After a quarter-century in business, John Hinds got an offer he couldn't refuse.
In March the veteran distributor sold his firm - Hinds Co. Inc. of Barberton, Ohio - to Ravago NV, a major European distributor, compounder and recycler based in Arendonk, Belgium. The transaction price was not disclosed.
``[Ravago] made the right offer and they were the right company to enhance our business and let us continue to grow,'' Hinds said by phone recently. ``We can build on each other's strengths.''
Hinds Co. posted sales of about $50 million last year, selling about 150 million pounds of polystyrene, polyethylene and polypropylene. About 80 percent of its product is off- or wide-spec. The firm employs three and has a 60,000-square-foot warehouse.
Hinds said the company will continue to operate under its own name, and he plans to stay ``as long as it's enjoyable.''
Ravago operates a distribution, compounding and recycling center in Hempstead, Texas, as Ravago America Corp. Globally, Ravago's annual sales are about $850 million. It began distributing prime PE for the rotomolding market in 1999. Officials with Ravago could not be reached for comment.
Ravago's North American products will be marketed with Hinds' in some cases, Hinds said.
``We're pooling where it makes sense,'' he said.
Ravago also has an ownership stake in Entec Polymers, an engineering resins distributor in Maitland, Fla. Entec President David Der Hagopian said his firm has not been affected by Ravago's acquisition of Hinds.
``We're not combining our product lines,'' he said. ``We're into prime grades of engineering resins, while Hinds has always been more into commodities.''