AMAROK to build $69M headquarters in Columbia

Perimeter security company AMAROK will invest $69 million to build a new 125,000-square-foot headquarters in Columbia’s BullStreet District.

The announcement came March 24 at a special event held in the District near the eventual location of the headquarters at the corner of Boyce and Freed streets, adjacent to the Freed Street garage.

“We are excited to bring our new headquarters to the most dynamic neighborhood in the city,” said AMAROK CEO Mark Wesley, who has been at the company’s helm since 2018. “The BullStreet District fits the family-oriented culture of our business and provides visibility for our company.”

The new structure will house more than 500 employees and include room for growth as the company continues expansion.

Founded in Columbia in 1973, AMAROK started as a small, family-owned security business specializing in guard-dog rental. Eventually the company shifted to perimeter security and today serves more than 9,000 commercial businesses in the United States and Canada with state-of-the-art solar-powered electric fencing and integrated perimeter security solutions. It has more than 600 employees nationwide, with 300 based in Columbia.

The company’s offices are currently located in the IBM Innovation Center on the University of South Carolina campus.

Planning for the new headquarters has been in the works for about five years, Wesley said. The company’s steady growth since its local beginnings made the search necessary, and the BullStreet District won out over several other possible sites in the Columbia area because of its central location and potential to draw workers.

“We started in a warehouse on the outskirts of Columbia, and then an office on the outskirts, and then moved in 2006 to our offices at Assembly and Blossom, and now we’ve grown out of that space,” Wesley said. “We wanted to stay in the city to attract talent because a lot of people want to work in the city and be close to sites like restaurants and other amenities, and this location will enable us to do that.”

Officials from the city of Columbia and Richland County attended the event and were enthusiastic about AMAROK’s announcement and its potential to bring new jobs and innovation to the community.

“For more than 50 years, AMAROK has been one of Columbia’s best kept secrets,” said Columbia Mayor Daniel Rickenmann. “Today’s announcement of their new headquarters is a proud declaration that one of the fastest growing companies in the country not only got its start in Columbia, but it is here to stay.”

AMAROK is partnering with Greenville-based Hughes Development Corp. for the project. Design plans are still being finalized. Construction on the project is expected to begin later this year, with estimated completion in 2028.