Economic Outlook forum projects an uptick in business sales in 2026

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. -- The Right Place economic development organization hosted its annual Economic Outlook forum Thursday morning at the JW Marriott in downtown Grand Rapids.

They gave presentations and projections for the regional, state and national economies in 2026. Fifth Third Bank managing director and chief economist Jeff Korzenik delivered the national forecast, W.E. Upjohn Institute President Michael Horrigan gave the state forecast, and Right Place President Randy Thelen provided the regional economic forecast.

Andria Romkema is the senior vice president of Business Development at The Right Place. She told WOOD Radio that the economists are confident now that businesses will be making more capital expenditures and doing more hiring.

"So, our business leaders are expecting some increase in sales to come in here," Romkema said. "That's great news, because back this spring there was a lot of activity and proposals, but nothing signed.

“Greater Grand Rapids continues to grow, fueled by young talent and an increasingly diverse community. Our region remains competitive across our key industries while offering a more affordable cost of living than many comparable markets nationwide," Thelan said. “But there’s more to do. We need to keep pushing forward with a growth mindset to ensure long-term prosperity for our region.”

The Right Place's development team meets with more than 600 business leaders each year to speak with them about the challenges they face. Romkema said that has changed.

"Now, companies are seeing those sales and we're optimistic this is going to mean they're going to have the confidence to start making those capital expenditures and increasing their hiring in the coming months," she said.

More specifics were provided in a Clark Communications news release about the Economic Outlook forum and the 2026 projections:

2025 Right Place Accomplishments

In 2025, the organization’s work has resulted in:

• Facilitating 19 business expansion and attraction projects.
• Collaborating with our partner counties with events and job creation.
• Conducting 600 business retention visits.
• Hosting more than 15,000 Tech Week attendees and a sold-out Tech Week Kickoff featuring Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak
• Hosting a sold-out Developer Day with 200+ developers and construction firms.
• Hosting a sold-out Place Matters Summit.
• Hosting six Talent Learning Labs for HR and talent professionals.
• Hosting a sold-out Go Beyond for women in tech.
• Hosting numerous events for its four industry councils (Supply Chain Management Council, Tech Council, Manufacturing Council, and MiDevice) and one cross-council event to facilitate more connections between regional businesses
• Supporting over 650 interns representing 114 universities and 84 companies at Hello West Michigan’s Intern Connect event.
• Publishing four industry research reports: State of the Region, Tech Report, Development Report and Manufacturing Report

During his presentation, Thelen expounded upon The Right Place’s 600 business retention visits. These meetings allowed staff to learn more about existing businesses and engage in dialogue to help ensure their prosperity in the region. The Right Place is often known for helping recruit businesses to the region, but as the figure shows, most of its work is helping existing businesses to grow.

State of the Region Report

After highlighting Right Place's accomplishments, Thelen walked the crowd through its fourth annual State of the Region report. This report is designed to inform the community of key trends impacting the region. It is the result of quantitative and qualitative insights from The Right Place’s economic development work across its 7-county collaborative and economic research performed by its Business Intelligence team. Key 2025 statistics from The Right Place’s State of the Region report include:

People

• 6.2% population growth over the last decade.
• 70.3% of the region’s population in the past year comprised diverse communities.
• 37% have a bachelor’s degree or higher.
• 25% of population is 19 or younger.

 

Place

• 3.1% industrial vacancy rate (compared to 7.6% nationally; lowest among top 50 markets).
• 1.4M SF of industrial space under construction.
• The region’s cost of living index is 7 points below the national average (92.6 vs 100).
• 86,000 more air travelers in the first 3 quarters of 2025 compared to 2024.

 

Prosperity

• Between 603,000 and 605,000 jobs in Greater Grand Rapids in 2025 (data only available through August).
• 1,300 new tech jobs were added in 2025 (nearly 41,000 in total).
• 65% of companies report increased sales. (+6.6% from 2024)
• 43% of companies plan to increase hiring. (-4.4% from 2024)
• 46% of companies plan to expand. (-11.5% from 2024)
• 24% of companies expressed issues with new employee recruiting (-22.6% from 2024)

 

Three-Year Strategic Plan Results

Thelen also provided an update on the organization's progress toward the final year of the 2023-2025 strategic plan. A new 3-year plan will be announced in early 2026. Click here to read the entire current strategic plan. Over the course of the last 3 years, the organization’s work has resulted in:

• 4,153 new and retained jobs against a 3-year goal of 4,000 new and retained jobs.
• $844.2M in new capital investment against a 3-year goal of $550M.
• $487.2M in community development against a 3-year goal of $100M.
• $30.90 average hourly wage against a 3-year goal of $26.50 average wage.*

 

(*This wage goal refers to the hourly rate of jobs created/retained within projects that The Right Place directly works on in its 7-county coverage region.)

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About The Right Place, Inc.

The Right Place, Inc., is a regional nonprofit founded in 1985 with the mission to drive sustainable economic growth and shared prosperity for all in the Greater Grand Rapids Region. The Right Place works to achieve this mission by focusing on three core areas: People, Place, and Prosperity. The Right Place is an Accredited Economic Development Organization (AEDO) as designated by the International Economic Development Council. Find out more by visiting www.rightplace.org and following us on LinkedIn, Facebook, and Instagram.