Business name: Northwest Adhesives Inc.
Owners: Charles and Beverly Asbury.
Address: 6013 N.E. 127th Ave.
What the business does: When Charles and Beverly Asbury started their family-owned business, Northwest Adhesives Inc., their mission was to become a high-service regional manufacturer of custom glues known as formulated hot-melt adhesives. They targeted smaller and medium-sized packaging customers who often could not get technical assistance from large, global suppliers. Today the company sells more than $4 million of their adhesive brand to more than 125 customers in Europe, Southeast Asia, Korea, New Zealand, as well as throughout the United States and Canada. The business has partners in several countries and has licensed its technology to a European business that supplies European and Russian markets. Northwest Adhesives supplies customers with about 8,000 to 10,000 pounds of adhesives daily.
Each week, The Columbian offers a brief snapshot of an interesting Clark County business. Send ideas to Mary Ricks: mary.ricks@columbian.com; fax 360-735-4598; phone 360-735-4550.
How has the economy affected your business: Charles Asbury said some customers, especially those in the wood products industry, reduced overall consumption of adhesives starting in 2009, mostly due to the poor housing market. Northwest Adhesives worked hard to add new customers to make up for reduced sales.
Asbury said that tactic has paid off, allowing Northwest Adhesives to grow even during difficult economic times.
