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Vital Studios has finalized plans to open a new headquarters at 1802 Sames St. The company is expected to hire 155 people as part of the project. (Jack Jacobs photo)
A tech startup’s move from Austin, Texas to a massive new headquarters in Richmond isn’t happening long enough.
Vital Studios has scrapped plans to move from the Lone Star State to Manchester and bring 155 jobs after announcing plans in partnership with the governor’s office last year.
The company terminated its lease for a 22,000-square-foot space in a former warehouse at 1802 Sames Ave.
Vital CEO Jim Smith said the company anticipates new investment capital will boost its operations as it leases what will be its future home. That investment ultimately did not materialize and he was unable to continue the lease.
“We’ve based every decision we’ve made on contractual covenants,” Smith said in an interview Wednesday.
In the year Founded in Austin in 2018, the company develops new employee training and orientation content for businesses along with augmented reality simulations.
Plans to move the headquarters were announced in early 2021 by former Gov. Ralph Northam’s office.
He plans to invest $6.8 million in the building for studio space, post-production and development offices. At the time of the announcement, the company said it had about 20 employees in the U.S. and internationally and plans to fill 155 jobs at its Manchester headquarters over several years.
Today, the company continues to operate as a remote outfit in Richmond, although it currently has no employees other than Smith.
“It’s pure startup mode, which means fundraising,” Smith said.
The Vytal project was eligible for funding from the Virginia Economic Development Partnership. A spokeswoman, Susan Clark, said last week that the money was not ultimately distributed to the company.
“VEDP has learned from Vytal that it has terminated its lease at 1802 Sames Ave. Based on this information, both Commonwealth Opportunity Fund and Virginia Jobs Investment Program grants have been rescinded, and no incentive payments have been made to the company,” she said in an email.
Will Allen of Manchester-based property firm Harper Associates said new plans were being drawn up for the site.
“Regarding the property, plans are underway to include the 1802 Semes parcel with the recently acquired property, which the amended zoning application generally better aligns with the Richmond 300 plan,” Allen said in an email this week. “As the details of that approach become clear, we look forward to sharing more information.”
Richmond 300 is the city’s long-range growth roadmap. The city council will adopt the plan in late 2020 and is weighing further improvements. The plan’s Vision Pathway 1 focuses primarily on mixed-use development. The property is on the corner of Cowardine Street (Route 1) and Sames Street.
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