income, sales and corporate business tax revenues resulting from the new 15 hires, as well as an increase of $1.47 million in Rhode Island’s annual GDP once all 15 hires are in place.

Additional Documentation

Board Resolution icon-pdf Economic Impact Analysis icon-pdf

Media Coverage

PBN: “Commerce RI approves $12.7M in incentives for three Prov. projects” icon

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