Even Michael Jordan is getting in on the Amazon HQ2 sweepstakes.
The greatest basketball player of all time and owner of the NBA’s Charlotte Hornets wrote a letter to Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos this week asking him to bring the company’s second headquarters to Charlotte.
The Charlotte Observer reported that the letter is part of Charlotte’s bid for “Amazon HQ2,” which will be the tech giant’s second headquarters in addition to its home base in Seattle. Amazon is currently accepting RFP applications from cities around North America for its new $5 billion site that will house up to 50,000 employees.
Charlotte is among a throng of cities vying for Amazon HQ2, many of which are going to great lengths with an attempt to lure Amazon. There’s the small town charmer offering to name a city after Amazon, a candidate from the southwest who thought a giant cactus might curry favor with the judges, and the southern bell hoping a big, flashy display will get her noticed.
Charlotte was the eighth-highest-scoring North American city in this analysis by GeekWire contributor Tim Ellis that ranked potential Amazon HQ2 cities on data.
Jordan, meanwhile, became the first former player to become a majority team owner in 2010 when he took control of the Hornets, which were then called the Bobcats. He has several other business interests and is worth $1.4 billion, according to Forbes.
