Felstow sees 'powerful' potential for women in plastics

Imlay City, Mich. — Coleen Felstow used to joke about how her career path led to her becoming president and majority owner of a plastics injection molding company.

"People would always say, 'How did you end up in the plastics industry.' I would get that question a lot. I liked to answer, 'Well, it's been a dream of mine since I've been a little girl.' I always got a laugh for that one."

Kidding aside, Felstow is an evangelist for plastics manufacturing. She was particularly excited to network with women at the recent Plastics News Women Breaking the Mold event in Nashville, Tenn.

"You don't think of manufacturing or plastics as being glamorous careers. But I think that is starting to change. Hopefully younger women will see that. It is powerful to be in this industry," she said.

"My dad worked at Chrysler for 36 years, and he was a foreman in Sterling Heights, [Mich.] there in the stamping plant. I just was brought up with respect for manufacturing," she said. "Manufacturing is really what makes the economy work."

Felstow is president and majority owner of Imlay City Molded Products Corp., a custom injection molder in Imlay City, which is about 55 miles north of Detroit. She started her career as a certified public accountant and got into plastics in 1998 as chief financial officer for a similarly named company, Imlay City Plastics Inc.

At the time, Imlay City Plastics (ICP) had a few hundred employees, posted annual sales of about $25 million and actually had too much work to handle. So Felstow and nine other ICP managers started up Imlay City Molded Products (ICMP) in 2000 to handle some of the overflow. The two companies shared some common ownership.

In 2004, ICP lost a big contract for wire harness covers when a customer moved the work to Mexico. ICP shut down, but ICMP continued and absorbed some ICP employees.

After a few years, the general manager of ICMP retired, so Felstow stepped into that role. In 2017, she became the majority shareholder. That's when she started to pursue a new strategy highlighting the company's status as a certified woman-owned business.

ICMP earned national certification as a Women's Business Enterprise by the Great Lakes Women's Business Council, a regional certifying partner of the Women's Business Enterprise National Council, in March 2017.

"We did a press release and notified all of our customers, and I kind of thought business was going to just flow in after that. But I do know it takes more than that. It takes networking and connecting and establishing relationships. And who better to do that than me? And I can already see my efforts will definitely pay off," she said.

Felstow said her background as a CPA can also be a competitive advantage.

"Well, I think we run a tight ship; we have a really good team here that has been with me. We've been through lot of ups and downs, and everybody just seems to get that and understand that when things do get a little tighter, we just really watch the bottom line," she said.

Felstow declined to provide sales figures, but ICMP has 11 injection presses ranging in size from 75-1,000 tons of clamping force. Key end markets include recreational vehicles, automotive and consumer goods.

The company has 30 employees and runs three shifts, five days a week. Felstow said ICMP has a strong corporate culture, and she pointed to the near-zero employee turnover the past two years.

"People here take a lot of pride in what they do. We've had the same management team since day one and many long-term loyal employees. And our turnover is extremely low," she said.

Does she think being owned and managed by a woman makes a difference?

"It could. At the Women Breaking the Mold conference, some speakers said that, obviously women and men operate differently, but doesn't mean that one is right and one is wrong. But women tend to be a little more empathetic and compassionate. And that's not a bad thing. Employees want to know that you care about them," she said.

Visitors to the factory are likely to be greeted by Felstow's dog, Louie, an energetic 18-month-old, 12-pound Cavapoo. That's a mix of a Cavalier King Charles spaniel and a miniature poodle.

"Everyone loves him. I picked him up from the breeder, and the very next day I brought them to work. So this is all he's ever known. And he's super friendly. He's the mascot. I walk in and everyone says, 'Louie is here!' They say hi to the dog. And it's fun to see softening of some people when they get around a dog," she said.

ICMP handles both long and short production runs and likes to work with startups on new projects. The company has staff with engineering expertise who can help with designing, prototyping and launching products.

So what keeps her up at night?

"I would say as an owner of a company, the buck stops with me. So there's a lot of responsibility. That comes with that position. However, I wouldn't have it any other way," Felstow said.

"I would say the biggest thing for me is growing the business, through existing customers and new business, so we can continue to impact the world of manufacturing together — with my loyal hardworking employees — to continue to have a great place to work and thrive."

Education: Bachelor's degree in accounting from Wayne State University.

In her spare time: Reading, boating, exercising, walking her pet Cavapoo, Louie.

Recent favorite book: The Power of Positive Leadership by Jon Gordon.

Guilty pleasure: Watching Christmas movies on the Hallmark Channel.

Personal: Married 26 years to Dan, a partner with UHY LLP. Son Jake is 25 and plays drums in a popular band in Minneapolis. Daughter Sam is 22 and works at an advertising agency.