Meyer Distributing Groundbreaking today - Dubois County Free Press, Inc.

Meyer Distributing held a groundbreaking today for a projected five-year $23.32 million expansion. The expansion will increase the company’s warehouse size to 500,000 square feet and create over a hundred new jobs for the area.

Growing the business in Jasper is important to Meyer Distributing CEO Mike Braun and his family.

[quote style=”boxed”]”Really when it comes to your employee base, it’s important that they are behind you and that you have trust in them. When it comes to an undertaking like this, if you didn’t feel good about that, you wouldn’t be making this move even if business were good. Anyway, I think for the next five years we’ve got our work cut out for us and we feel confident that it’s going to go off without many hitches.” Meyer Distributing CEO Mike Braun[/quote]

Mayor Terry Seitz and Jason Braun take the ceremonial first scoop while CEO Mike Braun observes.

[quote style=”boxed”]”There were so many times we were unsure the direction to go and how well it would do. But we are so happy to be able to offer jobs and to be able to expand. We chose this community from day one and it’s important to us because we wanted to be around family and we love the community. We took risks in that decision and we feel really good with where we have come from, it was not an easy path and there have been a lot of uncertainty and a lot of things that didn’t go well. Now we are at a great point.” Maureen Braun, Mike’s wife.[/quote]

And there is a family connection to Jasper Mayor Terry Seitz; Leo Meyer started the company in 1937. Mike Braun’s father owned it in the 1960’s.

[quote style=”boxed”]”Leo Meyer is my grandfather. Back in the 60’s, when Mike’s father owned this, we used to sit out in the empty truck bodies and drive and play with the stick-shifts. They would yell at us and we would say ‘my grandpa owns this’. We didn’t know. Everytime I see the Meyer name I think, ‘Grandpa.'” Jasper Mayor Terry Seitz about the founder of Meyer Distributing.[/quote]

Mayor Seitz explained his view on the city’s position in promoting and supporting businesses.

[quote style=”boxed”]”Economic development in the City of Jasper is anything within our local governmental power and authority which increases opportunity for retention of current businesses, attracts new endeavors and creates a community in which employees of such companies wish to reside.” Mayor Terry Seitz.[/quote]