Morcon, Inc., owner of tissue, towel and napkin converting facilities in Upstate New York and South Carolina, has announced the sale of its business to longtime paper industry executive Joseph F. Raccuia. Mr. Raccuia is the former president and CEO of SCA Tissue-North America and former president and CEO of uncoated printing paper manufacturer Finch Paper LLC.
“I bring a wide and varied background to Morcon”
The announcement was made by Morcon founder, president and CEO Wayne R. Morris, who established the business in 1987. Morcon serves the Away-From-Home commercial, food service, healthcare and industrial markets. The company employs 120 people at its Great Falls, SC, location and 85 people in Cambridge, NY, where the business is headquartered.
“Morcon is a very well-run, successful and growing business,” Mr. Raccuia said. “I’m looking forward to continuing this momentum, and working with Morcon’s employees to take the business to even greater levels of success.”
Mr. Raccuia said Morcon’s two locations are strategically located to service the eastern U.S. and key portions of the Midwest, although there are customers nationwide. His long-term plans envision additional locations to grow business in the central and western parts of the country.
During his tenure with SCA, Mr. Raccuia engineered a 35% growth in sales, taking the company from $750 million to $1 billion and propelling SCA to the number-two position in the U.S. Away-From-Home Market. Prior to joining SCA, he served in a number of leadership positions with Encore Paper Co., a tissue manufacturer in Upstate New York that was later purchased by SCA. For much of the past four years, he served as president and CEO of Finch Paper, a printing paper manufacturer in Upstate New York.
“I bring a wide and varied background to Morcon,” Mr. Raccuia said. “I have worked in the C-Suite for one of the largest tissue producers in the world, and I understand how the big players operate. At the same time, through my experience with Encore and Finch, I know how to marshal the agility, flexibility and energy of a smaller business to out-maneuver and out-service the industry giants, establish niche markets and build a sustainable, successful enterprise.”
In the immediate future, Mr. Raccuia said, his priorities are to meet with Morcon’s employees, customers and key suppliers, and begin building a go-to-market strategy that anticipates and exceeds customer expectations and capitalizes on the company’s strategic strengths.
“I know where I want to take this business, but to get there I have to draw on others’ expertise and ideas, and that includes our employees, customers and suppliers,” Mr. Raccuia said.
Morcon founder Mr. Morris, said “Morcon has been my family’s life for nearly three decades, but now is the right time for me to move. I could not have found a more qualified or interested buyer than Joe Raccuia, and would not have entrusted this business to anyone with lesser credentials or enthusiasm. Joe has a great vision for growing this business, and tremendous contacts within the industry to help him reach his goals.”