WHITE SULPHUR SPRINGS, W.Va. — Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin says the deal bringing a $500 million Procter & Gamble manufacturing plant to Berkeley County got its start during discussions at the Greenbrier Classic a few years ago.
The state Department of Commerce and state Development Office use the PGA event to invite site selectors of large companies to West Virginia for one-on-one meetings. Tomblin said Friday on MetroNews “Talkline” one of those meetings that eventually led to the P&G deal.
“You develop those relationships,” Tomblin said. “They can sit down with the secretary (Commerce Secretary Keith Burdette) and the governor and it builds up that confidence.”
The state spends $1.7 million in connection with the PGA event, including a television commercial scheduled to air as part of the weekend coverage on CBS. Tomblin said the money is a good investment.
“You can have that one-on-one with (the site selectors). You can say ‘We have four great sites here we would like to show you.’ Without that it would be tough to get on the phone with them for five minutes of their time,” Tomblin said.
The state Development Office has hosted a number of receptions at the Greenbrier this week. Tomblin said there’s also been some good networking among small business owners.