Bebbington Industries is a Nova Scotia based company that manufactures, distributes and stores chemicals and cleaning supplies. Bebbington Industries was established in 1990 by Tony Bebbington, and is still managed and operated by him. Since being established as a warehouse in the early 90’s, Bebbington Industries has expanded the location to include a retail front that allows day-to-day shoppers to stop by the store and purchase products. Tony established the company with a handful of financial partners, including his wife, but has been the sole manager and decision maker ever since.
Bebbington Industries has seen sizeable expansion in its 23 years of operation. Upon beginning the venture, Tony had two employees of whom one was a chemist, and the other being a general laborer (packaging, receiving & shipping, cleaning). In the present day Bebbington Industries employs eight full time staff and Colin Bebbington (Tony’s son) who works part time based on work availability.
Bebbington Industries originally started out purchasing chemical products and ingredients in wholesale, packaging these items and re-distributing them to local businesses. As the company began to grow, Tony put his background in chemistry to use, developing a novelty product called Down East. Down East included a variety of cleaning supplies such as dish and laundry detergent, all purpose cleaner and hand soaps. The Down East product differentiates itself from similar products due to it being an environmentally friendly solution. All Down East products are made using biodegradable ingredients that are free of artificial scents and colors. Down East being biodegradable also allows for the disposal of the product to be much more inexpensive and safe to the environment compared to typical cleaning products.
The introduction of Down East products significantly boosted the sales for Bebbington Industries, doubling their operating revenue over a span of 3 years. In the present day, Down East products account for over 70% of the revenue generated by Bebbington Industries.
Besides just adding a retail area in the front of the warehouse, Tony has also expanded the warehouse by constructing an upper level and a truck-sized garage door entrance to allow for larger shipments to be received and shipped. By increasing the capacity space of the location, this has allowed for Bebbington Industries to form new revenue generating procedures. One of these procedures is in-house packaging and labeling for companies that choose to outsource these tasks. Tony has invested in expensive capital assets that include machines that package, label and mix mass amounts of products. This has allowed Bebbington Industries to introduce new business units by taking on work from other companies. This additional revenue-generating unit (RGU) has worked out well for Bebbington Industries. Tony has had several orders for his warehouse and employees to complete, and at times has resulted in back orders and a shortage of employees to complete the tasks on schedule. This has forced Tony to reach out to family and family friends in order to complete the orders (task forces). Since Tony is the sole operational manager of the company, it has resulted in poor operations at time and even operating above capacity.
Bebbington Industries target market upon entering the marketplace was hospitals and industrial businesses. Bebbington Industries target market has varied in the 20 plus years of operation and would consider the target market today to be environmentally and budget conscious consumers. The Down East products that Bebbington Industries manufactures and produces are all biodegradable and free of scents and harmful chemicals, making the product safe for use by children and people with scent related allergies. Bebbington Industries target demographic would be a middle-aged budget conscious, and environmentally concerned citizen.
Competition from larger firms has resulted in Bebbington Industries losing HRM School Board contracts as well as local clinics and hospitals. Bebbington Industries had faced a decline in revenue due to economies of scale, but the introduction of the Down East products successfully allowed the company to regain most of the declines in revenue. Although the company does not hold a significant market share in the nations cleaning supply market, Bebbington Industries has found a niche market in the Atlantic Provinces that has allowed the company to be sustainable. A recent contract with larger retailers such as Sobey’s and Superstore has significantly added brand power for the Down East products, which has created a barrier against competitors.
Bebbington Industries has been recognized not only locally but also nationwide. Bebbington Industries was the first Canadian company to receive Eco-Certification for laundry and cleaning supplies, as well as receiving a national award from the Canadian Council of Ministers of Environment (CCME) regarding their recycling programs and sustainability efforts in pollution prevention (Bebbington, 2013). Mr. Bebbington prides the company on being Nova Scotia based, using local producers as much as possible for the supplies he uses in his products.
Although Bebbington Industries has seen success during its 23 years of operation, the company has near climaxed in terms of revenue, as the company is operating at full capacity.
Bebbington Industries has seen sizeable expansion in its 23 years of operation. Upon beginning the venture, Tony had two employees of whom one was a chemist, and the other being a general laborer (packaging, receiving & shipping, cleaning). In the present day Bebbington Industries employs eight full time staff and Colin Bebbington (Tony’s son) who works part time based on work availability.
Bebbington Industries originally started out purchasing chemical products and ingredients in wholesale, packaging these items and re-distributing them to local businesses. As the company began to grow, Tony put his background in chemistry to use, developing a novelty product called Down East. Down East included a variety of cleaning supplies such as dish and laundry detergent, all purpose cleaner and hand soaps. The Down East product differentiates itself from similar products due to it being an environmentally friendly solution. All Down East products are made using biodegradable ingredients that are free of artificial scents and colors. Down East being biodegradable also allows for the disposal of the product to be much more inexpensive and safe to the environment compared to typical cleaning products.
The introduction of Down East products significantly boosted the sales for Bebbington Industries, doubling their operating revenue over a span of 3 years. In the present day, Down East products account for over 70% of the revenue generated by Bebbington Industries.
Besides just adding a retail area in the front of the warehouse, Tony has also expanded the warehouse by constructing an upper level and a truck-sized garage door entrance to allow for larger shipments to be received and shipped. By increasing the capacity space of the location, this has allowed for Bebbington Industries to form new revenue generating procedures. One of these procedures is in-house packaging and labeling for companies that choose to outsource these tasks. Tony has invested in expensive capital assets that include machines that package, label and mix mass amounts of products. This has allowed Bebbington Industries to introduce new business units by taking on work from other companies. This additional revenue-generating unit (RGU) has worked out well for Bebbington Industries. Tony has had several orders for his warehouse and employees to complete, and at times has resulted in back orders and a shortage of employees to complete the tasks on schedule. This has forced Tony to reach out to family and family friends in order to complete the orders (task forces). Since Tony is the sole operational manager of the company, it has resulted in poor operations at time and even operating above capacity.
Bebbington Industries target market upon entering the marketplace was hospitals and industrial businesses. Bebbington Industries target market has varied in the 20 plus years of operation and would consider the target market today to be environmentally and budget conscious consumers. The Down East products that Bebbington Industries manufactures and produces are all biodegradable and free of scents and harmful chemicals, making the product safe for use by children and people with scent related allergies. Bebbington Industries target demographic would be a middle-aged budget conscious, and environmentally concerned citizen.
Competition from larger firms has resulted in Bebbington Industries losing HRM School Board contracts as well as local clinics and hospitals. Bebbington Industries had faced a decline in revenue due to economies of scale, but the introduction of the Down East products successfully allowed the company to regain most of the declines in revenue. Although the company does not hold a significant market share in the nations cleaning supply market, Bebbington Industries has found a niche market in the Atlantic Provinces that has allowed the company to be sustainable. A recent contract with larger retailers such as Sobey’s and Superstore has significantly added brand power for the Down East products, which has created a barrier against competitors.
Bebbington Industries has been recognized not only locally but also nationwide. Bebbington Industries was the first Canadian company to receive Eco-Certification for laundry and cleaning supplies, as well as receiving a national award from the Canadian Council of Ministers of Environment (CCME) regarding their recycling programs and sustainability efforts in pollution prevention (Bebbington, 2013). Mr. Bebbington prides the company on being Nova Scotia based, using local producers as much as possible for the supplies he uses in his products.
Although Bebbington Industries has seen success during its 23 years of operation, the company has near climaxed in terms of revenue, as the company is operating at full capacity.