With a quality workforce, a beautiful climate, and all the benefits of a major market to doing business in Fort Lauderdale, it is no wonder that nearly 200 companies have headquarters in Fort Lauderdale. Spanning everything from automotive retail to airlines, some large
companies in Fort Lauderdale even make the Fortune 500.
Accelirate
Rounding IT companies in Fort Lauderdale,
Accelirate is a multinational digital services provider that develops and implements software and hardware for business process automation and artificial intelligence (AI). Accelirate works with a number of significant and emerging companies, such as SalelsForce, MuleSoft, and Snowflake.
Akamai
Akamai is among the IT companies in Fort Lauderdale offering services essential to other technology companies. While specializing in protecting against distributed denial of service (DDoS) attacks, the company offers a number of security products to the sector.
American Express
With at least 3,500 employees in south Florida and the fifth largest private employer in the area,
American Express ranks high among large companies in Fort Lauderdale. The financial services company known for its flagship credit card provides financial service products to both the corporate and consumer markets, including merchant-facing cloud-based services.
AT&T
A household name,
AT&T operates a headquarters in Sunrise, where it expanded its call center with a
$6 million investment and a planned addition of 650 jobs in 2019. The expanded call center includes such amenities as a market for employees to buy food and an interactive virtual learning training room.
AutoNation
Headquartered in Fort Lauderdale,
AutoNation specializes in buying and selling used cars and offering new cars through its website. With an estimated $21 billion in annual revenue in 2019, the company moved its corporate headquarters to do business in Fort Lauderdale around 2009.
BBX Capital Incorporated
Turning an annual revenue in 2019 of just under $1 billion,
BBX Capital Incorporated is a Fort Lauderdale-based diversified investment holding company.
Chiquita Brands, LLC
Chiquita Brands, LLC's Design Center for the Americas claims a prime place among large companies in Fort Lauderdale, if nothing else, for its brand recognition. The company's corporate headquarters moved to Fort Lauderdale in 2015.
Citrix Systems
Leading the way for informational technology (IT) companies in Fort Lauderdale, cloud computing giant
Citrix Systems had an estimated $3 billion in revenue in 2019. Citrix has an outsized presence in today's world, spanning everything from server, application, and desktop virtualization to networking and software as a service (SaaS).
DataCore Software
DataCore Software is yet another technology company that calls Fort Lauderdale home. Providing software-defined storage solutions, the company boasts an estimated 10,000 customers worldwide.
DHL Express
The German package delivery company and air courier service
DHL has its American headquarters in Plantation, employing an estimated 1,400 workers as of 2019.
Heico Corporation
With an estimated $2 billion in annual revenue in 2019,
Heico Corporation is an aerospace company providing technology and industrial products that find their way into every part of modern aircraft, from engines to avionics and interiors.
Kaplan
With more than 10,000 employees across 27 countries, Fort Lauderdale-based
Kaplan offers a variety of learning solutions for universities and businesses, as well as continuing education programs for professionals. The brand boasts approximately 12,000 business clients and 4,000 educational clients worldwide.
Kemet Corporation
A global manufacturer of electronic components,
Kemet Corporation had an estimated 1.26 billion in annual revenue for 2019. Kemet's components and capacitors are found in various industrial and consumer applications, from medical devices to spacecraft.
Mednax
With an estimated 2019 revenue of approximately $3.5 billion,
Mednax is a self-described physician-led healthcare organization specializing in neonatal, maternal-fetal, and pediatric subspecialty services. The company offers services through partnerships with healthcare facilities and health systems.
National Beverage Corporation
National Beverage Corporation, the producers of the La Croix sparkling water brand, had an estimated $1 billion in annual revenue in 2019. Specializing in non-alcoholic beverages, National Beverage Corporation touts itself as a "healthier refreshment company" and produces a variety of juices, energy drinks, and even some soft drinks.
Saber Interactive
With over 2,500 employees worldwide,
Saber Interactive is a Fort Lauderdale-based video game developer and publisher. Now a subsidiary of Embracer Group, the company boasts 20 studios worldwide and publishes such iconic titles as Warhammer 40,000 and World War Z.
Shiji
The Americas headquarters for global technology platform
Shiji in Hollywood oversees its western hemisphere operations in the hospitality, food service, retail, and entertainment industries.
Spirit Airlines
Headquartered in Marimar with plans to move to Dania Beach,
Spirit Airlines reported an annual revenue of almost $4 billion in 2019. While the pandemic hit the airline as hard as any other, the planned corporate campus on 11 acres near Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport is still in the works.
UKG
Formerly known as Ultimate Software,
UKG ranks high among IT companies in Fort Lauderdale, employing approximately 1,800 south Florida workers as of 2019. Providing human capital management (HCM) and workforce management solutions, the company estimates that it provides services to more than 70,000 organizations.
Zimmerman
With 650 employees as of 2019,
Zimmerman Advertising is based out of Fort Lauderdale, founded in the mid-1980s by Jordan Zimmerman, focusing on the automotive industry. A fully-modern agency, Zimmerman now boasts a data-based approach using analytics and trends.
Calling Fort Lauderdale home
Many companies that call Fort Lauderdale home have become so successful in their industries through years of experience and innovation. For anyone else interested in calling Fort Lauderdale home, the first and most important step comes with finding a real estate agent with the experience and knowledge of the Fort Lauderdale residential real estate market, such as
Tagliamonte & Associates, that gives their clients that same competitive edge in the local real estate market.
*Header photo courtesy of Pexels
