Regal Ware’s Production Arm SynergyOps Is Core To Its Strategic Plans

Regal Ware is a 4^th-generation family-owned company based in Milwaukee, with roots going back 80 years in the kitchenware industry. That’s a business that has seen a lot of players come and go, and Regal Ware is applying the lessons of its tenacious history as sets its strategy for the next century and beyond, with its manufacturing prowess central to its plans.

The company has a rich history dating to 1945, when James O. Reigle, along with L.N. Peterson and Edna Oster, purchased the Kewaskum Utensil Company, which was manufacturing shell casings for the war effort. Just two weeks after the deal went through, WWII ended and they switched to making stainless steel saucepans, starting what in 1951 would become Regal Ware, Inc.

“Two weeks after buying the company and moving the family, he lost his only customer,” Ryan Reigle, CEO and Chairman of Regal Ware and fourth generation family business leader, told me in an interview. “And so again we go back to that entrepreneurial spirit. It was an aluminum cookware company before, so they went back to making one- and one-and-a-half-quart saucepans. He literally put them in the trunk of his car and went door-to-door to sell them. He would empty the trunk and come back and get more, go out and sell, come back and get more. And by doing that he never missed payroll, or a payment to the bank. And it was from there the company grew.”

Combining Forces

But woven into the story is the fact that the Reigle family also joined forces back in 2002 with a former rival family, the Zieglers, by purchasing the West Bend Company. The company had been founded originally as the West Bend Aluminum Company in 1911 by Bernhard Carl Ziegler to make aluminum pots and pans, and eventually expanded heavily into small electrical appliances along with stainless cookware. So, today’s combined manufacturing company is therefore getting ready to celebrate its 115th anniversary.

“We’ve got the Reigle family, the J.O. founding story,” Reigle said. “And then we have this rich history of the Ziegler family…starting not just the West Bend Company, but they also did investments in banking, life insurance, and other ventures.”

Both companies spent their early decades diversifying cookware product offerings and materials of construction, and both branched out into kitchen appliances such as coffeemakers and popcorn poppers as well. West Bend Company even got into the small engine business for a while, before selling that part of the company to Chrysler Corporation.

Regal Ware, meanwhile, kicked off an aggressive series of acquisitions beginning in the 1960s and continuing through the rest of the 20^th century, which included such notable company purchases as Buckeye Aluminum Co., Saladmaster, Standex Industries, and Coronet.

As with every company that stands the test of four generations, Regal Ware has experienced highs and lows and constant changes in the marketplace. Kitchenware is a tough business segment, so over the years the company has had to make many adjustments in product offerings, markets it participates in, and corporate organization simply to remain competitive.

“A few years ago, the company was just Regal Ware, and today’s divisions were consolidated into one,” explained David Duecker, president of SynergyOps, the company’s manufacturing arm. “By separating it and allowing us, as SynergyOps, to focus on our business and our customers, it gave us the autonomy to make some of our own decisions. And now, as a holding company, Regal Ware’s goal is to provide strategy assistance and shared strategic resources like IT and legal.”

A Separate Manufacturing Arm

Separating SynergyOps established a manufacturing unit that produces Regal Ware products and offers contract manufacturing to other companies, enabling growth beyond the core business. Headquartered in West Bend, Wisconsin, SynergyOps has about 200 employees in its 550,000 square foot building on 47 acres of land.

“In addition to the culture and scrappy spirit, Regal Ware has a great advantage in their B2C orientation,” offered Ed Marsh, an industry consultant specializing in helping manufacturers grow their revenues, via email. “That keeps them closer to the end user, more attuned to shifts in attitudes and habits, and attentive to what legendary HBS Professor Clayton Christensen called the customers’ ‘jobs to be done.’ I’m sure that is reflected in their B2B contract manufacturing agility and value proposition.”

“In the cookware industry, there are a lot of new brands entering the market, and there are a lot of new personas,” said Duecker. “Everybody likes to cook at the end of the day, because it brings people together. So, our strength is that we’re in the U.S. and most of our opportunities are in the U.S.; we have generations of expertise in this office and out on our floor. We bring a sense of stability to an unstable market right now.”

In keeping with the company’s long history of growth through acquisitions, M&A continues to be another big part of Regal Ware’s strategy for future growth.

“We’re very open to acquisition as well,” said Reigle. “That’s really how we grew, and at one point we had manufacturing facilities or partnerships all over the world. A lot of that was around capabilities and constructions. If we’re going to do that, we have to be able to offer more than just one item or one construction. So that’s why we’re still looking at what acquisitions and partnerships could look like, to expand our capabilities, to make us a more desirable partner.”

Capital Investment

Sizable capital investment in support of that overall business growth is another core strategy.

“We’re focused on a multi-million-dollar investment in our manufacturing,” Reigle said. “It’s going to quadruple our capacity, which is exciting. We’ll be doing volumes that we haven’t seen in decades. It’ll increase our capabilities. But the number one thing I said is I don’t really care about the size of the investment. We need to be globally competitive. Period. End of story.”

“American manufacturers have an enormous opportunity to grow,” Marsh said. “Not only are there restoring and regulatory tailwinds now, but many manufacturers have a growth model they know well, albeit in a different context. Planning, process, continuous improvement, innovation, rigor, accountability and investment in growing capability are core to their manufacturing success. Those same mindsets and best practices can also be applied to the way they market and sell. And don’t make the mistake of assuming that B2B buyers adapting more slowly to AI and other market changes. They may be less outspoken than consumers, but every B2B buyer spends half their life adapting their habits; and they bring those to work. Regal Ware is modeling how manufacturers can adapt.”

For Reigle, it all comes back to the people. “When I look at the legacy, it’s not about the Reigle family. To me, we’re all carrying the baton for a little while, and the goal is to run a good race. But at some point, it’s time to hand that off. If my great-grandfather’s picture is still on the wall, I think that’s a win, because we’re staying true to the values upon which we were founded. And we’re helping generations of other families.”