Recent Activity
Growth Partnership for Ashtabula County has been active in the community. Please look here to see what great things are happening in Ashtabula County.
*Growth Partnership's Oil & Gas Seminar Draws 180 Attendees
The Growth Partnership hosted Ashtabula County's first seminar focused on opportunities for local businesses in the shale oil and gas industry. Over 180 business representatives and government officials attended the event at SPIRE Institute. Below are links to the presentations given by the featured speakers.
Chris Jaskiewicz, Senior Vice President/COO, VEC, Inc.
Mark Matusic, Manager of Corporate Development, Chesapeake Energy Corporation
Rhonda Reda, Executive Director, Ohio Oil and Gas Energy Education Program
Linda Woggon, Executive Vice President, Ohio Shale Coalition
The Growth Partnership for Ashtabula County hosted the 24th Annual Best of the County Awards on Tuesday, September 18 at SPIRE Institute. During the course of the evening 16 businesses, organizations and individuals were featured for their contributions to Ashtabula County.
Award winners and finalists in the following categories were highlighted in this year's program:
Lifetime Achievement Award Winner
- Steve Walling, Former President & CEO, Plasticolors
Business Excellence Awards
Businesses With Fewer Than 50 Employees
- Winner: Apple Heating and Cooling
- Finalists: Austinburg Veterinary Clinic, White Turkey
Businesses With 50-150 Employees
- Winner: The Andover Bank
- Finalists: Future Controls/Titan Aircraft, Gabriel Performance Products
Businesses With More Than 150 Employees
Winner: Chromaflo Technologies
Finalists: Glenbeigh, The Composites Group
The George H. Kaull Award for Entrepreneurship
- Winner: The Lakehouse Inn and Winery
- Finalists: Ron Marchewka, Donniella Winchell
Community Impact Award
- Winner: LEADERship Ashtabula County
- Finalists: Friends of the Harpersfield Covered Bridge Park, Hospice of the Western Reserve
*Wholesale Imprints of North Kingsville Expands
John Ringer, Jr., President of Wholesale Imprints, Inc. is pleased to announce a 3,360 square foot addition at the business, which is located at 6259 Hewitt Lane in North Kingsville. This addition will house the shipping and receiving department and allow more production space in the old shipping and receiving area for a new production line for the company's largest customer. Three new jobs will be created in the next 12-18 months bringing the total number of employees at this small business to 21.
*Ashtabula County Business Seminar
On Thursday, June 21 the Ashtabula business community had the opportunity to learn about support in acquiring government contracts and exporting goods at the Lodge and Conference Center at Geneva-on-the-Lake. Ashtabula County, KeyBank, the Ashtabula County 503, Andover Bank, the Ashtabula County Port Authority, and Growth Partnership sponsored The Ashtabula County Business Exporting and Government Contracts Seminar that hosted speakers from both the Northeast Ohio Procurement Technical Assistance Center (PTAC) at Lakeland and the U.S. Department of Commerce.Belinda Sheridan, Director of the Northeast Ohio PTAC discussed how they serve businesses seeking government contracts by aiding in the entire procurement process, including, bid matching, bid preparation, website training, certification assistance, registration assistance, and capabilities statements.
Susan Whitney, Director of the Cleveland office of the U.S. Commercial Service, U.S. Department of Commerce offered assistance with exporting goods by having offices throughout the United States and in U.S. Embassies and consulates in nearly 80 countries. Susan and her colleagues can aide in planning and strategy, legal and regulatory issues, documentation and product requirements, country commercial guides, customized market research background reports and much, much more.
Growth Partnership for Ashtabula County is excited to have assisted in the process of Arsenal Capital Partners, a leading New York-based private equity firm that invests in middle-market specialty industrial, healthcare, and financial services companies, acquiring of Plasticolors, Inc. Growth Partnership worked hand in hand with both the State and Local Government and Plasticolors management to see that the headquarters for Chromaflo Technologies, Inc. would be located here in Ashtabula County. With Arsenal Capital Partners acquisition of not only Plasticolors but, Evonik Industries' Colortrend, another global colorants business, Chromaflo Technologies, is now the largest independent global pigment dispersion platform in the world.
The 150 jobs Plasticolors brought to the merger will be retained and at least 50 new jobs will be created over the next three to five years.
*Growth Partnership Assists Rock Creek Business with ExpansionJ&M Welding of Rock Creek Village is expanding and Growth Partnership for Ashtabula County assisted with the project by walking owner, Joe Blaha, Sr. through the Enterprise Zone Tax Incentive process.
Mr. Blaha is adding a 3,000 square foot addition at his East Water Street shop which will allow more work space and the hiring of one new employee. The addition comes with a $50,000 price tag and the annual savings (for a five year period) of $780 will allow Mr. Blaha to continue to invest in his business and employees.
J&M Welding was founded in 1982 by Joe Blaha and his wife Mary and has been an excellent corporate neighbor for 30 years.