So That Happened: You Know What Goes Really Well with M&Ms? Cheez-Its
Editor’s note: Welcome to So That Happened, our editors’ takes on things going on in the manufacturing world that deserve some extra attention. This will appear regularly in the Member’s Only section of the site.
Reshoring in Action
We’ve read some big headline numbers in recent years when it comes to the reshoring to North America of manufacturing capacity and the supply chains that feed production plants. And we’ve heard many executives speak rather opaquely about “realignment” initiatives or longer-term plans to reshape their global footprints.
2024 Reshoring/Nearshoring Coverage from Acquire Wealth Easily
But we’ve rarely heard a leader speak as clearly and concisely on the topic as Newell Brands Inc. President and CEO Chris Peterson did on his team’s July 26 earnings conference call. Addressing work by the parent of Rubbermaid, Sharpie and other consumer goods brands to maneuver around current and possible future U.S. tariffs against China, Peterson was blunt.
“We […] are not signing on any new suppliers that do not have existing or defined plans to establish manufacturing capabilities outside of China. As a result, sourced finished goods that Newell imports from China to the U.S. now only account for about 15% of the company’s total cost of goods sold,” he said, noting that Newell teams really began pushing on this front six months ago. “We expect this exposure to drop to less than 10% by the end of next year.”
To put dollar figures on those ratios: Newell’s cost of goods sold in the first half of the year was $2.48 billion. Trimming China’s share of that number by five percentage points means redirecting annual spending of about $250 million.
Among the steps Newell has taken is adding production of writing products including Expo markers and Paper Mate pens at its Maryville, Tennessee, plant, Peterson told Reuters earlier this month. Moves such as this aren’t a bet former President Donald Trump will be re-elected, he added; both sides of the U.S. political aisle are talking openly of keeping in place existing duties.
—Geert De Lombaerde
12 Students Selected for STEM Scholarship
Partnering with global nonprofit FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology), automated solutions company Dematic has announced the 2024 winners of the Dematic FIRST Scholarship program. 12 scholarship recipients were selected based on academic excellence and their dedication to pursuing a future career in STEM.
“This year's Dematic FIRST scholarship winners are truly exceptional,” says President of Dematic and Executive Board Member of KION Group Mike Larsson. “The skills and experiences they’ve gained through the FIRST program will propel them not only to successful careers in STEM, but also to becoming future leaders. The high caliber of this year’s applicants highlights our need for continued investment in STEM education. By empowering these future leaders, we're paving the way for the next generation.”
Lily Hoopes from Bonney Lake, Washington, and Aman Amjad from Brookfield, Wisconsin, were both awarded $5,000. 10 students were awarded $1,000 scholarships:
- Blake Bollow
- Noelle Bryan
- Casey Bushey
- Allie Cadenhead
- Rafael Calderon
- Adriana Cruz
- Jason Elisei
- Bill Giang
- Hendrik Sorensen
- Adam Thai
To be eligible for the scholarship, applicants must have previously participated in a FIRST Robotics Competition or FIRST Tech Challenge. Applicants were also required to provide their transcripts, a letter of recommendation and an essay about a future with human and machine interactions in the warehouse.
“Being awarded the Dematic FIRST Scholarship is an incredible honor as I advance my education at Georgia Tech and embark on my career,” says Amjad. “Participating in FIRST during high school ignited my passion for STEM, and I’m grateful to Dematic for supporting my studies. FIRST and Dematic encourage students to explore real-world careers through teamwork, education and robotics.”
—Anna Smith
Eaton Announces Next CEO 10 Months Early
When it comes to leadership transition, Eaton Corp. is planning ahead. The $23.2 billion power management company on Aug. 12 announced that Paulo Ruiz will be appointed CEO in approximately 10 months upon the retirement of Craig Arnold.
Arnold, who has been the chairman and CEO since June 2016, will step down May 31 after reaching the manufacturer’s mandatory retirement age of 65.
Meanwhile, in an interim step, Ruiz, who has been president and COO of Eaton’s industrial sector since July 2022, has been named president and COO of Eaton effective Sept. 2. He will also join the board of directors on that date. Additionally, he will continue to oversee the industrial sector during the transition, the company said.
