Specialty packaging firm Bartlo Packaging Inc. of Passaic, New Jersey on Wednesday announced that it’s leaving the Garden State for the Arkansas Delta.
The company said it had acquired a 105,000-SF building in Helena, bringing it closer to its customers in the agricultural market. The new headquarters is located adjacent to Bartlo’s existing operations in Helena, where some 70 employees package powders, liquids, and granules into unit dose packages.
Bartlo’s $1.3 million investment in Helena will bring about 50 jobs to the area. The company said about 10 employees have expressed interest in relocating from New Jersey, and the remaining positions will be filled locally.
Bartlo was founded in 1971. CEO Allen Bartlo, who has lived in Helena for seven years, said the company’s operation in the city has grown to equal to the sales and capabilities of the original location in New Jersey.
“After 30 years we have made the decision to go ‘all in’ and move the entirety of our operation to Phillips County,” he said in a news release.
Bartlo expects that consolidating operations in Helena will double the company’s sales and help grow its capabilities to include dry and wet milling, and liquid and gas chromatography.
In addition to the agricultural industry, Bartlo serves specialty chemical makers, industrial and institutional cleaners, and customers producing water treatment and active biological products. According to Bartlo’s website, the company specializes in water-soluble packages that use vinyl alcohol film.
Bartlo qualified for the following state incentives: Advantage Arkansas, which provides state income tax credit for job creation based on the number of new employees hired as a result of the project; Tax Back, which provides sales tax refunds on building materials, taxable machinery, and equipment associated with the project; and $300,000 in Community Development Block Grant funds.