Editing Denver (section)

==Economy==
{{See also|List of tallest buildings in Denver}}
{{more citations needed section|date=November 2018}}
[[File:Downtown Denver Skyscrapers.JPG|thumb|The 17th street district includes many financial, business and corporate buildings.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1145/is_9_36/ai_78860755/Users/melmatt123/Desktop/DSCN1682.JPG|title=Denver: A Mile High And Climbing |publisher=Parks & Recreation |date=September 2001 |access-date=September 26, 2007 }}{{Dead link|date=September 2010|bot=H3llBot}}</ref>]]
[[File:U.S. Mint in Denver, CO IMG 5527.JPG|thumb|The [[United States Mint]] in Denver (2010)]]
[[File:Republic Plaza Denver.jpg|thumb|left|upright|[[Republic Plaza (Denver)|Republic Plaza]], Colorado's tallest building]]
[[File:The Wells Fargo Center, Denver, CO.jpg|alt=|left|thumb|Wells Fargo "Cash Register" building]]
[[File:1144 Fifteenth Building (Denver, Colorado).JPG|alt=|left|thumb|upright|1144 15th St: One of Denver's newest skyscrapers]]

The Denver [[Metropolitan statistical area|MSA]] had a gross metropolitan product of $311.9 billion in 2023, making it the 18th largest metro economy in the United States.<ref>{{cite web|title=Gross Metropolitan Product|url=https://apps.bea.gov/itable/?ReqID=70&step=1&_gl=1*1tvytep*_ga*NDI2NTYzNDMwLjE3NDE2MzM1OTY.*_ga_J4698JNNFT*MTc0MTYzMzU5Ni4xLjEuMTc0MTYzMzYwOC40OC4wLjA.#eyJhcHBpZCI6NzAsInN0ZXBzIjpbMSwyOSwyNSwzMSwyNiwyNywzMCwzMF0sImRhdGEiOltbIlRhYmxlSWQiLCI1MzMiXSxbIk1ham9yX0FyZWEiLCI1Il0sWyJTdGF0ZSIsWyI1Il1dLFsiQXJlYSIsWyIxOTc0MCJdXSxbIlN0YXRpc3RpYyIsIi0xIl0sWyJVbml0X29mX21lYXN1cmUiLCJMZXZlbHMiXSxbIlllYXIiLFsiMjAyMyJdXSxbIlllYXJCZWdpbiIsIi0xIl0sWyJZZWFyX0VuZCIsIi0xIl1dfQ==|publisher=U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis |access-date=March 10, 2025}}</ref> Additionally, the 12-County [[Denver–Aurora combined statistical area|Denver–Aurora, CO Combined Statistical Area]] had a GDP of $377.7 billion in 2023 while the broader Front Range had a GDP of $474.6 billion.<ref>{{cite web|title=Gross Metropolitan Product|url=https://apps.bea.gov/itable/?ReqID=70&step=1&_gl=1*1tvytep*_ga*NDI2NTYzNDMwLjE3NDE2MzM1OTY.*_ga_J4698JNNFT*MTc0MTYzMzU5Ni4xLjEuMTc0MTYzMzYwOC40OC4wLjA.#eyJhcHBpZCI6NzAsInN0ZXBzIjpbMSwyOSwyNSwzMSwyNiwyNywzMCwzMF0sImRhdGEiOltbIlRhYmxlSWQiLCI1MzMiXSxbIk1ham9yX0FyZWEiLCI1Il0sWyJTdGF0ZSIsWyI1Il1dLFsiQXJlYSIsWyIxNDUwMCIsIjE2OTQwIiwiMTc4MjAiLCIxOTc0MCIsIjIyNjYwIiwiMjQ1NDAiLCIzOTM4MCJdXSxbIlN0YXRpc3RpYyIsIjMiXSxbIlVuaXRfb2ZfbWVhc3VyZSIsIkxldmVscyJdLFsiWWVhciIsWyIyMDIzIl1dLFsiWWVhckJlZ2luIiwiLTEiXSxbIlllYXJfRW5kIiwiLTEiXV19==|publisher=U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis |access-date=March 10, 2025}}</ref> Denver's economy is based partially on its geographic position and its connection to some of the country's major transportation systems. Because Denver is the largest city within {{convert|500|mi|km|-2}}, it has become a natural location for storage and distribution of goods and services to the [[Mountain States]], [[Southwestern United States|Southwest states]], as well as all [[Western United States|western states]]. Another benefit for distribution is that Denver is nearly equidistant from large cities of the [[Midwestern United States|Midwest]], such as Chicago and [[St. Louis]] and some large cities of the [[West Coast of the United States|West Coast]], such as Los Angeles and San Francisco.

