What happened: Grammarly is opening its newest office in Vancouver
Why it matters: It’s among a number of American firms that have been entering the local market on the hunt for tech talent
American tech firm Grammarly Inc. is looking to put its prints on downtown Vancouver.
The company best known for developing a writing app that helps improve digital messages announced Thursday (September 12) the city would be home to its fourth global office.
Grammarly has secured a 3,000-square-foot site on Water Street in Gastown and is currently in the midst of hiring a dozen new workers to fill jobs in frontend and backend engineering, as well as customer service and social media.
“The location is not a coincidence. It is part of our effort to become part of the tech community,” co-founder and head of revenue Max Lytvyn told Business in Vancouver.
Lytvyn, who lives in the city, said he’s witnessed the number of technology leaders and experienced engineers steadily increasing in Vancouver over the years.
And while some American tech firms have set up offices in the city to capitalize on lower wages and more progressive immigration policies, the co-founder said that wasn’t Grammarly’s main consideration.
Instead, he said, it came down to access to talent.
“Many of my friends who are Canadians who are from Vancouver or around the area moved to other places … like Seattle, Bay Area or even Toronto, looking for more interesting companies to work for,” Lytvyn said.
“I hope that Grammarly can be one of such companies that turns this trend around and brings people back to Vancouver.”
The company is among a host of other U.S.-based tech firms that have launched offices in Vancouver in the past year.
Consumer electronics company Tile, Inc. revealed plans in May to hire 20 workers in Vancouver within two years.
The same week Tile announced its expansion plans, Seattle-based technology consulting firm Slalom LLC — employing 6,500 workers globally — announced it was also expanding to the city and hiring tech workers.
A month earlier, Seattle- and Palo Alto-based DataCloud International, Inc. — a mining tech and analytics company — said it was opening an office in Vancouver.
And San Francisco software firm Tigera Inc. kicked off the year in January announcing plans to open a local office.
