Coty to lease 5,500 sq. ft. in Cumberland

CUMBERLAND – The Economic Development Foundation of Rhode Island Inc. today announced that global beauty-products company Coty Inc. has signed a lease on 5,500 square feet in the Cumberland Commerce Center.

Coty has taken space in Building II at the Commerce Center, where it expects to begin operations this May. Based in New York City, the company has manufacturing and research and development facilities in the United Kingdom, Spain, France, Monaco and the United States.

“Coty is very excited about opening a satellite office within the Highland Corporate Park/Cumberland that will be dedicated to better servicing our customer CVS [Caremark Inc.],” Karen Combest, vice president of sales for Coty Beauty USA, said in a statement today. “We have been working with EDFRI on this project for the past four months, and have been extremely pleased with both the negotiation process and services offered. The partnership spirit was apparent from the first meeting.”

Marcel A. Valois, chairman of the EDFRI, welcomed the company to the Cumberland Commerce Center. “Coty is a recognized global leader in their industry,” he said, and it “joins a prestigious list of quality companies that have selected the Highland Corporate Park / Cumberland” for their new facilities.

The news was greeted with enthusiasm by state and local officials.

“In this time of high unemployment in Rhode Island and local budget constraints, it is very important to Cumberland to have a new business locate in our community,” said Cumberland Mayor Daniel J. McKee.

“We are very pleased to welcome Coty Inc. to Rhode Island,” said J. Michael Saul, interim executive director of the R.I. Economic Development Corporation (EDC). “Coty will be a great addition to the already robust consumer goods industry in the state, [and] the Highland Corporate Park is a perfect fit for Coty,” he said. “We are thrilled that Coty will expand their footprint, and look forward to working with the EDFRI to support Coty’s continued growth in Rhode Island.”

The Cumberland Commerce Center – located within the EDFRI’s Highland Corporate Park, a 240-acre technical, manufacturing and office park at the Cumberland-Woonsocket line (READ MORE) – encompasses three buildings totaling 78,000 square feet of flexible space, the developer said. The first, constructed last year, “is leased in its entirety to Neurotech Pharmaceuticals,” the EDFRI said. The second is nearing completion, according to Scott A. Gibbs, the EDFRI’s president, who indicated the development agency is now working with several pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies that also may lease space in Building II.

CVS Caremark (NYSE: CVS), which has its corporate headquarters on the Woonsocket side of the Highland Corporate Park, last summer announced plans to expand its presence with the construction of two new buildings (READ MORE), now planned to total about 340,000 square feet.

The Economic Development Foundation of Rhode Island Inc. (EDFRI) – owner and developer of Highland Corporate Park – is a nonprofit economic development corporation committed to the creating local jobs by attracting and retaining businesses. Its core business is real estate development. Additional information is available at www.edf-ri.com.

Coty Inc., founded in 1904, manufactures a wide range of fragrance, cosmetics, toiletries, skin care and personal-care products for the global market. Based in New York City, it employs more than 8,500 people worldwide. For more information, go to www.coty.com.