6AM City In-house

Working 9-5 in Derby City 🎶

The top employers, industries in Louisville
An SUV is moving down the assembly line, where a worker prepares to install something under its hood.
The Ford Truck plant produces the Ford Super Duty, the Ford Expedition and the Lincoln Navigator. | Image courtesy WHAS11
More than 686,206 people (and thousands of businesses) contribute to the LOU metro area’s $74 billion economy. But have you ever wondered about the 502’s heaviest hitters?

Consider this Derby City Business 101 — your guide to our region’s five key industries and five major employers.

Note: When we say Louisville metropolitan statistical area, that refers to Jefferson, Oldham, Bullitt, Shelby, Spencer, and Henry counties in Kentucky, and Floyd, Harrison, and Clark counties in Indiana.

The key industries

There are five key industries that represent the bulk of the LOU metro area’s economy, based on data from Greater Louisville Inc. We’ve listed them in order of employment numbers.

Healthcare and aging innovation | 57,000 employees

The UofL James Graham Brown Cancer Center is a nationally-recognized leader in cancer research and the university itself has received more than $64 million in research funding. Derby City is also known for several medical firsts, like the first self-contained artificial heart implant and the first successful hand transplant. If you didn’t know, you know now.

Business services | 30,000 employees

Need a lawyer, accountant, marketer, or real estate firm? You’ve landed in the right place as this industry is expected to grow 20% in the next 10 years.

Logistics and e-commerce | 84,000 employees

Given that we’re situated within a day’s drive of multiple major cities, Louisville is a natural hub for logistics and e-commerce fulfillment — especially due to the presence of UPS Worldport (more on that later).

Aside from airline cargo transportation, there are 6,800 miles of railroad that run through Kentucky and Indiana.

DYK: 200+ companies have relocated to our region due to UPS.

Advanced manufacturing | 82,000 employees

With 1,300+ manufacturing firms crafting goods from electrical components to appliances, Louisville has a rich tradition of manufacturing excellence. Zooming out, ~260,000 Kentuckians work in a manufacturing facility.
LET’S MEET THE MAJOR PLAYERS
Louisville Airport

Click here to have your event featured.

Today
  • COPPÉLIA | Thurs., Oct. 6-Sat., Oct. 8 | 7:30 p.m. | The Brown Theatre, 315 W. Broadway | $39.20+ | Catch autumn vibes at this localized version of the 1870 comic ballet set in Louisville’s Germantown. 🩰
Friday
  • 2022 Belknap Fall Festival | Fri., Oct. 7 | 6-11 p.m. | Historic Douglass Loop | Free | Shop vendor booths + enjoy live music, a family fun zone, and food trucks.
  • October Spooktacular: Showing “Hocus Pocus” (1993) | Fri., Oct. 7 | 7:30 p.m. | The Louisville Palace | $8 | Enter the world of the Sanderson sisters on the big screen during this screening of the 1993 Halloween movie classic. 🎥
Saturday
  • 3rd Birthday Weekend Celebration | Sat., Oct. 8 | 11 a.m.-11 p.m. | Logan Street Market | Free | Throw axes, dance in a silent disco + more at this three-year anniversary celebration. 🕺
  • Free Tree Giveaway | Sat., Oct. 8 | 9 a.m.-12 p.m. | Louisville Zoo | Free | Get your hands on a free, one-gallon tree to plant at home from varieties like redbud, pecan, serviceberry + more. 🌳
  • Paristown Fall Art Fair | Sat., Oct. 8-Sun., Oct. 9 | 10 a.m.-7 p.m. | Paristown Arts & Entertainment District, 731 Brent St. | Free | Peruse artists + vendors throughout the outdoor spaces of Paristown.
Sunday
Monday
  • World Mental Health Day: STOP THE STIGMA | Mon., Oct. 10 | 6-8 p.m. | The Frazier History Museum | Free | Explore the world of mental health in a judgement-free environment with experts from the community.
Wednesday
  • Booooooooze Happy Hour | Wed., Oct. 12 | 6:30-8:30 p.m. | Louisville Zoo | $35 | Get two drink tickets, tasty appetizers + a special bourbon treat.

We have a monthly guide filled with events + activities you can plan for in advance. Click the button below to bookmark ideas for upcoming date nights, family outings, and time with friends.
100+ MORE EVENTS
6AM City In-house

Celebrate World Smile Day with a smile you’re proud of
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You’ll receive regular virtual Smile Check-ins™ to touch base on your progress. | Photo by Smile Direct Club
Everyone should love their smile. Enter: SmileDirectClub, the easiest way to straighten your teeth in just 4-6 months — for 60% less than Invisalign or braces. 👀

Here’s how it works:
  • Scan your smile with either an at-home kit or an in-person visit
  • Receive a customized treatment plan from a state-licensed doctor
  • Start your journey with custom aligners (22-hour-wear or Nighttime Aligners™, depending on your needs)
Best of all, your results are guaranteed for life. 🦷 *
PUT A STRAIGHTER SMILE ON YOUR FACE

