Colonel's Inc. is off to the races. The privately held, Milan, Mich., maker of plastic aftermarket car bumpers is becoming a subsidiary of a publicly traded company that operates a car raceway in Brainerd, Minn. The owner of Colonel's, Donald J. Williamson, purchased a majority share in the raceway firm in September. On Dec. 15 the firms signed a letter of intent to make Colonel's a subsidiary of Brainerd International Inc.
One result of the deal could be unprecedented public disclosure of data about Colonel's, which is closely held by Williamson and his wife, Patsy L. Williamson. For example, Colonel's 1993 sales were listed at about $25 million in a news release from Brainerd International.
Brainerd International Raceway is a 500-acre motor sports facility. Its sales for the nine months ended Sept. 30 were $2.37 million.
Colonel's runs a bumper factory in Milan with eight injection presses and six reaction injection molding machines, and has manufacturing plants in West Memphis, Ark., and Sarasota, Fla.
Colonel's is expanding in plastics processing. Donald Williamson recently won a zoning change that will allow him to open a truck bedliner factory north of Flint, Mich., in Mount Morris Township. That sheet extrusion and thermoforming plant will be located in a former Buick dealership he also owns.
Officials of both companies could not be reached for comment last week.
Brainerd International announced in September that Williamson bought about 72 percent of Brainerd International's outstanding shares from two executive officers and directors of the company.
On Dec. 15, Brainerd International announced that it would issue an as-yet-undetermined number of shares of its common stock to Colonel's.
The proposed combination is expected to be consummated following the annual meeting of Brainerd International shareholders this year.
