CLAYTON 鈥 A former Anheuser-Busch president who was a key player in efforts to keep the National Football League鈥檚 Rams from leaving 蜜芽传媒 is bringing a new company headquarters to Clayton.
Former A-B President Dave Peacock, known locally for the many roles he has held in the local business community, became chief executive officer at Irvine, California-based Advantage Solutions in February.
He said the company, founded on the West Coast 36 years ago, was looking for a new home base farther east, closer to many of its clients.
The firm provides a wide range of administrative, marketing and sales services for retailers and brands and has a greater density of employees around, for instance, Minneapolis-based Target, Cincinnati-based Kroger and Bentonville, Arkansas-based Walmart.
Over the next few months, Advantage will settle into a new corporate headquarters in downtown Clayton. Senior leaders will not be required to relocate here but will be given the option.
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鈥淚 think it sends the signal that 蜜芽传媒 is a city that鈥檚 on the move; it鈥檚 a city that鈥檚 attractive,鈥 Peacock said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 a city of possibility.鈥
The Fortune 1,000 company has 75,000 employees worldwide 鈥 around 450 of them in the 蜜芽传媒 region. After the headquarters move, the company will likely do some local hiring in areas such as finance, human resources and IT.
The company did consider other locations, Peacock said. But 蜜芽传媒 was an affordable option and central to many of the firm鈥檚 clients.
鈥淭here is a lot to offer in 蜜芽传媒. And a lot of potential,鈥 Peacock said.
For a region that has suffered the losses of company headquarters through acquisitions, bankruptcies and other manner of corporate reorganizations, the area has welcomed its selection as a home base for businesses like the automation company Emerson and agriculture giant Bunge.
In 2019, Bunge decided to move its global headquarters from White Plains, New York, to Chesterfield. Earlier this year, Emerson elected to keep its headquarters in the region with a move from Ferguson to Clayton 鈥 though the decision followed a three-month review process, and the company made clear that its leaders had seriously considered leaving.
Greater 蜜芽传媒 Inc. CEO Jason Hall said that taken together with other recent wins, the Advantage move is a sign of resurgence for the area.
鈥淚t is undeniable, from my perspective,鈥 he said. 鈥淚t is rare that a Fortune 1,000 company moves.鈥
Particularly for publicly traded companies, he added, these decisions are not made easily.
鈥淚鈥檇 put this high on the list of accomplishments for the region,鈥 Hall said.
Peacock, after leaving Anheuser-Busch, was appointed by former Gov. Jay Nixon to co-chair the task force to keep the Rams from leaving the 蜜芽传媒 area. He went on to become part of the effort to attract a Major League Soccer team.
In 2017, he was appointed president and chief operating officer of the Maryland Heights-based grocery chain Schnuck Markets Inc. In 2021, he left Schnucks to become COO at Continental Grain, the New York-based investment firm.
He invested in Crushed Red, a fast-casual restaurant chain with locations in Missouri and Colorado, and founded Vitaligent, a franchise that owned dozens of Jamba Juice stores. (He sold Vitaligent in January 2022).
Advantage was founded in 1987 by a former Vons executive. Last year, it reported just over $4 billion in revenues.
Peacock said Advantage will take about 6,000 square feet on part of a floor at the Commerce Bank Tower 鈥 a relatively small footprint 鈥 at the corner of Forsyth Boulevard and Meramec Avenue. (For comparison, Emerson is leasing 104,000 square feet across the street.)
Given how dispersed the company鈥檚 workforce is, Peacock said, it鈥檚 preferable to keep a modest permanent office and rent out other, smaller spaces as needed.
鈥淚t鈥檚, for us, a better way to work,鈥 he said. 鈥淒on鈥檛 take up a huge footprint. Take up the right amount of space, and then use other spaces 鈥 which generates economic activity 鈥 to scale up when you need to.鈥
Dave Peacock has been president of Schnuck Markets Inc. since 2017. This fall he's taking on another title as a top executive at the New York-based food service and production investment firm Continental Grain. Austin Huguelet sits down with him to discuss what he's learned in his decades of experience and what the future looks like for the city.
