With the advantage of wide-open spaces, and relatively thin population compared to Toronto, North York was attractive to firms wanting to establish offices and plants.
One of the most notable was IBM Canada, which had its manufacturing plant and head office on a huge campus at the north-west corner of Don Mills Road and Eglinton Avenue East. The first building of this complex was opened in 1951. It was located at 844 Don Mills Road and was designed by Clare G. MacLean. Built in the Moderne Style, there was a 1954 extension and additions in 1970 and 1981. A second building at 1150 Eglinton Avenue East opened in 1967, and this became the new IBM Canada headquarters. Designed by John B. Parkin Associates in the Late Modern style, it was added to in 1970-71. In 1994 IBM left its Don Mills home and relocated to Steeles Avenue. The building at 844 Don Mills was then occupied by Celestica, a subsidiary of IBM. The Celestica campus, comprising 60.5 acres, was sold in 2019, and will be redeveloped as part of the new Eglinton Crosstown community.
Other companies also established themselves in North York adding to the growth and prosperity of the Township. The offices and plants of many of them were characterized by architecture with a low, spreading profile that epitomized the suburban aesthetic.
Designed by John B. Parkin Associates and completed in 1965, the Bata building was demolished in 2007 to make way for the Aga Khan Museum and Ismaili Centre.