Over the years, the city has been home to other large corporations in the central United States, making Denver a key trade point for the country. Several well-known companies originated in or have relocated to Denver. William Ainsworth opened the Denver Instrument Company in 1895 to make analytical balances for gold assayers. Its factory is now in [[Arvada, Colorado|Arvada]]. [[Aimco]] is headquartered in Denver. [[Samsonite]] began in Denver in 1910 as Shwayder Trunk Manufacturing Company, but Samsonite closed its NE Denver factory in 2001, and moved its headquarters to [[Massachusetts]] after a change of ownership in 2006. [[Qwest Corporation]], founded in Denver in 1911 as Mountain States Telephone & Telegraph Company, is now a part of [[Lumen Technologies]] (previously [[CenturyLink]]).

On October 31, 1937, [[Continental Airlines]], now [[United Airlines]], moved its headquarters to [[Stapleton Airport]] in Denver, Colorado (before United Airlines later moved to its current home in [[Chicago]]). [[Robert F. Six]] arranged to have the headquarters moved to Denver from El Paso, Texas because Six believed that the airline should have its headquarters in a large city with a potential base of customers. Continental later moved to [[Houston]] from Denver, but merged with United Airlines in 2013. Throughout that time, the company held a large employee base in the Denver area, which is home to the United Airlines Flight Training Center in the [[Central Park, Denver|Central Park]] neighborhood. [[MediaNews Group]] purchased the ''[[Denver Post]]'' in 1987; the company is based in Denver. The [[Gates Corporation]], the world's largest producer of automotive belts and hoses, was established in S. Denver in 1919. [[Russell Stover Candies]] made its first chocolate candy in Denver in 1923, but moved to Kansas City in 1969. The original [[Frontier Airlines (1950–1986)|Frontier Airlines]] began operations at Denver's old [[Stapleton International Airport]] in 1950; [[Frontier Airlines|Frontier]] was reincarnated at [[Denver International Airport|DIA]] in 1994.

Scott's Liquid Gold, Inc., has been making furniture polish in Denver since 1954. [[Village Inn]] restaurants began as a single pancake house in Denver in 1958. [[Big O Tires]], LLC, of [[Centennial, Colorado|Centennial]] opened its first franchise in 1962 in Denver. The [[Shane Company]] sold its first diamond jewelry in 1971 in Denver. In 1973 [[Re/Max]] made Denver its headquarters. [[Johns-Manville|Johns Manville]] Corp., a manufacturer of insulation and roofing products, relocated its headquarters to Denver from New York in 1972. [[CH2M Hill]], an engineering and construction firm, relocated from Oregon to the [[Denver Technological Center]] in 1980. The [[Ball Corporation]] sold its glass business in Indiana in the 1990s and moved to suburban [[Broomfield, Colorado|Broomfield]]; Ball has several operations in greater Denver.

[[Molson Coors Brewing Company]] established its U.S. headquarters in Denver in 2005, but announced its departure in 2019. Its subsidiary and regional [[wholesale]] distributor, Coors Distributing Company, is in NW Denver. The [[Newmont Mining Corporation]], the second-largest gold producer in North America and one of the largest in the world, is headquartered in Denver. [[MapQuest]], an online site for maps, directions and business listings, is headquartered in Denver's LoDo district.

