News and Announcements
Corning Expansion Brings $585 Million Investment to Wilmington Fiber Plant
October 21, 2026
Will create 414 jobs at the company’s longtime manufacturing site
October 21, 2026 (Wilmington, N.C.) – Corning Incorporated (NYSE: GLW), the world’s leading innovator in glass science and optical physics, will invest $585 million at its Wilmington campus, where it will add 414 jobs to its local workforce of about 1,000. The New York-based company first arrived in the city 60 years ago and has grown its site here into one of the world’s largest optical ... Continue Reading
WBD Welcomes New Board Members
WBD’s leadership ranks have always read like a Who’s Who of influential business names, and this summer saw fresh perspective added to the WBD board of directors. New board members include two prominent players in Wilmington’s business community: Jeremy Blair and Steve Risley.
Risley is the co-founder of Risley Padula Construction. In 2023, the company and its sister firm, Coastal Millwork Supply Company, announced plans to become Blue Clay Business Park’s first tenant. The two homegrown ... Continue Reading
County-Owned Park Gets Industrial Infrastructure – and a New Name
New Hanover County’s Holly Shelter Business Park has been renamed to the I-40 Coastal Commerce Park and is set to get its first infrastructure in the coming months.
The New Hanover County Board of Commissioners unanimously approved a $6.5 million infrastructure construction contract and renaming earlier this summer. Once developed, the 300-acre master-planned industrial park is expected to accommodate more than three million square-feet of industrial space.
In May 2023, the county approved a development agreement with ... Continue Reading
Coming Together: Polyhose and Protocase Ink Deal
Two companies recruited in recent years by Wilmington Business Development will work together to support each other’s growth. Polyhose, which continues to expand at Pender Commerce Park, is now leasing a portion of its building to Protocase as the latter company scales its Greater Wilmington presence.
“Both companies, in their unique ways, have been dream clients for us,” says Cliff Pyron, Director of Business Development at WBD. “We are proud of the relationships we build with ... Continue Reading
Focus Shifts to Continued Build-Out at Wilmington Trade Center
With Amazon’s new operations filling out Pender Commerce Park, attention is now turning to Wilmington Trade Center, a 212- acre master-planned industrial park in Greater Wilmington that is expected to grow to 3.3 million square feet of Class A industrial facilities at full buildout. Edgewater Ventures and McKinley Building Company continue to advance Phase II of the project, a 185-acre expansion of the park located on U.S. Highway 421 near I-140 in New Hanover County. ... Continue Reading
WBD Celebrates 70th Anniversary: Looking Forward, Looking Back
In 1956, Elvis Presley’s “Heartbreak Hotel” spent eight weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard charts. Soviet tanks squashed the Hungarian Revolution. Notre Dame quarterback Paul Hornung won the Heisman Trophy. Actor Tom Hanks was born. It was also the year Wilmington civic and business leaders converged to create The Committee of 100. Today, that organization is proudly known as Wilmington Business Development (WBD).
Founders agreed that the organization’s mission would center on aggressively recruiting business ... Continue Reading
Amazon Opens Cape Fear Region’s First Fulfillment Center, Bringing 1,000+ New Jobs to Wilmington
October 5, 2026
Next-generation robotics facility and adjacent delivery station mark Amazon's first direct-to-consumer operations in southeastern North Carolina
WILMINGTON, N.C. – October 5, 2026 – Today, Amazon celebrated the grand opening of its first-ever operations facility in the Cape Fear region, hosting state and local leaders, including Secretary of Commerce Lee Lilley, North Carolina Senate Majority Leader Michael Lee, Pender County Commission Chair Randy Burton, and Wilmington Business Development CEO Scott Satterfield, at a ribbon-cutting ceremony and behind-the-scenes ... Continue Reading
Protocase Firm Focus Growth Here
August 13, 2026
Credit: Wilmington Biz
By Emma Dill
In five years, the Proto companies, which include Protocase and subsidiaries 45Drives, Protospace Mfg and Protomentum, plan to generate $1 billion in annual revenue, according to Protocase co-founder Doug Milburn.
Much of that growth is slated to happen in Wilmington.
“All of our growth in the near future will be focused here,” said Milburn, who also serves as Protocase’s vice president and board chairman. “We want to give enough headroom that ideally all ... Continue Reading
Amazon Begins Hiring As Local Facilities Near Completion
Credit: Wilmington Biz
By Emma Dill
Amazon began hiring this summer for its Wilmington-area fulfillment center and plans to start hiring for a nearby delivery station in the coming weeks.
The robotics fulfillment center is expected to create more than 1,000 full-time jobs, while officials have said the delivery station could create more than 100 full-time positions. Both facilities remain on track to open in time for the holiday season, according to Danny Vivenzio, an Amazon spokesperson.
The company ... Continue Reading
Beverage Distributor Plans To Grow Footprint In Pender Commerce Park
July 13, 2026
Credit: Wilmington Biz
By Emma Dill
Coastal Beverage Company plans to expand its Pender Commerce Park facility, with more than 100,000 square feet of new warehouse space.
The proposed 104,000-square-foot expansion is scheduled to go before Pender County’s Technical Review Committee on Wednesday. In addition to growing the building to nearly 258,000 square feet – the size of nearly 4.5 football fields – the project would also add several loading docks and service road access, according to site ... Continue Reading
