“I am honored and humbled to step into this role and build upon my family’s legacy,” said Mark. “I’m excited to leverage our core values of integrity, continuous improvement, accountability, respect, and empowerment as the foundation for strengthening our customer relationships, investing in new technologies, and supporting employee development.”
Hamilton Caster is a 116-year-old manufacturer of heavy-duty industrial casters, wheels, carts, and in-plant trailers. The company has been family-owned since its inception and is in its fourth generation of family leadership. John Weigel founded the company in 1907.
Mark joined Hamilton Caster in 1995 to lead marketing efforts that have resulted in a brand that has been ranked No. 1 in brand perception studies for the industrial manufacturing market. He also helped manage the business with three of his cousins, which include Dave as well as Steve and Jim Lippert.
“As the company implemented its business succession plan, we knew that there would be two key positions on our leadership team to fill,” said Mark. “It was important for us to find the right individuals to complement an already accomplished and experienced leadership team.”
Board member Ted Lippert said as the company looks toward the future, “we are confident that Mark possesses the qualifications and expertise to continue to grow our family business. Under his leadership, Hamilton Caster will continue to make a significant impact on the industrial market and our community.”
The change at the top prompted changes in other parts of Hamilton Caster’s leadership.
Kellie Krieger joined Hamilton Cater in October as director of Human Resources and Administration, replacing Steve Lippert, the company’s long-time executive vice president, who also retired in December. Krieger has more than 20 years of human resources experience and was most recently as Hamilton Twp.’s Human Resources manager.
Jodi Fritsch came on board in November as the company’s director of marketing, which was Mark’s position for 28 years until his promotion. Fritsch has nearly 20 years of marketing experience and was most recently HORAN’s vice president of marketing.
“Hamilton’s success over the past several years has been possible because of the vision of our leadership team along with the collaboration and diligent performance of all of our employees in terms of engineering, sales, customer service, production, and product development,” said Mark. “We expect to see continued growth because we continuously strive to be the best-in-class in everything we do.”
About the Author