Guild Member Profile

Gray Swoope is President and CEO of VisionFirst Advisors, a nationally recognized economic development and site-selection consulting firm he founded in 2015. Building on a distinguished 30-year public-sector career, Gray launched VisionFirst to bring real-world, execution-driven insight to complex location and investment decisions.

Under Gray’s leadership, VisionFirst Advisors has worked with clients in all 50 states, representing 29 Fortune 500 companies, supporting foreign direct investment, including a major Korean investment, and advising on projects totaling more than $100 billion in announced capital investment with over 16,000 jobs. The firm is known for its practical, data-driven approach and deep understanding of project drivers across diverse industries and geographies.

Prior to founding VisionFirst, Gray served as Florida’s Secretary of Commerce and President and CEO of Enterprise Florida, and previously as Director of the Mississippi Development Authority, where he led major global recruitment efforts and played a key leadership role in post-Hurricane Katrina recovery.

Gray holds undergraduate and graduate degrees from Mississippi State University.

GEOGRAPHIC AREAS SERVED

North America

Industries

Data Centers	Tech	Energy
IT	Automotive	Medical and Life Sciences
Advanced Manufacturing	Logistics, Warehouse and Distribution	Aerospace, Aeronautics and Aviation
Forestry	Minerals	Metal

PAST CLIENTS

Cabot Industries	Heat Biologics	Atlas Companies
Space Perspective	Walmart	Other Fortune 500 companies

PERSONAL NOTE

After thirty years working in economic development in three states and leading two state organizations we launched VisionFirst Advisors in 2015. That experience provides both context and value to our corporate clients in location advisory strategy. Proud of our success and the continued trust we have earned from our site selection clients. Continued engagement is our benchmark for success.