A dozen new businesses investing in downtown Denver and the Front Range

More than a dozen businesses are moving to Denver with new offices and retail spaces, even as the economic forecast for the rest of 2023 remains shaky.

On Tuesday, global technology company Dynatrace cut the ribbon on its Denver office in Lower Downtown at 1900 16th St. Mall. After surveying 20 cities for its latest location, the team settled on the Mile High City — a region that it anticipates will grow alongside the company.

With more than 3,600 employees globally, Dynatrace’s customer service and sales teams will call Denver home, with a plan for up to 400 employees here over the next two years. By the end of this month, the company predicts it will reach 100 Denver-based employees.

The new office opening of Dynatrace and other businesses signal continued interest in downtown Denver and the greater metro area as the city recovers from the COVID-19 public health emergency, which officially ends in the U.S. on Thursday. The nation is still holding its own against a possible recession, and inflation is steadily slowing, but the economic outlook remains ambivalent.

In the same LoDo neighborhood, two new retailers recently moved to Dairy Block at 1800 Wazee St.

• SwitchWood, a Denver-based fashion accessory brand, opened the doors of its first brick-and-mortar location — nine years after it was launched online. It sells sunglasses, watches, cuff links and more.

• Love Weld, a permanently-welded custom jewelry store, is at 1801 Blake St. in Dairy Block’s Free Market. The brand, established in 2020, counted as the first to offer permanent jewelry pieces in the U.S.

Lower Downtown also welcomed another location for late-night bakery company Insomnia Cookies at 1370 19th St. as its third in the Denver area and fifth in Colorado. It’s also in a hiring frenzy, looking for part-time crew members, delivery drivers and shift leaders.

Nearby, in River North Art District, Canadian outdoor equipment company Arc’teryx opened a 3505-square-foot storefront at 2601 Walnut St. in March.

But throughout the city, other businesses are also celebrating the 2023 openings of their new locations.

• From across the pond in the U.K., Cabbonet — a kitchen and design brand — is now in Denver, with a new design studio at the Exquisite Kitchen Design showroom at 601 S. Broadway. It caters to architects, designers and homeowners.

• Marketing agency Small Giants moved to a 2,500-square-foot office in the Associated General Contractors building at 686 Mariposa St. Founded in Phoenix, the firm works with the commercial real estate and architectural, engineering and construction industries. Between Denver and Phoenix, the agency includes 45 full-time team members.

• Last month, Xero Shoes, a footwear brand from Broomfield, held the grand opening of its 900-square-foot showroom in Denver at 11777 E. 55th Ave. Patrons can try out more than 39 shoe styles.

• Earlier this year, DHL — an international express shipping services provider — opened a $9.6 million service center as its second Denver area facility at 10075 E. 40th Ave. The company’s reasoning for the expansion includes closer proximity to downtown, as its other service center is located within the Denver International Airport. The new space spans almost 56,000 square feet, with 55 couriers and operational personnel.

And there’s more to come later this year.

• Squeeze, which offers massages, is set to open its fourth site at 875 Albion St. in the Cherry Creek neighborhood this summer. The location, which spans over 3,300 square feet, will consist of 11 massage suites.

• Colorado’s largest independent coffee roaster, Dazbog Coffee, plans to build six new coffee shops this year. Its latest store at 56th Avenue and Tower Road is now open, and two more locations at DIA are underway. The other three sites will be in Aurora, Lakewood and Loveland. “We are actively looking at real estate for additional stores both in Colorado and out-of-state and are growing our sales team as Dazbog’s wholesale and retail business continues to expand,” said cofounder and president Leonid Yuffa.