EAST LIVERPOOL, Ohio – True North LLC has experienced double-digit growth every year since CEO Chuck Bailey founded the company in 2012.
That growth created a need for Bailey to relocate his company from its headquarters in Chester, W.Va. And he found the perfect spot across the Ohio River in East Liverpool.
What Bailey is accomplishing in the process of relocating is making large investments in East Liverpool, providing a boost to an area where empty buildings are too common.
When he started True North, Bailey was trying to offer bookkeeping and accounting services to small- and medium-size businesses across the country.
Now True North offers those services as well as revenue cycle management resources to businesses in 43 states, generating nearly $1 billion in annual sales, according to Bailey.
“But the reality is, we are a high-tech data company that brings high-tech services, data management and innovation to the fundamentals of bookkeeping and revenue cycle management that are outdated and in need of tremendous improvement,” he says.
True North has spawned a variety of related businesses, including myFranchise Bookkeeper to help with financials for those who operate franchises, and myCommercial Real Estate Solutions to assist those who manage and lease properties.
Other offshoots provide services such as data hygiene, digital marketing and technical services. Altogether, Drew Dawson, True North director of marketing, says there are eight brands within the company.
Resurgence in East Liverpool
With a decimated pottery industry, a lot of empty buildings and a population that has declined from more than 25,000 in 1955 to less than 10,000 today, East Liverpool has seen better days.
But Bailey is among those who believe a resurgence is on the way. Part of making the city more vibrant is bringing jobs and new life to the buildings downtown, he says.
Bailey started his business in an upstairs bedroom of his home, but for the past seven years the business has operated from a 10,000-square-foot turn-of-the-century home in Chester.
The company quickly outgrew its space. Today more than 45 people work in a space designed for about 30, Bailey says.
To alleviate overcrowding, some employees were moved into a small office in East Liverpool. And now he is working to get everyone under the same roof.
Bailey purchased a 31,000-square-foot building at 119. E. Fifth St. in March for $625,000. But before the company can relocate to the building, which formerly housed the Buckeye Online School for Success, renovations, which are underway, must be completed.
“The architecture inside this building is absolutely amazing,” Bailey says. “In the late ’90s, the local bank decided to build a data center here, and they took a lot of that architecture and they modified it for their needs at the time.”
After 15 years, the bank sold the building to Buckeye Online School for Success, which needed room for nearly 200 employees. After the pandemic, many employees chose to continue working from home.
“The building was tremendously underutilized,” Bailey says. “We saw it as an opportunity to not only revitalize this building and give True North a new home but also make a space more efficient for the school.”
In about two years, Buckeye Online School for Success will move about a block away to the J.C. Thompson Building, which is also undergoing renovation.
The Thompson Building sits on the Diamond and originally housed the Crosser and Ogilvie store, according to the historical marker database.
The renovation project received a combination of grants and tax credits, including $400,000 in historic tax credits and a $600,000 JobsOhio Vibrant Community Grant, part of the $2.1 million investment. That project is being led by Cozza Enterprises.
A $700,000 JobsOhio Vibrant Community Grant also was awarded for the renovation of the brick building that will house True North. The Columbiana County Board of Commissioners contributed $500,000 toward the $2.3 million project through American Rescue Plan Act funds.
Bailey says he has taken on more than $1 million in personal debt to make the project a reality. He has relied on the capital stack, which is the layering of funding sources.
But he says the stakeholder stack also has been important. City residents, city council, the mayor, planning commission, the county, regional partners and state agencies have contributed, he says.
Unlike other proposals seeking ARPA funds, the True North project was self-sustaining, according to Columbiana County Commissioner Mike Halleck. It will not require the commissioners to provide more funds in the future and will continue to benefit the community for years to come.
“We wanted to stretch that money as far as we can,” Halleck says.
Creating the Perfect Space
Bailey also knows how to stretch a dollar. While Baker Bednar Snyder and Associates Inc. of Youngstown is the architect for the project, Bailey has taken on the general contractor duties so he can oversee every part of the project.
The reception desk that will soon greet those entering the building is a unique, curved statement piece that Bailey acquired cheaply when retailer Rue21 auctioned some corporate furniture during its bankruptcy.
The brick building features a grand staircase with wrought iron bars on the railings, which Bailey is opening up as much as possible between the upper floors. Although natural light is limited to the front of the building, Bailey’s plans are to get as much benefit from sunlight as possible with glass fronts to the offices.
There will be open spaces for collaboration between departments, as well as conference rooms and a 12-foot matrix TV system.
“In order to convert this building to something that would be great for our employees, we needed to open it back up,” Bailey says. “We need to allow the energy of our team and the energy of this building to flow freely between the floors of the building.”
A workout room, newly remodeled restrooms and a relaxing space to reenergize employees are already completed. Another space will serve as a lactation room, he says.
A training facility will occupy much of the first floor. A café will serve employees on their breaks, and possibly the public as well. Bailey is seeking someone operate the café, which he envisions serving coffee, sandwiches and wraps. An outdoor patio will be added for the warm months.
Bailey expects to move into the building in April.
He hopes people who have moved away from East Liverpool and the small towns along the river will see quality jobs and a reason to move back. He recently hired two young men, Youngstown State University graduates who interned for True North, to work full time and is excited they both moved to East Liverpool.
“So you have two mid-20-year-old young professionals that could have gone to work anywhere in the country, but because of this project, they decided to stay here in eastern Ohio,” Bailey said. “And more importantly, they decided to come to downtown East Liverpool.”
Pictured at top: Chuck Bailey, founder and CEO of True North, is seen inside the building that will become his company’s new home.