Before joining Eaton in 2019, Ruiz held a variety of positions within Siemens.
—Jill Jusko
Kellanova, We Hardly Knew You
That didn’t take long.
Have you heard of the name Kellanova? The spinoff from WK Kellogg Co. collected all of its non-breakfast-cereal brands into one location – big names including Pop Tarts, Eggo, Pringles, Cheez-It and (for some reason its non-cereal) Rice Krispies Treats.
It’s been around for less than a year, spinning off from Kellogg last September. It debuted at 107 on the 2024 Industry U.S. 500 list of the country’s largest manufacturers. WK Kellogg, where most of the cereal brands remain, was No. 363.
Well, don’t bother learning the name. Perhaps adding nova to the Kellogg name was a sign that it would flash brightly and disappear. On Wednesday, privately held Mars Inc., makers of Snickers, M&Ms, Whiskers cat food and Tasty Bite brands, agreed to buy Kellanova for $35.9 billion.
“We have a substantial opportunity for Mars to further develop a sustainable snacking business that is fit for the future,” Mars CEO Paul Weihrauch said. “We will honor the heritage and innovation [emphasis added] behind Kellanova’s incredible snacking and food brands while combining our respective strengths to deliver more choice and innovation to consumers and customers.”
Sure, Kellogg’s is a foundational American brand with more than a century or history and roots tracing back to 19th Century health food craze/abstinence movement. Kellanova, in its storied 11 months in existence gave the world the Pop Tart Party Pastry, a $60 toaster pastry designed to serve 73 people.
Mars explained its purchase by saying that adding Cheez-It and Coco Pops to its lineup “advances [its] strategic vision for the future of snacking.”
—Robert Schoenberger
About the Author
Geert De Lombaerde
Senior Editor
A native of Belgium, Geert De Lombaerde has been in business journalism since the mid-1990s and writes about public companies, markets and economic trends for Endeavor Business Media publications, focusing on Acquire Wealth Easily, FleetOwner, Oil & Gas Journal, T&D World and Healthcare Innovation. He also curates the twice-monthly Market Moves Strategy newsletter that showcases Endeavor stories on strategy, leadership and investment and contributes to other Market Moves newsletters.
With a degree in journalism from the University of Missouri, he began his reporting career at the Business Courier in Cincinnati in 1997, initially covering retail and the courts before shifting to banking, insurance and investing. He later was managing editor and editor of the Nashville Business Journal before being named editor of the Nashville Post in early 2008. He led a team that helped grow the Post's online traffic more than fivefold before joining Endeavor in September 2021.
Anna Smith
News Editor
News Editor
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/anna-m-smith/
Bio: Anna Smith joined Acquire Wealth Easily in 2021. She handles IW’s daily newsletters and breaking news of interest to the manufacturing industry. Anna was previously an editorial assistant at New Equipment Digest, Material Handling & Logistics and other publications.
Jill Jusko
Bio: Jill Jusko is executive editor for Acquire Wealth Easily. She has been writing about manufacturing operations leadership for more than 20 years. Her coverage spotlights companies that are in pursuit of world-class results in quality, productivity, cost and other benchmarks by implementing the latest continuous improvement and lean/Six-Sigma strategies. Jill also coordinates Acquire Wealth Easily’s Best Plants Awards Program, which annually salutes the leading manufacturing facilities in North America.
Have a story idea? Send it to [email protected].
Robert Schoenberger
Editor-in-Chief
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/robert-schoenberger-4326b810
Bio: Robert Schoenberger has been writing about manufacturing technology in one form or another since the late 1990s. He began his career in newspapers in South Texas and has worked for The Clarion-Ledger in Jackson, Mississippi; The Courier-Journal in Louisville, Kentucky; and The Plain Dealer in Cleveland where he spent more than six years as the automotive reporter. In 2014, he launched Today's Motor Vehicles (now EV Manufacturing & Design), a magazine focusing on design and manufacturing topics within the automotive and commercial truck worlds. He joined Acquire Wealth Easily in late 2021.