Acadiana's major businesses saw big changes in 2022
Acadiana's business community had a number of major headlines in 2022, with some of the region's largest employers announcing big changes over the course of the year.
From mergers and acquisitions to layoffs and closings, here's a review of some of the biggest stories from the region's businesses this year:
Big changes at some of Acadiana's biggest companies
The Acadiana region is home to a number of large businesses — ASAP (formerly Waitr), LHC Group and Stuller, to name a few — and many of those companies enacted or announced some significant changes over the course of 2022.
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Waitr — now called ASAP — certainly saw a large number of changes over the year. The company underwent a major rebrand as part of a legal settlement and chose the name ASAP to better reflect its new mission to deliver anything, not just food.
But the company has seen its share of struggles in 2022. After getting a boost from the COVID-19 pandemic, ASAP has had a run of unprofitable quarters, culminating in the announcement that nearly 90 employees in its Downtown Lafayette office would be laid off in January.
LHC Group, one of the region's largest employers, also announced some big changes this year, though it may take longer than originally anticipated for those to actually take place. In March, LHC Group announced it was merging with UnitedHealth Group's Optum Health, joining the fifth largest company in the U.S. and the largest health care company in the world.
The merger is expected to be finalized in the first quarter of 2023. UnitedHealth is paying a reported $5.5 billion for LHC Group, whose headquarters is expected to remain in Lafayette. If nothing more changes, the Lafayette office will house the home health operations for the largest health care company in the world.
IBERIABANK, which was purchased by the Tennessee-based First Horizon in 2020, is another Acadiana brand that is expecting more change in the near future. Not long after IBERIABANK signs came down across the area and First Horizon signs went up, Canadian banking giant TD Bank Group announced it was buying First Horizon.
It's unclear what the purchase will mean for the former IBERIABANK, whose branding was essentially eliminated and replaced with First Horizon. The merger is expected to be finalized in 2023.
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Up-and-coming businesses making headlines
The Acadiana area saw several businesses take major leaps in 2022, working toward establishing themselves as key components of the region's economic success.
Laundry service hampr is one example of a business making significant strides over the last year. The company was founded in January 2020, and is now in 14 states and more than 75 market areas. In May, hampr announced it had secured $5 million in funding for its nationwide expansion.
Another relative newcomer, Something Borrowed Blooms, was named one of the fastest-growing businesses in the southeastern U.S. by Inc. Magazine. The company, which rents out premium silk flower arrangements for weddings, opened an expanded facility in 2021 to help meet the demand for the wedding booms in 2022 and 2023.
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One of the biggest newcomers to Acadiana is SafeSource Direct, a joint venture between Alabama's Trax Development and Ochsner Health to manufacture personal protective equipment in Broussard. The company broke ground on its two facilities — one in St. Martin Parish and the other in Lafayette Parish — in 2021 and by May was producing thousands of gloves every hour.
In November, English chemical company Aquaspersions announced it was building a facility in Broussard to supply SafeSource Direct with the chemical needed to manufacture its gloves.
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This article originally appeared on Lafayette Daily Advertiser: Acadiana's major businesses saw big changes in 2022
