Weather | Sports | Forums | Comics | Classifieds | Calendar | Movies
MELIA BOWIEThe growing company, whose clients include Home Depot and Winn-Dixie, is moving here from Clearwater after deciding that "Pasco is our best bet."
ODESSA - A Clearwater company that prints the receipt logos for many of the nation's top retailers is moving to Odessa in Pasco County.
Eastern Ribbon & Roll Corp., which provides imaging supplies, ink cartridges, labels, tickets, tags and other products, is out of space at its current leased site, company officials said.
Now the company is looking to expand after buying the former Fedco Bakery building at 1920 Gunn Highway.
Executives said they plan to move into the 54,000-square-foot space and build a 44,000-square-foot addition.
"The whole deal is close to $4-million," said Alvin Hausner, Eastern Ribbon CFO. "That's to cover the building and capital equipment moving in there."
Founded in White Plains, N.Y., in 1991, the company's client roster now includes such names as Home Depot, Winn-Dixie, Burdines and Eckerd. Retailers worldwide also use a patented SENSOROLL technology created by the company and designed to prevent receipt roll theft by retail employees and customers.
Eastern Ribbon & Roll has been headquartered in Clearwater since 1997.
"By Aug. 1 we should have the new production completed," Hausner said.
He and the company's CEO, Blaise Collura, are forming Eastern Ventures, LLC to buy the Odessa site and will then lease it back to their cash register receipt supply company.
About 65 current employees will move from Clearwater. Within two years, nearly 40 new jobs, paying an average of $27,000, will be created by the company's move, Hausner said.
Supervisory positions, factory production jobs and clerical staff are needed, executives said. The company has immediate openings and is referring interested candidates to Career Central at (727) 816-1714.