Cost of living is a factor that can have a great impact on
relocating for a new career opportunity.
New York City and a few cities in California are some of the most
expensive places to live in the United States. These cities are home to many employers in our industry.
There are also great fashion industry employers in smaller cities
in Wisconsin and Texas. There are big
employers in Pittsburgh and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Columbus, Ohio is home
to some major brands/retailers as is Boston, Massachusetts; Portland, Oregon;
Seattle, Washington; Baltimore, Maryland and Freeport, Maine.
It is a positive financial factor if you are leaving one of
the expensive cities and moving to another region where housing and cost of
living are less. The employers in smaller
regions pay very competitive salaries and you get to add the lower cost of
living factor for a much greater discretionary income.
The challenge is if you want to head to New York City, San
Francisco or Hermosa Beach, CA from a less expensive city. Employers in the largest cities have similar
salary bands and in some cases lower than the more remote regions because the
talent in their local market is in abundance.
They are not able to make up the 105% increase in cost of living from
Columbus, Ohio to New York City in their compensation packages.
If your desire is to move to one of these hub cities it is
best to do research and understand what it will cost you to live there. Know ahead of time if you are coming from a
remote region initially you will likely experience a reduced discretionary
income. It is up to you to weigh the
options and decide what is most important.
As a boutique search agency we hear candidates weigh in on this from
opposite perspectives. Candidates that
make $110K in NYC say they would never leave the city. They
are completely satisfied and love their lives.
When someone from an area with a lower cost of living making a similar
salary looks at moving to NYC for $110 they tell me they can’t imagine how they will
survive.
Here are some resources to evaluate cost of living comparisons:
What are some factors that would motivate you consider
taking a lower immediate discretionary income to move to a larger city? Or...would you consider leaving the big city
if it meant you could gain significant ground financially?
Contact me at kari@apparel-resource.com to see what cities we have career opportunities in.
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