Weather
  • 79º | Partly cloudy | 0% chance of rain
Open
  • Today is the day. Spring Street Bar & Grill is now open. The bar’s grand opening weekend begins today + it will be open daily from 11-4 a.m. The bar closed in 2020, but regulars will be pleased to see that the space at 300 S. Spring St. hasn’t changed much under new ownership.
  • Vinaigrette Salad Kitchen opened another new location in the 502 in the Paddock Shops at 4037 Summit Plaza Dr. — bringing its total restaurant count in Derby City to three. To celebrate, the salad kitchen will be offering giveaways and raffles all week. 🥗 (WAVE)
Civic
  • All TARC buses will be fare-free on Election Day, Tues., Nov. 8, to help Louisvillians get to their polling locations. Polls will be open from 6 a.m.-6 p.m. + the deadline to register to vote is Tues., Oct. 11. Check your polling location. 🚌 (WDRB)
Try This
  • The Louisville Downtown Partnership + Louisville Independent Business Alliance will host a new night market series on the second Thursday of each month — with its first event taking place on Oct. 13. The markets will be held on S. Fourth St. between Guthrie and Chestnut and feature food trucks, retailers, and live music. (WLKY)
Drink
  • Forget the lattes, Off the Rails Tasting Room and Wine Depot in West Buechel is offering fall wine slushies for $8 — and it’s not the only spot in the city offering you a boozy taste of the season. Check out these five places to sip pumpkin beer + fall cocktails. (The Courier-Journal)
  • Pregame Coffee is giving parents the ultimate pre-carpool line pregame with a new parents’ happy hour from 12-3 p.m., Mon.-Fri. That means you can get your oat milk latte + a biscuit sandwich you don’t have to share at 20% off. The deal is brewing at 1737 Frankfort Ave. ☕
Plan Ahead
  • Local vintage group Hard Times Collective will host its Moon Market on Sat., Nov. 12 at TEN20 Craft Brewery in Butchertown from 4-8 p.m. The evening will include tarot card readings, an autumnal photoshoot , and vintage vendors + makers selling wares. 🌙
Watch
  • The Kentucky Science Center will be screening horror films from Black producers + directors this month — including Jordan Peele’s new release “Nope” on Fri., Oct. 14. Its movie series culminates with a screening of “Candyman” on Fri., Oct. 21 as part of its adults-only Eat, Drink, and Do Spooky Science series.
Seasonal
  • The Ultimate Halloween Fest is hosting a month’s worth of spooktivities at Pope Lick Park. On Fridays, a storyteller from Actor’s Theatre will recount the legend of the Pope Lick Monster with a magic show after + it will host “Creature Feature” scary movies on its 40-ft inflatable screen on Saturdays. 🎃 (WAVE)
Announced
  • By becoming a LOUtoday member, you’ll directly support our mission of offering our newsletter, social content, and website access for free to all Louisvillians (read: no pesky paywalls). Learn more + sign up.
Job
  • Coldwell Banker McMahan is seeking candidates for its New Licensee program, which provides training, mentoring, and coaching to individuals who want to establish their own successful real estate business. For consideration, email your resume to Lesley DePaola, Career Development Director.*
Outdoors
  • Notice an uptick in any of these feathered friends in your backyard lately? Keep them safe from colliding with your windows — a cause of death for millions of birds each year — by throwing up some decals like these. We love these leaf designs too to keep things festive for fall.*
Content marked with an * is brought to you by our advertising partners and helps make this newsletter free.

Spread your spooky wings

Bat Appreciation Month in Louisville, KY
A bat hangs upside down on a leafy bow, wings slightly folded.
The big brown bat can be found as far south as Venezuela. | Photo via Pexels
It’s Bat Appreciation Month, or as we like to call it — Bat-ober. Bats’ affinity for bug cuisine makes them a natural pesticide + they save the agricultural industry billions of dollars each year in pesticides.

There are 15 bats that call Kentucky their home, but let’s take a look at just a few that can be found near the Derby City:

🦇 Big brown bat | Among the largest of Kentucky’s bats, these big browns average at four to five inches in length and can eat a third of its weight in one night.

🦇 Eastern small-footed bat | Like its name suggests, this bat is among the smallest of its region. It’s also relatively rare and can be identified by its black ears and muzzle.

🦇 Evening bat | These beetle-eating bats coexist well with humans and their appetite for Japanese beetles can save your garden from infestation.

Bonus: Flap over to the Kentucky Bat Festival on Sat., Oct. 22.
THE WRAP
Today’s issue was written by City Editor Sarah.
Editor’s pick: There are a lot of restaurants in the city that I love, but my feelings for bar Vetti transcend the written word. So, you can imagine my delight this weekend when I tried its new pumpkin spice pancakes for brunch.
It reminds me, we’re going to be adding on to our brunch guide — and I’ve already got dibs on bar Vetti — so I need you to tell me whose brunch makes you do backflips so we can add them to our list. Dish them out here.
Missed yesterday’s newsletter? Take a sip of this new-to-market coffee shop opening here.
Connect with us.

Editorial: Sarah Shadburne, Katie Molck, Jessalin Heins-Nagamoto, Kaylee Holland, Ashlea Hearn, Emily Shea | Send us a scoop, question, or feedback.


Sales: Mandey Lee | Advertise with us.


Content marked with an * was created in partnership with 6AM City’s advertising partners. Paid content helps keep this newsletter free. 6AM City may also receive a commission on purchases made through affiliate links in this newsletter.


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