Photo / ImmuCell.com
July 22, 2019
Quality of life
7 businesses that should be on your radar
Here are seven companies that are poised for greater recognition both inside Maine and in a wider context. Let’s take out of the discussion Maine’s three largest publicly traded companies — Covetrus, IDEXX Laboratories and WEX Inc. These are companies that have shown they’re well run, have an innovative product and have demonstrated growth.
ImmuCell, Portland
In a veterinary field where larger companies like IDEXX and Covetrus (formerly Vets First Choice) tend to get the headlines, Portland-based ImmuCell has been quietly plugging along, creating purity tests used by the dairy industry. Led by CEO Michael Brigham, ImmuCell has raised outside capital and expanded its headquarters. It’s now poised for the next level of growth.
Photo / findthelostkitchen.com
Lost Kitchen, Freedom
Situated in a restored mill in Freedom, in rural Waldo County, Chef Erin French’s restaurant arguably has more of a fan base outside of Maine, based in part on glowing stories in the New York Times, Food & Wine, Forbes and “The Today Show.” The seasonal restaurant only takes reservations by postcard and by mid-April is booked for the year.
Photo / Tim Greenway
Tilson, Portland
A Portland-based technology firm whose niche is the towers and hardware needed for cell and broadband connectivity. Based in a new headquarters in the city’s East End, Tilson has been expanding rapidly and now has more than 400 Maine employees, and others nationwide.
Bissell Bros., Portland
Photo / bissellbrothers.com
While Allagash Beer Co. and Maine Beer Co. deservedly grab a lot of attention, Portland-based Bissell Bros. has been a local’s beer, one whose bumper stickers you see on Maine cars. Its Swish brew was rated No. 2 on Beer Advocate’s best Maine brews list, between Maine Beer’s Dinner and Allagash’s Coolship Red. Owners Peter and Noah Bissell paid tribute to their hometown of Milo by opening a brewpub, giving the town a much-needed economic jolt.
Bixby & Co., Rockland
Photo / BixbyCo.com
The Rockland-based makers of Bixby Bars, an organic chocolate bar, were already in hundreds of supermarkets. Now the company is entering into the arena of premium chocolates. To help customers understand the process chocolate goes through, it landed a grant from the Maine Technology Institute to create “Bean to Bar,” an interactive presentation shown to walk-in visitors at the company’s headquarters.
GO Lab, Belfast
Photo / Golab.us
This Belfast firm has been a jack of all trades in the area of high-performance housing and passive houses. For more than a decade, it has been designing and building super-efficient houses. Now, with grants from the Maine Technology Institute and U.S. Forest Service, it is developing an advanced insulation product used with a simple product: softwood chips, available in abundance in Maine. It plans to retrofit the former Madison paper mill to create the insulation.
Photo / Geiger.com
Geiger, Lewiston
The Lewiston promotional products company reported 2017 North American promotional products revenue of $185.5 million and has been in expansion mode, buying smaller events and promotions companies. Geiger has 400 employees and operates from offices across the United States and Europe. It is affiliated with more than 450 independent sales representatives. It also owns an old-school business in the Farmers’ Almanac, which has been published since 1818.
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