Large Denver-area employers that have headquarters elsewhere include [[Lockheed Martin]] Corp., [[United Airlines]], [[Kroger]] Co. and [[Xcel Energy]], Inc.
[[File:Union Station Development.jpg|thumb|Development in the bustling Union Station section of downtown]]
Geography also allows Denver to have a considerable government presence, with many federal agencies based or having offices in the Denver area. Along with federal agencies come many companies based on US defense and space projects, and more jobs are brought to the city by virtue of its being the capital of the state of [[Colorado]]. The Denver area is home to the former nuclear weapons plant [[Rocky Flats Plant|Rocky Flats]], the [[Denver Federal Center]], [[Byron G. Rogers Federal Building and United States Courthouse]], the [[Denver Mint]], and the [[National Renewable Energy Laboratory]].

In 2005, a $310.7 million expansion of the [[Colorado Convention Center]] was completed, doubling its size. The hope was the center's expansion would elevate the city to one of the top 10 cities in the nation for holding a convention.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.denverpost.com/2005/05/20/finally-its-built-now-for-the-test/ |title=Finally, it's built. Now for the test |author=Kris Hudson |work=The Denver Post |date=December 3, 2004 |access-date=December 4, 2021}}</ref>

Denver's position near the mineral-rich [[Rocky Mountains]] encouraged mining and energy companies to spring up in the area. In the early days of the city, gold and silver booms and busts played a large role in the city's economic success. In the 1970s and early 1980s, the energy crisis in America and resulting high oil prices created an energy boom in Denver captured in the soap opera ''[[Dynasty (1981 TV series)|Dynasty]]''. Denver was built up considerably during this time with the construction of many new downtown skyscrapers. When the price of oil dropped from $34 a barrel in 1981 to $9 a barrel in 1986, the Denver economy also dropped, leaving almost 15,000 oil industry workers in the area unemployed (including former mayor and governor [[John Hickenlooper]], a former geologist), and the nation's highest office vacancy rate (30%).<ref>{{cite web |title=Denver: The Rocky Mountain Metropolis History |url=http://www.denvergov.org/aboutdenver/history_timeline_short.asp |date=2002 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060608124619/http://www.denvergov.org/AboutDenver/history_timeline_short.asp |archive-date=June 8, 2006 |publisher=The City and County of Denver |access-date=February 27, 2016}}</ref> The industry has recovered and the region has 700 employed petroleum engineers.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.collegedegreereport.com/city-data/petroleum-engineers/denver-aurora |title=Welcome collegedegreereport.com – BlueHost.com |publisher=Collegedegreereport.com |access-date=April 7, 2016 |archive-date=March 3, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160303205826/http://www.collegedegreereport.com/city-data/petroleum-engineers/denver-aurora |url-status=dead }}</ref> Advances in hydraulic fracturing have made the DJ Basin of Colorado into an accessible and lucrative oil play. Energy and mining are still important in Denver's economy today, with companies such as [[Ovintiv]], [[Halliburton]], [[Smith International]], [[Rio Tinto Group]], [[Newmont Mining]], and [[Chevron Corporation]], headquartered or having significant operations. Denver is in 149th place in terms of the cost of doing business in the United States.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.forbes.com/places/co/denver/|title=The Best Places For Business And Careers|website=[[Forbes]]}}</ref>

