Plano

Plano exists because telecom companies needed somewhere cheaper than downtown Dallas to build campuses in the 1980s. When JCPenney relocated its headquarters here in 1987, followed by EDS (now DXC Technology), Frito-Lay, and dozens of tech companies, Plano accidentally became America's most corporate-dense suburb. This is preferential attachment in real estate: once headquarters started clustering, more followed because the cluster existed.

The Telecom Corridor now stretches 30 miles through Plano and neighboring cities, hosting 6,000+ companies. But Plano's distinguishing feature isn't just corporate density—it's corporate headquarters density. Toyota moved its North American headquarters here in 2017 (3,000 employees). JPMorgan Chase employs 6,000. Liberty Mutual has 5,000. Pizza Hut, Cinemark, and Rent-A-Center are headquartered here. Per capita, Plano likely has more Fortune 500 headquarters than any U.S. city.

With 290,000 residents and median household income of $112,000 (among America's highest for cities this size), Plano represents successful suburban niche capture. The formula: excellent public schools (Plano ISD consistently ranks top-10 in Texas), low crime, no state income tax, and corporate campuses with parking. These factors compound: executives choose Plano, so companies locate headquarters near executives, attracting more executives.

The 2025 economy shows this flywheel accelerating. Semiconductor talent is migrating from Austin as Texas Instruments expands nearby. Healthcare campuses are growing, with 30,000+ medical sector jobs. The city's challenge is physical constraint—Plano is nearly built out, pushing growth to neighboring Frisco and McKinney. The 2026 trajectory suggests deepening specialization: more regional headquarters, more tech satellite offices, and premium housing development on remaining parcels. Plano's strategy is being the suburb that corporations can't distinguish from a city.