Industry expanding
By NATHAN TAYLOR The Packet & Times
Posted 11 months ago
Canadians will soon be able to buy Orillia-made environmentally friendly garbage bags in large retail outlets across the country.
Polyethics Industries announced Wednesday it had purchased the assets of Wisconsin-based Mid America Bag. The result will be a boon for both the business and the city.
The acquisition will result in an expected 70% increase in sales and an additional 25 jobs at Polyethics' Orillia facility on Forest Avenue North. Most of the jobs will be on the manufacturing line, and some will be management positions.
Prior to the purchase — a deal that closed Monday — Mid America Bag had product on the shelves of the largest retailers in Canada, including Rona, Home Hardware, Home Depot and Wal-Mart. It's a new market for Polyethics, which has been supplying its oxo-biodegradable bags, made of recycled material, to janitorial and other businesses, "but we've never been able to crack the retail," said company president Derek Rynard.
Such a move would have required a more significant investment of marketing and advertising dollars.
"This puts us into that marketplace without having to build from ground zero," Rynard said.
With the industry struggling, he added, consolidation and acquisition are often in the best interest of individual companies and the industry as a whole.
"We are looking at other acquisitions. Growth through acquisitions right now, we believe, presents the best opportunity."
Polyethics was established locally in 1991. Rynard purchased the company nine years ago, when there were about 45 employees. There are now more than 100 members of the company's Orillia workforce.
The deal with Mid America Bag allows Rynard to bring further expansion back to Orillia. After a rocky ride with the city led to strained relations, Rynard announced early in 2010 he would expand his operations in Newmarket, not in his hometown of Orillia.
"It's satisfying to all of us," he said of the additional jobs being created in town. "We're all from Orillia. We just felt for a period of time that it was an us-against-them mentality. Whether that was true… is up for discussion."
He is encouraged by the new mayor and council, who have "reached out" to the business.
All Mid America Bag business is expected to be transferred to Orillia within a couple of weeks.
In a press release, Rynard commended his employees for their work over the past two decades.
"Their belief in our long-term business plan and their ability to execute it as a team has been instrumental in our success."
ntaylor@orilliapacket.com
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