Chiquita Brands International, which moved its headquarters from Cincinnati to Charlotte, N.C., in 2012, announced last week that it would close its Charlotte office in the wake of a recent purchase by Brazilian companies. The
Charlotte Business Journal reported Jan. 14 that Chiquita's CEO informed his 320 Charlotte-based employees that morning that the office would be closing as the company is taken private by its new owners.
Chiquita left downtown Cincinnati in 2012 after being
courted by Charlotte, which pledged $23 million in local and state incentives. According to the newspaper, Chiquita has collected about $2.5 million of those inducements so far and said it would repay $1 million.
Charlotte Mayor Dan Clodfelter said he hoped the impacted Chiquita employees would stay in town and find other work: "I also want to encourage local employers to consider the impacted employees and their families, as many of them seek other job opportunities in our community."
Chiquita was based in Cincinnati from 1987 until 2012, the first 15 years under the control of majority owner Carl Lindner Jr.
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