[[File:University of Denver campus pics 107.jpg|thumb|The first [[Chipotle Mexican Grill]], near the campus of the [[University of Denver]]]]
Denver's west-central geographic location in the [[Mountain Time Zone]] (UTC−7) also benefits the telecommunications industry by allowing communication with both North American coasts, South America, Europe, and Asia on the same business day. Denver's location on the 105th meridian at over {{convert|1|mi|km|spell=in}} in elevation also enables it to be the largest city in the U.S. to offer a "one-bounce" real-time satellite uplink to six continents in the same business day. [[Qwest Communications]] now part of [[CenturyLink]], [[Dish Network Corporation]], [[Starz (TV network)|Starz]], [[DIRECTV]], and [[Comcast]] are a few of the many telecommunications companies with operations in the Denver area. These and other high-tech companies had a boom in Denver in the mid to late 1990s. After a rise in unemployment in the [[Great Recession]], Denver's unemployment rate recovered and had one of the lowest unemployment rates in the nation at 2.6% in November 2016.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.metrodenver.org/metro-denver-economy/monthly-summary |title=Monthly Economic Summary |author=Metro Denver Economic Development Corporation |publisher=Metro Denver Economic Development Corporation |date=January 2017 |access-date=February 4, 2017 |archive-date=February 18, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140218105150/http://www.metrodenver.org/metro-denver-economy/monthly-summary |url-status=dead }}</ref> As of December 2016, the unemployment rate for the Denver–Aurora–Broomfield MSA is 2.6%.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.bls.gov/eag/eag.co_denver_msa.htm |title=Denver-Aurora-Broomfield, CO Economy at a Glance |author=The Bureau of Labor Statistics |publisher=The Bureau of Labor Statistics|access-date=February 4, 2017}}</ref> The Downtown region has seen increased real estate investment<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.primedb.co/top-reasons-behind-denvers-booming-real-estate-market/|title=The Top Reasons behind Denver's Booming Real Estate Market – Home Renovations|access-date=May 7, 2017|archive-date=July 30, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170730113931/http://www.primedb.co/top-reasons-behind-denvers-booming-real-estate-market/|url-status=dead}}</ref>{{update inline|date=June 2023}} with the construction of several new skyscrapers from 2010 onward and major development around [[Denver Union Station]].

Denver has also enjoyed success as a pioneer in the fast-casual restaurant industry, with many popular national chain restaurants founded and based in Denver. [[Quiznos]] and [[Smashburger]] were founded and headquartered in Denver. [[Qdoba Mexican Grill]], [[Noodles & Company]], and [[Good Times Burgers & Frozen Custard]] originated in Denver, but have moved their headquarters to the suburbs of [[Wheat Ridge, Colorado|Wheat Ridge]], [[Broomfield, Colorado|Broomfield]], and [[Golden, Colorado|Golden]], respectively. [[Chipotle Mexican Grill]] was founded in Denver, but moved its headquarters to [[Newport Beach, California]] in 2018.

In 2015, Denver ranked No. 1 on ''[[Forbes]]''{{'}} list of the Best Places for Business and Careers.<ref>{{cite web|title=Denver Leads Forbes' 2015 List Of The Best Places For Business And Careers|website=[[Forbes]]|url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/kurtbadenhausen/2015/07/29/denver-leads-the-2015-best-places-for-business-and-careers/|access-date=July 30, 2015}}</ref>

In 2024, Denver based [[Ibotta|Ibotta's]] initial public offering (IPO) was the largest tech IPO in Colorado's history.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Chuang |first=Tamara |date=2024-04-18 |title=Denver-based Ibotta opens public trading at $107 per share |url=https://coloradosun.com/2024/04/18/shares-denver-ibotta-open-ipo/ |access-date=2024-10-29 |website=The Colorado Sun |language=en-US}}</ref>

===Top employers===
As of the city's 2023 Comprehensive Annual Financial Report,<ref>{{cite web |url=https://denvergov.org/files/assets/public/v/1/finance/documents/financial-reports/acfr/2023-acfr-ccd.pdf |title=City and County of Denver ACFR |website=denvergov.org}}</ref> Denver's top employers are:

{| class="wikitable sortable"
|-
! # !! Employer !! Number of employees
|-
| 1 || City and County of Denver || 13,584
|-
| 2 || [[Denver Public Schools]] || 12,693
|-
| 3 || State of Colorado Central Payroll || 10,686
|-
| 4 || [[Denver Health (hospital)|Denver Health & Hospital Authority]] || 9,502
|-
| 5 || [[United Airlines]] || 7,230
|-
| 6 || CHC Payroll Agent ([[HCA Healthcare|HCA Health One]]) || 4,592
|-
| 7 || [[University of Denver]] || 4,548
|-
| 8 || [[United States Department of Agriculture|USDA]] National Finance Center || 4,496
|-
| 9 || [[Southwest Airlines]] || 4,247
|-
| 10 || [[ADP (company)|ADP]] TotalSource || 2,535
|-
|}