Off-road components-maker going to Hall County

Fox Factory expects to build a $50 million plant, hire 800 workers.

A California company that makes high-performance specialty parts for bicycles, motorcycles and off-road vehicles plans to open a new manufacturing facility near Gainesville.

Fox Factory Holding Corp. plans to open its new manufacturing plant on a 23-acre site in Hall County and hire 800 people over the next several years, the company said Wednesday. Fox also plans to relocate its operations center to existing office space in the state, the news release said.

Fox is a familiar brand in the world of off-road and extreme motorsports. The company also makes shocks and performance components and accessories for snowmobiles, trucks and all-terrain vehicles. The company sells its products to aftermarket buyers and to the original equipment manufacturers such as automakers.

Gov. Nathan Deal’s office said Fox will move its corporate offices to the state before the end of this year and expects to open the first phase of its $50 million Hall County plant in 2020.

“I am encouraged to see yet another industry leader choose to expand operations here, as Fox Factory Holding Corp.’s investment will produce meaningful results for Georgia and create even more opportunities in the Hall County community,” Deal said in a news release.

The new factory will make products for its powered vehicles division.

The announcement from Fox will trigger additional moves for the company, including a

relocation of its aftermarket bike division from California to Nevada.

“The decision to expand our manufacturing and operations, relocate our headquarters, and move our aftermarket bike operations was the result of extensive research by our team and will better support the needs of our growing business over the next several years,” Fox CEO Larry Enterline said in a news release.

On Wednesday, Fox released earnings results for the first nine months of 2018. The company said sales were $462.4 million, an increase of 30 percent for the first three quarters of the year compared to the same period in 2017.

Net income increased nearly 60 percent during the comparable period to $63.9 million.