Khine Alkhal and her Emmaus-based store, Khineder Creations. was the subject of one of the most-read LVEDC blog posts of 2018.

Last week, the Lehigh Valley Economic Development Corporation (LVEDC) shared some of the biggest economic development success stories from the year 2018. Now we’d like to share the stories that most caught our readers’ attention throughout the year.

Below are the 10 most-read stories of the year from the LVEDC blog, according to our analytics, in order of their publication date:

January 4: Emmaus Beauty Products Store Culminates From a Decade of Humanitarian Work

The guest speaker of the year’s first entry in the Lehigh Valley Launchbox Ladies event series, Khine Alkhal started Khineder Creations, her Emmaus-based chemical-free bath and beauty products store as a culmination of more than a decade of work as a humanitarian and philanthropist.

February 15: California-Based Tech Company Opens East Coast Branch in Easton

Hagai Feiner had long planned an East Coast office for his California-based tech company Access Networks, and upon visiting Easton for the first time, he knew it was the right place.

April 23: Lehigh Valley Tracts Proposed for New Qualified Opportunity Zones

Pennsylvania Governor Tom Wolf announced that 14 census tracts in the Lehigh Valley were included in his proposed list of Pennsylvania tracts submitted to the federal government for the newly-created Qualified Opportunity Zones.

June 15: AblePay Health Opens Office in Downtown Bethlehem

This company, which works with its customers to help them save money on out-of-pocket deductibles and co-insurance, held a ribbon-cutting ceremony for its new downtown Bethlehem office and headquarters this past summer.

June 28: Southside Bethlehem is ‘Booming’ with Development Projects

The economic rejuvenation of South Side Bethlehem could be traced back to a few key development decisions going back as far as two decades, according to this event held by the Greater Lehigh Valley Chamber of Commerce.

July 17: Air Products Announces New Global Headquarters in the Lehigh Valley

Reaffirming its commitment to the Lehigh Valley, Air Products announced this summer that its new global headquarters will remain in the region, in a new spot in Upper Macungie Township not far from its existing location.

July 31: Air Liquide Expands in Lehigh Valley, Creating and Retaining Nearly 270 Jobs

Air Liquide, a manufacturer of specialty chemicals in the semi-conductor business and the world’s largest industrial gas company by revenue, has expanded its operations in the Lehigh Valley, a move that created and retained a total of nearly 270 jobs.

August 31: Bethlehem Vo-Tech Says New Welding Lab Will Help Meet Growing Labor Demands

Not too many ribbon-cuttings require the use of a gas torch to get through the ribbon, but that was the cas when the Bethlehem Area Vocational-Technical School unveiled their new welding lab, which will allow the school to meet the growing labor market demands of the 21st century.

September 25: Lehigh Valley Business Incubator Space Currently Available

As part of our mission to help businesses come, grow, and start here, LVEDC does a round-up each quarter of available business incubator space in the Lehigh Valley.

September 28: Manufacturing Driving Regional Growth as Lehigh Valley GDP Reaches Record-High $40.1 Billion

The $40.1 billion regional GDP for 2017 is about a 5 percent increase over the previous year, and growth in manufacturing was responsible for about 36 percent of that year-over-year growth, according to the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Economic Analysis.