3 min read January 2021 — The vaccine roll will be a major component in stopping the spread of 
COVID-19 and is expected to help stabilize the ongoing health and economic crisis. Though the pandemic challenges abound, Charlotte is uniquely positioned to emerge stronger and potentially better from the pandemic landscape. Charlotte’s robust banking sector, strategic location along the Sun Belt that remains attractive for both investments and talent, and strong private and public partnerships are among the factors spearheading the recovery efforts in the region. 2021 will present its fair share of challenges, yet local leaders are confident the region will continue to provide opportunities for positive economic activity across sectors, they told Invest: Charlotte.
Douglas Hustad, General Manager, Omni Charlotte Hotel
While we look with encouragement toward the deployment of the vaccine, it will
take a few months as its distribution advances to recover consumer confidence on
both the corporate and leisure fronts. We anticipate business travel is not going to
be what it was in 2019. It’s certainly going to take a while for people to build
confidence in business travel. Charlotte has an extremely strong business travel
segment. Getting those companies that have travel bans or have been suggesting
people stay at home to be confident about their associates traveling is going to take
time.
Johno Harris, President, Lincoln Harris
Service has always been at the core of our business, whether that is the corporate service side of the business, management, or development, we strive to service our clients at the highest levels. For 2021, if we can get a vaccine, we believe Charlotte and the Sun Belt are both poised to have a great run for the next five years to ten years.
On the corporate service side of our business, we have to continue to be nimble and flexible to flow evenly with our clients and their needs, which change daily and at a heightened pace. Our main priority is to ensure when their employees return, we are prepared and have in place not only what our clients expect, but more importantly, an environment where people can succeed.
Andrew Moriarty, Managing Principal, Carolinas, Bohler
We continue to see a lot of sizable distribution facilities and pharmaceutical manufacturing assets, specifically in the Triangle area. The life sciences space is also quite active in the same area and we anticipate that to continue for the foreseeable future. All things residential — multifamily and single family for sale or rent — will also continue down a strong demand path. Single family for rent developers are gaining traction and this asset is poised to represent the lion’s share of residential real estate demand. An increasing number of players are looking at single family for rent as a mechanism to develop and invest in the Charlotte region. Those are the market sectors with the most upside for 2021. We also anticipate continuing to see small-site development for automotive-based retail. We will continue to help our clients navigate these trends, and identify and act on opportunities to grow their businesses.
Weston Andress, Regional President for Western Carolinas, PNC
We have learned that technology is going to be a driver for the future. Banking companies have truly become technology companies in many ways. That is going to be a critical component going forward. Financial institutions are going to have to invest in quality technology to compete in this environment. The other part of the future is talent. There is a war for talent in the banking sector that is going to continue. The industry needs highly capable banking talent to manage the technology and client relationships. That is why there is such a migration flow toward Charlotte, because not only is it an attractive place to live, but you also have an attractive pool of talent to fill your ranks.
The banking landscape is becoming increasingly crowded in Charlotte, but PNC has been in business for over 160 years. Part of the reason for our long period of success is our consistency, even through turbulent times, looking after our customers and investing in the communities we serve. Our model has worked quite well here. We are big enough to be able to afford to invest in our business, but we are not so big that we cannot develop personal relationships. It is our main strength here and will continue to be so.
To learn more about our interviewees, visit:
https://www.omnihotels.com/hotels/charlotte
https://www.lincolnharris.com/
https://bohlerengineering.com/
https://www.pnc.com/
COVID-19 and is expected to help stabilize the ongoing health and economic crisis. Though the pandemic challenges abound, Charlotte is uniquely positioned to emerge stronger and potentially better from the pandemic landscape. Charlotte’s robust banking sector, strategic location along the Sun Belt that remains attractive for both investments and talent, and strong private and public partnerships are among the factors spearheading the recovery efforts in the region. 2021 will present its fair share of challenges, yet local leaders are confident the region will continue to provide opportunities for positive economic activity across sectors, they told Invest: Charlotte.
