The state of Connecticut has agreed to help Kayak Software Corp. finance the elaborate renovations at its new corporate headquarters in Stamford.
Previously Kayak CEO and co-founder Steve Hafner said he planned to spend about $3.5 million renovating Kayak”™s new offices at 7 Market St. But with a $2.5 million loan from Connecticut, the price of renovations has reportedly increased to $5 million.
The price is the equivalent of spending more than $100,000 per current employee.
“If you have a great work environment, you”™re going to get more productive employees,” Hafner previously told the Business Journal in April. The travel tech company plans to use its headquarters as a way to attract top talent.
“We want to have a fun atmosphere for our employees to work in,” Hafner said. “Our company has a proven track record of growing and we wanted a space that would accommodate growth and attract and retain talent from New York City.”
Kayak representatives did not respond to a request for comment on the new loan.
Previous plans for the office space included a recreation room, massage room, media room, a pool table, an open bar, free food and a locker room. Additionally, plans included a reception desk made of an old airplane engine and a conference room framed by the body of an old airplane. The company was scheduled to move in August.
The 10-year loan has a 1 percent interest rate and has an option of forgiveness. If the company adds another 50 position in three years, it doesn”™t need to repay the loan.
“They”™re a great little company and we”™re thrilled to have them stay in Connecticut,” said Catherine Smith, commissioner of the Connecticut Department of Economic and Community Development. “This adds to our mission to increase the number of very innovative companies here.”
About a year ago Kayak announced plans to move its Norwalk headquarters to Stamford, but Smith said it”™s likely the headquarters would have moved out of state if the company wasn”™t already in negotiations for an incentive package with Connecticut.
Smith said the DECD had been in negotiations with the company for some time, competing with others for the national headquarters, though its roots are firmly planted in Connecticut.
“It”™s a part of our strategy to create a more innovative, Silicon Valley-like community here,” Smith said. “There was top competition for the company.”
