Family-owned Smead Manufacturing, a mainstay in Hastings, sold to Illinois company

Smead Manufacturing Co., the 119-year-old family-owned office supply firm in Hastings, has been sold to Illinois-based Tops Products.

Terms were not disclosed in a news release on the sale. It is not known what effect the sale will have on employment.

Company officials were not immediately available for comment.

Smead — known for its hanging file folders, expandable folders, adhesive labels, desk pads and file boxes — is a Minnesota institution that earned renown during World War II when it manufactured 2 million wallets for U.S. soldiers.

In 1955, Ebba Hoffman became a trailblazer when she took over the company’s helm following the death of her husband, Harold Hoffman.

Harold Hoffman had run the company since 1928, when he took over from his father, P.A. Hoffman, one of the first employees hired by founder Charles Smead in 1906.

Ebba Hoffman’s daughter, Sharon Hoffman Avent, took over in 1998. Avent’s son, Casey Avent, took over in 2021.

Smead grew throughout the years with acquisitions and at one time had 2,900 employees and $400 million in revenue. It has since dwindled in size as demand for paper files and filing organization systems has declined during the digital age.

Smead employs between 200 and 300 workers and told the Minneapolis Business Journal that 2023 revenue was $260 million.

Tops Products is based in Naperville, Ill., and owned by private equity firm Atlas Holdings in Greenwich, Conn.

Tops officials in a prepared statement said buying Smead strengthened its leadership position for office products and organizational solutions across North America.

The move also gives Smead a much greater distribution network.

“After nearly 120 years as a family-owned business, I’m proud to usher in this new chapter for Smead with the right home to build upon what we’ve created,” Casey Avent said in the release. “I am confident this decision will preserve Smead’s unwavering tradition of quality and innovation while enhancing its leadership position in the market.”

Tops CEO Matt Roberts said Smead has industry expertise and “unwavering commitment” to customers and employees.

Smead “fits perfectly” and “mirrors what we believe we’ve built here at Tops,” Roberts said. “We’re honored to be entrusted to carry on the Smead legacy.”

Tops acquired Redi-Tag in May 2023 and has stressed integrating other iconic brands into its product portfolio, which includes the Oxford, Cardinal, Pendaflex and Ampad brands.