Jack Ouellette knows that he is fortunate to be in charge of a company with rich history and he takes pride in celebrating that fact. In 2010, American Textile Co. celebrated 85 years of business. The company made a day out of it. Employees at the Pittsburgh facility brought their families and they enjoyed food, costumes and false store fronts that would have been in vogue in 1925. While celebrating where you came from is certainly important, looking forward is critical, as well. Ouellette, CEO of the 325-employee company, knows that he has to keep his eye on the future in order to stay in business for another 85 years and beyond.
In 2005, Ouellette saw that the company was becoming too one-dimensional. So he did what any CEO would do: He looked for ways to expand the business and break out of a stagnant slump by focusing on the company’s core competencies.
“We have intentionally been looking to grow the business,” Ouellette says. “We did that by looking around and asking ourselves, ‘What products are similar to the ones that we currently are involved in?’ It’s using all of the same skills that we have in basic mattress covers and pillow covers to make these items. We felt that there was a tremendous tie-in and a high correlation between those items and sleeping pillows.”
Here’s how Ouellette expanded into a new market by utilizing existing competencies and more than tripled revenue between 2007 and today.
