New Jersey bound: Volvo going back to the Garden State
After years of hanging out in the California sun, Volvo is headed back to Jersey. The move comes as Ford is nearly finished selling its Jaguar and Land Rover brands, which means the Blue Oval no longer has enough tenants to justify paying for a facility in SoCal. Ford's Swedish brand is going to re-merge its living quarters with its service center in Rockleigh, NJ, and Dearborn will save plenty of cash as a result.
One interesting aspect of the move is the impact it will have on Volvo's workforce. Nissan lost quite a few of its people when it moved to Tennessee, and with a drastic move from California to New Jersey, we imagine there are quite a few Californians uninterested in living the Jersey lifestyle.
[Source: The Car Connection]
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
Seoultrain 2:14PM (3/08/2008)
i grew up pretty close to rockleigh, and it's pretty close to New York City (20 min), so SoCal to NYC is a viable change. It's not in the middle of bf nowhere.
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geo.stewart 3:21PM (3/08/2008)
I'm guessing the whole SoCal design fad is officially dead now.
iQuack 2:17PM (3/08/2008)
".......and with a drastic move from California to New Jersey, we imagine there are quite a few Californians uninterested in living the Jersey lifestyle."
Uh, could there be ANY "lifestyle" in New Jersey?;-).
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iQuack 2:17PM (3/08/2008)
".......and with a drastic move from California to New Jersey, we imagine there are quite a few Californians uninterested in living the Jersey lifestyle."
Uh, could there be ANY "lifestyle" in New Jersey?;-).
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Peter Krugman 2:42PM (3/08/2008)
Pls, New Jersey has some VERY nice areas. M Douglas and Mrs. Zeta Jones have a house in my town and they chose to have their kids here, rather than California. I visit LA once a year for wk and you couldn't get me to move for less than double my current salary.
iQuack 2:49PM (3/08/2008)
Enjoy! Just a Californian joking here, of course.
Edsel 5:28PM (3/08/2008)
I think comedian, Joe Piscopo defined N.J. for many of us Boomers with his infamous, and quickly quashed & buried, SNL Paramus skit.
HotRodzNKustoms 2:18PM (3/08/2008)
How will this effect Cars and Coffee? Is Mazda still staying put?
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rbl3 3:06PM (3/08/2008)
Mercedes-Benz USA and BMW USA are both located in New Jersey as well. New Jersey and Connecticut are the two wealthiest states in the country, and there are many posh areas.
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Duncan 3:07PM (3/08/2008)
usually when companies do this they know they're going to lose a bunch of their employees, and guess what, that's part of the reason.
You make good offers to your key personnel to make the move, including relocation assistance, and then you take everyone who had a bad performance review and offer them jack.
You kill two birds with one stone: you get layoffs without telling everyone that you're laying people off, and you get to move to cheaper digs.
It's not just Volvo that's getting out of SoCal either, the SoCal auto industry is going the way of the SoCal Aerospace industry.
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Rightsider 3:15PM (3/08/2008)
What a dumb ass article. Please, do us a big favor and stay in SoCal and continue to enjoy your so-called "lifestyle". Maybe you can get a job at the local In-N-Out. There is a reason why it's so expensive to live in and around NYC, because it is the center of the universe. Real estate values have plummeted in SoCal whereas they have remained stable in NYC. We can afford the prices because we command higher incomes. NJ is the second wealthiest state in the nation by income whereas CA is the eighth. We have seasons, they way it's supposed to be. Snow for xmas, we go to the beach in the summer. And by the way way, Ford is saving money by consolidating thier business, not by saving on a cost of living basis - next time, get your facts straight before you attempt to write an article. . .
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Rick 8:37PM (3/08/2008)
Well then, here's hoping your 'center of the universe' floods out at some near future date with all the rising ocean levels. Enjoy 'swimming with the fishies'.
300Kid 10:36AM (3/10/2008)
Um, last I checked CA was all along the water as well, those rising sea levels will get you too. I really don't get why everyone hates NJ. And all the predictable, corny jokes normally come from people who've never even been there. NJ has many upscale, beautifully manicured suburban areas as well as farms. Sure it has Newark also, but CA has Compton and hell even Motor City/Detroit, MI is the most dangerous in the country. Also, NJ is extremely accessible to NYC which is great and you don't pump your own gas!
sean 3:36PM (3/08/2008)
I have met more hicks from So. cal than I care to remember..hey im midwestern and east coast folks are def. more in touch with reality. maybe this will help Volvo......
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se95 3:37PM (3/08/2008)
New Jesey is a great place to live... a beautiful shoreline and located right outside New York City.
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Larry 3:45PM (3/08/2008)
Cost of living will at least be cheaper.
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Tool 3:54PM (3/08/2008)
If Jersey is good enough for The Sopranos, it's good enough for Volvo.
Tony certainly has a great lifestyle living there . . . don't stop believing . . . [fade to black]
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Vincenzo 5:02PM (3/08/2008)
Shouldn't Volvo's designers belong to Sweden?
Yes, Sweden is a socialist country, nobody wants to study and work hard.
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Teddy 5:07PM (3/08/2008)
@geo.steward
Yeah, the SoCal design fad should end, just look at what Acura's design center is giving us.
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Neil 5:33PM (3/08/2008)
lol I live in Rockleigh
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