Bath Fitter, North America's leading acrylic bathtub, shower enclosure, and tub-to-shower conversion company, has relocated its local office, showroom, and distribution center to a Mericle Commercial Real Estate Services flex building in CenterPoint Commerce & Trade Park, Jenkins Township.
The company has leased approximately 10,000 square feet of space from Mericle at 145-173 CenterPoint Boulevard and expects to add 10 to 20 workers over the next year. Mericle built the multi-tenant building on speculation a few years ago.
Bath Fitter had been located in a smaller Mericle flex space in Hanover Industrial Estates, Hanover Township. The company is closing a similar operation in Upstate New York and combining it with the Hanover Township operation in CenterPoint.
“The opening of the Pittston location lets us better service the region by combining two isolated locations into one more centralized location that has excellent interstate accessibility,” said Bath Fitter's Fleet and Facilities Manager Ed King.
“Bath Fitter has leased from Mericle for a number of years at our Wilkes-Barre location and we've establish a solid rapport,” said King. “When the time came for us to find a means to better service our customers through relocation and combining operations, Mericle knew our business model and understood our needs and concerns. The variety of options that Mericle offered quickly eliminated the competition and made our search and relocation stress free. We have found that Mericle allows our company the ability to grow and adapt as we progress, and as such we look forward to continued success and a long relationship.”
Mericle Vice President Jim Hilsher coordinated the real estate transaction. He said Bath Fitter's move from one Mericle facility to another is an example of why Mericle continues to develop buildings on speculation, even in a tough economy.
“Companies are always growing and shrinking and changing product lines, customers, and production techniques,” he said. “By making sure we have a variety of space available in business parks throughout Northeastern Pennsylvania, we are increasing the odds that those companies will choose to stay here as they evolve.”
“Bath Fitter is a great company and we are pleased that they will continue their growth at our building in CenterPoint,” Hilsher added.
Since its founding by the Cotton Brothers in Canada in1984, Bath Fitter has remodeled and refinished bathrooms in more than one million homes, apartment buildings, hotels, and other multi-unit properties through a network of franchised and company-owned locations across North America.
Bath Fitter manufactures its own acrylic tubs, shower bases, and one-piece wall systems. Using a state-of-the-art thermo molding process, Bath Fitter's tubs and showers are custom molded to fit right over the existing unit. The company's other products include acrylic tub surrounds, domed ceilings, shower liners, tub and shower doors, a variety of color-matched accessories, and wainscoting.
Bath Fitter has manufacturing facilities in Springfield, Tennessee, and Montreal, Quebec.
Since 2005, Mericle has developed approximately 5.5 million square feet of industrial, flex, and office space in CenterPoint Commerce & Trade Park. More than 2,700 people work in the park and an estimated 12,000 people work in the approximately 16 million square feet of commercial space Mericle has developed in Northeastern Pennsylvania over the past 25 years.
For more information, please visit www.bathfitter.com and www.mericle.com.
