Info

Jack Kahl is the visionary founder of Manco, Inc., a global consumer products company that now operates under the name, Henkel Consumer Adhesives, Inc. Henkel Consumer Adhesives develops and markets a broad array of imaginative products for the home, school and office under the Duck® and Loctite® brands. Manco's history is a story rich in culture and a passion for servant leadership. Manco was founded in 1971, when Jack Kahl bought the Melvin A. Anderson Company with revenues of just $800,000, renamed the company Manco, Inc., and began selling products to the retail market. Today, the company's revenues are over $300 million. In the mid-1970's, Manco became the first company to organize pressure-sensitive tape products into a single area of a store: the paint/hardware department. By the 1980's, Manco's "sea of green"-so called because of its eye-catching, green packaging-set the tone for innovative category management in retail. In 1985, Manco introduced Manco Duck® as the patron of its products. Against the advice of market researchers, Jack Kahl decided to label America's favorite toolbox item with a fuzzy little duck. Manco Duck® became an enduring symbol of quality, but perhaps more importantly, the Duck® came to represent servant leadership at its finest: helping people get more from their lives. Through the 1980's and 1990's, Manco expanded into many new categories of consumer products, including:Draftbusters® home winterization CareMail® mailing and shipping supplies Duck® brand OneTouchT invisible tape Correct ItT correction tape Dry-LighterT highlighter Easy-StickT instant adhesive Easy Liner® multi-purpose shelf-liner SoftexT bathmats In January 1998, the Henkel Group acquired a majority interest in Manco, establishing it as Henkel's consumer products headquarters in North America. By the time Jack Kahl retired in 2000, Manco was selling consumer products to the best retailers around the globe and had achieved revenues of more than $300 million.