Mount Union, Greater Alliance Carnation Festival Partner for Food Fest August 3-5
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Community Luncheon Speakers
Jim was born in a small rural community in Ohio. It was his agricultural background that motivated him to enter Ohio State University in the field of veterinary medicine. However, his work experience in college sparked an interest in hotel and restaurant management. He entered a management course with Stouffers Food Corporation while finishing his schooling. This led him to work in both Cleveland, OH and then Boston, Mass where he opened Stouffer’s Top of the Hub restaurant. After several years of working in the restaurant field, Jim decided it was time for a change and started selling pet products for his brother, Tom, who had started a small company in Alliance, Ohio. He then moved back to Ohio in the fall of 1969 to work directly with Tom. The early manufacturing was done in the basement of the Alliance Pet shop located at 319 East State St. After a few years of struggling to run both a retail pet store and a new manufacturing operation, the brothers decided to split the business with Jim taking the manufacturing and Tom the retail store. The first building was 4,000 square foot building constructed in 1974. At the time Coastal had 10 people. It was during these early years that Coastal became a leading pioneer in the collar and leash industry by utilizing nylon webbing as opposed to traditional leather. This launched a new era of color, fashion, and selection for a newly developing industry. Another major invention was the canine curved buckle, which became an industry standard for metal buckles. Jim later introduced the curved plastic buckle for Coastal’s Tuff collar line. As the industry grew and matured, so did Coastal. Jim proceeded with an aggressive growth program that resulted in additional facilities and a few strategic acquisitions to expand our offerings to include Safari grooming, Circle T leather, Turbo cat toys and Bergan Travel. Today Coastal continues to manufacture collars and leashes as well as import other items to supply our vast array of retail customers both domestically and abroad. We are proud of our team of 500 associates that help us fulfill our mission to design and deliver quality products people trust for the pets they love. Jim lives in Alliance with his wife Kathy and dog Stryker. He continues his 20 plus years of automobile racing and enjoys assisting Kathy in managing the Pitt Racetrack in PA. Kim Stout is the President of Coastal Pet Products. A second-generation family member, she has grown with the business since 2000, working with her father Jim, founder, and sister Pattie, Director of Sales. A graduate of Ohio State with an education specialization from Rhode Island School of Design, Kim was an educator before moving into the family business. She has served many roles at Coastal Pet, from account manager of the northeastern U.S. to the Director of Sales and Marketing, then Chief Operating Officer, and now President. Kim lives in Alliance, Ohio and enjoys gardening, reading, and working out at our local YMCA. She has three cats and occasionally takes care of Stryker, the families’ Australian Shepard.
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Executive Board Members:
President/Treasurer: Staci Gurney President Elect: Sue Grove Vice President: Lisa Baylor Vice President: Scott Fellers Vice President: Tom Hines Vice President: Missy Miller Secretary: Marikay Colbert Legal Advisor: Brent Barnes |
Board Members:
Regena Clair Jim Edwards Mark Johnson Laura Kessel Logan McGee Elizabeth Penird Renee Young |
