Business is booming with record-breaking $2.3 billion year for economic development in Brampton

The city is celebrating a record-breaking year that brought big-name companies and more than $2.3 billion in construction value to Brampton.

It’s the second year in a row that the city’s Economic Development Office says Brampton broke the $2 billion mark, thanks in part to some big-name companies using Brampton as a home base.

The numbers come from the city’s latest Economic Development Office update and show a booming year for businesses in Brampton with over $2.3 in construction value – a 25.2 per cent increase in industrial construction since 2022.

A ranking of Canada’s leading tech markets last year found Brampton is near the top of the heap of Canadian cities attracting investors – a stat backed up by city data that shows a more than 13 per cent increase in the number of registered businesses in Brampton last year.

“With a surge in investment, a growing entrepreneurial market and a commitment to fostering growth, we are a beacon of economic prosperity,” Brampton Mayor Patrick Brown said in a statement. “From talented startups to global giants, Brampton is the destination for those wanting to thrive and to innovate.”

Here are some of the economic development highlights in Brampton for 2023:

Lululemon

Canadian athletic wear company Lululemon is bringing a new 1 million-square-foot facility to Brampton at 5525 Countryside Drive. The office and distribution centre will be the company’s largest both in Canada and the U.S., and is expected to bring more than 1,500 jobs to Brampton.

Lululemon was founded in Vancouver with one store in 1998 selling yoga-inspired apparel and now makes athletic wear for running, cycling, training and “most other sweaty pursuits for women and men.” The company had some 650 stores worldwide in 2022.

Alectra

Utility provider Alectra also opened its new state-of-the-art, 215,000 square-foot facility  at 200 Kennedy Road South in Brampton last year bringing hundreds of jobs and workers to Brampton.

The consolidation means some 300 Alectra employees previously operating out of facilities in both Brampton and Mississauga will now work out of the Brampton operations centre.

The massive new facility is also Gold Standard LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certified, incorporating a 500 KW in rooftop solar array, over 25 electric vehicle charging stations, and upgraded air systems that reduce greenhouse gas emissions by some 43 per cent above LEED Gold standards.

Magna

Toronto-based automotive supplier Magna expanded its Ontario operations to include a new $ 265 million EV battery enclosure facility in Brampton. The 490,000-square-foot facility will create approximately 560 new jobs in the city and the surrounding area once the facility is at full production.

Axium Packaging

Axium provides design engineering and tool-building solutions for customers’ packaging needs, including, plastic containers, tubes, caps and high-end decorating services. The company is relocating its Canadian manufacturing facility from Mississauga to Brampton, doubling the size of the workforce that will be employed at the new $80 million facility.

Axium says the new plant is part of the company’s expansion in the North American market and will employ some 250 team members when it opens in July.

Business wasn’t the only part of Brampton booming last year, as the city’s Film & Television Office also had a banner year with some 69 projects filming in the city, bringing in some $281,000 in revenue to city coffers.