Maureen Wallenfang
Appleton Post-Crescent
Published 7:55 AM EST Dec 16, 2019
Midwest Workwear in Kaukauna was put up for sale earlier this year when owner Don Grissman, 68, decided it was time to retire.
His successful $3 million business sells rugged workwear, from bibs to coats, along with OSHA-mandated work clothing like high-visibility and flame-resistant apparel. Eighty percent of the company’s sales are done over the internet, and national accounts have included names like Google and Boeing.
The company also has a popular local retail store at 166 W. Wisconsin Ave. in Kaukauna that draws shoppers from all over the state for its huge selection of Carhartt clothes and high-visibility vests and shirts.
The company is successful because it has low prices combined with a customized approach that can accommodate orders of any size. Grissman also imported his own line of reflective workwear called Midwest Safety Brite.
He wanted to sell the business, but not just to anyone. He preferred someone local who had experience.
He found a buyer, Chad Romenesko, and the sale was completed in September for an undisclosed price.
“It’s just a great fit,” said Grissman. “I want to hear five years from now that it’s going gangbusters. He has the energy to do that and has a lot of the right connections.”
Romenesko is a native of Little Chute who is also owner of Icon Marketing in Freedom. It’s a promotional products company he founded in 2002. “Don wanted someone in the industry to take over, and I have experience in the promotional embroidery industry,” Romenesko said. “We had been a customer of Midwest Workwear. We bought high-visibility workwear from him and did the decorating ourselves with embroidery and printing.”
Romenesko and a silent partner will keep Midwest Workwear based in Kaukauna and they’ll keep the name. The retail store will remain open. All seven employees stayed on, and they added two part-timers.
“Don developed a solid foundation over the years and we saw an opportunity to continue to build off of this base and add our own twist with the experiences and industries that we’re in,” Romenesko said. “We also value what small business can provide to the community and will continue the legacy that Don has built.”
Contact reporter Maureen Wallenfang at 920-993-7116 or mwallenfang@postcrescent.com. Follow her on Twitter at @wallenfang.
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