Wired for Opportunity

When Raymond Browne and David Monighetti bought Wyrepak Industries in 1990, the Middletown, CT, machinery and equipment manufacturer attributed less than 5 percent of its sales to exports. Browne and Monighetti saw the expansion potential overseas and immediately began selling in European markets.

Wyrepak sells to a niche market. “We saw avenues we could go after,” Monighetti said. “We export because we’re chasing the customers.”

Today, about 60 percent of its sales are through exports to Europe, Canada, Mexico, Africa, the Middle East, New Zealand and South America and its workforce has grown to 18 people, including three in a sales office in the United Kingdom.

Wyrepak deals in equipment for the wire, cable and specialty textile industry, including fiber optics. To survive the recession and lower its overhead, the company contracts with wire welding and machine shops to manufacture its product to its specifications.

One decision that proved to be key to their survival was their acquisition of a competitor, Watkins U.K. As part of their plan to lower overhead, they closed Watkins’ manufacturing function and set up the U.K office mostly as a sales office.

“It allowed us an entrance into the European market that we were struggling with. It’s a lot easier to deal with Europe when you’re in Europe,” Monighetti said.

One if its competitors was also a customer who had supplied yet another business with equipment using Wyrepak pieces. When the competitor’s business folded, the end customer bought directly from Wyrepak. Again, survival has opened up new doors.

“Now they’re looking at us for other products that they haven’t looked at us for in the past,” Monighetti said.

Wyrepak has found marketing success with both old and new sales vehicles. Although they’re expensive, Wyrepak attends the major industry trade shows, including in Singapore and China. Since 1994, Wyrepak has been an exhibitor at the major wire and cable exhibition held in Dussledorf, Germany. In addition to advertising in international trade publications, the company has put more energy into its website.

At least 20 percent of its domestic and export business is generated through the Internet, he said. Through its website, Wyrepak has made sales to countries they may not have had the resources to market to in person, such Trinidad and Tobago, South Africa, Chile and Venezuela.

Another key to Wyrepak’s success, Monighetti said, has been strong partnerships with freight forwarders who help them get their product to their customers efficiently and in compliance with all local importing regulations.

“You can have the best product in the world. If the client can’t get it when he needs it, it doesn’t matter,” he said. When you’re trying to get your product into customers’ hands, he said, “there’s a whole laundry list of people with their hands out. The trick is to find the best way to do it with the fewest number of hands.”

Like their award-winning peers, Wyrepak’s greatest challenge is staying abreast of market demands and changing technology.

“We’re constantly changing our product,” Monighetti said, “as the customer updates their equipment.”