Japan's largest hose maker, Toyox Co. Ltd., will buy automatic rewinding garden hose reels from Hydro-Industries Ltd.. Hydro-Industries chairman and CEO Zvi Yemini and Steff Wertheimer control the company. Stockton Partners, whose chairman is Lehman Brothers vice chairman Harvey Krueger, recently acquired a 15% stake.
Hydro-Industries manufactures a water-driven hose reel motor that uses neither electricity or batteries. Toyox, one of Japan's largest makers of garden equipment, negotiated with Yemini for a year. Yemini, who is also chairman and CEO of ZAG Industries, owns 6.5% of the company. Stanley Works (NYSE:SWK) owns the rest. ZAG sells its toolboxes to Japan's DIY market.
Yemini told "Globes", "The Japanese examined products in this sector from all over the world, and decided that we were the most innovative company and the most interested in collaborating with them. The first $2 million contract will be closed next week, and we expect exports will reach $5-6 million within three years."
Hydo-Industries hose reel system will be sold in Japan with Toyox's hoses at DIY chains. Hydo-Industries will export the goods from its three Israeli plants, after the company's production line in China was closed five months ago, due to the need for close managerial attention, and inferior quality compared with the made-in-Israel product.
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes.co.il - on April 7, 2005