Page 34 - Port of Baltimore Jan/Feb 2011
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The Port of Baltimore
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January/February 2011
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BY KATHY BERGREN SMITH
PORT HANDLES COMPANY’S SHIPMENTS OF PROMOTIONAL PRODUCTS
M
ike Misleany, Inventory
Control and Logistics
Manager at Leed’s Inter-
national, recalls the
sweeping changes that
the Pennsylvania-based company made
to its supply chain two years ago. As a
result of those changes, Leed’s started
moving its products exclusively through
the Port of Baltimore.
“We took a really big chance on the
Port of Baltimore,” Misleany said, “and
here it is two years later, and we could
not be happier.”
Leed’s International is the second
largest supplier of promotional products
in the country. The company was founded
in 1986 as an importer of leather products
for retail, but expanded into luggage and
then customized specialty products.
In 2005, Leed’s was acquired by
Investcorp, an investment organization
whose operation spans three continents.
The new parent company brought Leed’s
under the same umbrella as its Dutch
promotions business, Polyconcept.
“Being part of a larger, global
organization gives us the opportunity
to compare business trends and share
best practices,” said Misleany. “We’ve
adopted a number of processes from
various companies in Europe and they, in
turn, have adopted several of ours. This
sharing and learning from each others’
successes helps each company grow.”
Today, Leed’s has a 150,000-square-foot
warehouse and a Free Trade Zone
designation, and sells “decorated”
products (as they are known in the
industry) to thousands of distributors. If
you have ever received a leather portfolio
embossed with a company logo, chances
are good it was imported and decorated
by Leed’s.
And it’s all done electronically. The
company’s easy-to-navigate website pro-
vides the information needed to place an
order; customers can upload their logo
and follow the progress of their order.
Leed’s was the first company of its
kind to offer a rapid-fire turnaround.
They call it “Quickship.” According to
Misleany, “For many of our products, if
you get an order in here by 5 p.m., we
Baltimore
LEED’S
The Way
PHOTOGRAPHY COURTESY OF LEED’S INTERNATIONAL
