Kochava gets state tax incentive, plans to add more staff

Sandpoint-based mobile technology company Kochava plans to hire 35 employees in the next few months and 50 employees in the next five years as part of a tax break it received from the state of Idaho.

Kochava is the third company to get incentives in the new Tax Reimbursement Incentive program, following SkyWest Airlines in Boise and Amy’s Kitchen in Pocatello. Kochava will receive a 28 percent credit for its income, payroll, and sales taxes for five years. Over that time, the state expects Kochava to create $13.5 million in new wages and $1.3 million in state tax revenues.

Kochava provides mobile advertisers with data and analytical tools on their app promotion campaigns. The company reported global customer growth of more than 361 percent over the past year. Kochava officials were not available to comment on its expansion plans. On Oct. 27, the company announced a partnership with Chinese mobile entertainment company Chukong Technologies for a new app services initiative that could be used by Chukong’s 400,000 mobile app and game developers.

The company recently added four senior-level employees specializing in data science, marketing, sales, and finance. Two of the new hires came from Coldwater Creek, the Sandpoint-based retailer that closed earlier this year.

Sandpoint will provide local incentives to Kochava, including covering the cost of building permits and other fees for any construction to accommodate new workers, said Justin Grimm, the city’s planning and community development director. He said Kochava CEO Charles Manning has told him he would like to expand in the city’s downtown, though that will depend on the company’s hiring.

Grimm said he hopes Kochava’s growth attracts other technology companies to northern Idaho.

“This company could be anywhere in the country and the world. The fact that they chose to develop here signifies to me that our community is attractive,” Grimm said.

Manning said in a news release that Sandpoint’s advantages include strong employee retention, cost-effective office space and the state’s low-cost business environment.

The new state incentive, passed by the Legislature earlier this year, requires a local government match, though Grimm said that since Kochava is a technology company, it’s difficult for Sandpoint to provide incentives similar to the property tax abatement received by Amy’s Kitchen, a frozen food company, or the $2.5 million Boise has promised SkyWest.

In addition to the local match, there are several other criteria for companies to get the new Idaho tax credit, which must be approved by the Idaho Economic Advisory Council. Companies must create 20 new jobs in rural areas or 50 in urban areas, and the jobs must be at least 30 hours a week and pay greater than the average county wage.