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Pictured Left to Right: Nissan President and CEO Carlos Ghosn, Gov. Phil Bredesen and Dan Gaudette, Sr. VP of North American Manufacturers and Quality Assurance for Nissan North America

Economic development types know a company’s choice of where to relocate can to some degree boil down to whether or not the CEO’s spouse wants to move there.

Which in retrospect makes Gov. Phil Bredesen’s thoughtfulness in having a one-of-its-kind African Violet named in honor of Rita Ghosn, the wife of Nissan Motor Co. President and CEO Carlos Ghosn, such a shrewd maneuver. Genetically engineered by world-renowned Nashville-based Holtkamp Greenhouses, “The Rita” was presented to Mrs. Ghosn, an avid gardener, during a Middle Tennessee trip in 2004. Reminded of the gift, Bredesen grins and laughs. But in fact, it was Bredesen’s recent work in spearheading a sweeping new business recruitment incentive structure for Tennessee that played a greater role in sealing Nissan North America’s headquarters relocation to Middle Tennessee.

In announcing his company’s plans in November, Carlos Ghosn credited Tennessee’s “favorable business, legal and taxation climate.” But as with all relocations, incentives played a part. Asked what incentives the state granted, Bredesen referenced the standard package, but added that additional new incentives passed by the legislature in 2004 also played a key role.

Those under-publicized incentives, part of Bredesen’s “Jobs Package,” were in retrospect clearly a prime mover in securing Nissan. And though for political reasons key lawmakers are reluctant to acknowledge the fact on the record, they readily confess on background that the legislation passed with the promise of Nissan’s relocation in mind.

Highlights include a per-employee relocation voucher that could be valued at over $60 million. An amended headquarters tax credit allowing Nissan a reduction in state sales tax from 7% to 0.5% on building materials could shave nearly $6 million off the cost of Nissan’s proposed $70 million offices. Ghosn linked that incentive to company performance when he said an “attractive new work environment” would help Nissan “nurture creativity and innovation,” key components to survival in a “fiercely competitive” auto industry. All told, the new incentives could be valued at more than $200 million over 20 years. Clearly the days of basic incentives packages for infrastructure and employee training are gone in Tennessee. Though written with Nissan in mind, the credit, or parts of it, could apply to future headquarters recruitment. Bredesen described the Nissan coup as “a hunting license” for similar corporations. Multiple sources tell Business Tennessee that candidates being courted by state and Nashville officials are Chicago-based insurance giant CNA and Philadelphia-based cable giant Comcast, a company currently in competition with its home city over the delivery of broadband services. feedback: ruble@businesstn.com

Asurion, provider of mobile phone protection and roadside assistance for wireless customers, announced plans to merge with a subsidiary of publicly traded Kansas City-based DST Systems. Once complete, DST will own 35% of the combined company. Asurion’s name and Nashville headquarters will remain in place.

Clarcor announced plans to purchase Mineola, N.Y.-based Martin Kurz, a privately owned maker of porous metal laminates for use in filtration products. Terms were not disclosed. Martin Kurz brands include Dynapore and Foil-Mesh. Clarcor manufactures mobile, industrial and environmental filtration products and consumer and industrial packaging products.

Television network Great American Country (GAC) and the Grand Ole Opry, owned by Gaylord Entertainment Co., signed a multi-year agreement extending GAC’s broadcast rights to the Grand Ole Opry Live. Fast growing GAC, which recently relocated to Nashville from Denver, Colo., added 11.3 million subscribing households from October 2004 to October 2005 and now boasts 40 million subscribing households nationwide. GAC is a property of Knoxville-based Scripps Networks.

Nashville-based independent country label Koch Records, home to such artists as Charlie Daniels, Cledus T. Judd and Robert Earl Keen, was shuttered. The closure comes four months after Koch Entertainment was sold for $80 million to Toronto-based ROW Entertainment Income Fund, Canada’s largest wholesaler of CDs and DVDs.

KraftCPAs purchased 40% of Axis Accounting Systems. Terms were not disclosed. Kraft began supplying clients to 11-member Axis when it decided to halt accounting software implementation service in 2003. Axis will maintain its name and current West End location.

Louisiana-Pacific Corp. signed a deal to sell its vinyl siding business to KP Building Products, a wholly owned affiliated of Montreal-based Kaycan Ltd. Terms were not disclosed.

Louisville, Ky.-based NTS Realty Holdings signed a deal with Norcross, Ga.-based Schaedle Worthington Hyde Properties to buy The Grove at Richland and The Grove at Whitworth, apartment complexes on West End Avenue, for a combined $90 million. It was the largest Nashville-area real estate deal in 2005.

Investars, a New York-based research performance measurement company, ranked New Constructs the #1 firm in stock picking among all U.S. research firms over the past four years. During that time, New Constructs posted an annualized gain of 16.62%. New Constructs outperformed firms including Goldman Sachs and Citigroup.

Nissan Motor Co. announced plans to relocate its North American headquarters from Los Angeles to Williamson County. The company will build a new $70 million headquarters. Until construction is completed, the company will lease 240,000 square feet in the BellSouth building in downtown Nashville. Nissan will employ 1,300 locally. Company officials expect more than 50% of the California employee base to relocate.

Ozburn-Hessey Logistics (OHL) announced a deal with Zildjian, a worldwide manufacturer of cymbals, drumsticks and other percussion products, to distribute the company’s products throughout North America. It marks the first time Zildjian has outsourced any portion of its supply chain process. OHL also recently inked a warehousing and transportation scheduling deal with The Scotts Co., a subsidiary of The ScottsMiracle-Gro Co.

Mayor Bill Purcell announced a Memorandum of Understanding for the development of the old Nashville Thermal Transfer Plant site into an 11,000-seat downtown baseball stadium for the Nashville Sounds minor league baseball team. The project also includes a privately funded, mixed-use development on the Cumberland River. Under the agreement, the Sounds would obtain private financing for construction of the $43 million ballpark to be leased to the Sounds under a 30-year lease.

Fuel Injection

Of the $9.35 million reported as invested statewide by venture capitalists in the third quarter—

$3.5 million 4Surgical Health Group (Brentwood) $3 million 4NeoSpine (Nashville) $2.5 million 4Ramsafe Technologies (Oak Ridge) $250,000 4PerfectServe (Knoxville) $100,000 4Smart Furniture (Chattanooga)

Source: MoneyTree Survey, a partnership of PricewaterhouseCoopers, Thomson Venture Economics and the National Venture Capital Association

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