Greater Memphis Chamber presents 2025 State of the Economy
MEMPHIS, Tenn. (WMC) - Coming off a record-breaking year for capital investment and low unemployment, Memphis business leaders are looking to carry gains made in 2024 into 2025; that includes shaping Memphis into a potential hub for technology and innovation.
Waddell & Associates Wealth Strategists President & Chief Investment Strategist David Waddell gave the keynote speech and an outlook on the U.S. economy for the year to a crowd of about 100 business leaders at the Greater Memphis Chambers' 2025 State of Economy.
Waddle called Memphis’ economic outlook “high-potential” when asked by a reporter on Monday.
“What we believe is what we end up manifesting. So, if what we believe, if the narratives that we hang on to are, ‘We can’t do that,' and there’s too much crime and here are all the reasons why we can’t be Austin, we can’t be Nashville, we can’t be this, we can’t be that, then that’s exactly who we’re going to be,” said Waddle. “So the first thing we have to do is decide we want to grow and believe we can grow and then go get growth.”
At the end of 2024, Memphis recorded:
- $14.2 billion in capital investment for the year
- More than 3,800 jobs created
- And a 4.3% unemployment rate, equal to about 27,000 Memphians looking for work
That’s just .2% higher than the national average, a trend the Greater Memphis Chamber hasn’t seen in years.
“We want that to be felt by everyone in this community,” said Greater Memphis Chamber President & CEO Ted Townsend. “If we leave any census track or any neighborhood behind with all of this growth, then it doesn’t matter. Yeah, it’s not as meaningful.”
With the world’s largest supercomputer in Southwest Memphis, Townsend says he envisions Memphis as a high-tech manufacturing hub for artificial intelligence, a supply chain for AI.
“If you’re making chips or servers or or cooling systems for data centers, you want to be here in Memphis, Tennessee, because of our pre-existing logistics infrastructure,” said Townsend. “But the fact is that we can get businesses operational very efficiently and we’ve got the power that we can scale as well.”
What about tourism?
The largest hotel in the city, The Sheraton in Downtown Memphis, has a facelift on the way and is set to become a Marriott Hotel after a $150-$175 million renovation.
Memphis Tourism President & CEO Kevin Kane says 375,000 stays in Memphis were at short-term vacation rentals and says the hotel and lodging industry in Memphis generates about $4.2 billion and is expecting to see gains this year.
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