Two US brothers, who own one of Kerry's most successful industrial manufacturers, Goblin in Tralee, have decided to put the plant employing 235 people up for sale. Goblin managing director Mr Conor Stack would not comment on the impending sale, but IDA Ireland confirmed it has been informed that the Shop Vac Corporation, owned by brothers Jonathan (48) and Matthew Miller (43), has decided to sell its European operations.
Shop Vac employs some 1,700 people worldwide, mostly in the US. The Goblin plant in Tralee, which was acquired by the company in 1984, is its main European manufacturing base. The Tralee facility is one of just two subsidiaries in the group where employees are unionised.
An IDA spokesman said international bankers are to be appointed to compile a prospectus for the sale of Shop Vac's European operations and that the entire sales process could take up to one year to complete.
Mr Matthew Miller, who is vice-chairman of the board and president (European group), Mr W. Earl Stronger, executive vicepresident and chief financial officer and Mr Stack met IDA representatives last week and told the State job-creation agency that it was their intention to sell the Tralee plant.
Shop Vac, which was founded in 1956 by the brothers' father, Mr Martin Miller, has net current assets of $131.6 million (£89.6 million). The company owns its 85,000 sq ft plant in Tralee.
Goblin has received £4.7 million in grant aid from IDA Ireland. From Tralee, the company supplies a full line of floor care products in addition to its wet/dry vacuums, including conventional vacuums, carpet cleaners and steam cleaners to selected markets.
Its European customers include Currys, Homebase and Argos in Britain, Darty and La Redoute in France and Otto in Germany. The company relies heavily on its two brand names, Aqua-Vac and Goblin, and sells through 5,000 European retail outlets.
In all, it has sold some 3.5 million units in Europe and replacement parts, filters and other related products accounted for about 10 per cent of net sales in 1996.
The IDA Ireland spokesman said Goblin in Tralee was trading very profitably and the sale of the plant was as a result of the Millers wishing to concentrate on their US-based activities.
It is impossible to say who may buy the plant but competitors like Electrolux Holdings, Hoover, Royal, Vax, Karcher, Polti France Karcher, Robert Thomas and Einhell could be among possible purchasers. The privately-owned Irish company, Glen Dimplex, which has a considerable domestic appliances business through its Dimplex, Belling, Morphy Richards, and Glen Electric brand names, must be seen as a serious potential buyer.
However, Glen Dimplex executive chairman, Mr Martin Naughton was unavailable for comment yesterday.
Goblin seems a neat fit with the Glen Dimplex group of companies, which employs over 5,000 people, selling more than £300 million worth of domestic electric appliances in more than 30 countries.
