A week of strong local business news

Wednesday, September 21, 2011

If it was a business related article on our pages in the past several years, chances are it would be considered "bad" news. Over that time since the "Great Recession" began, we've seen a number of large manufacturing companies close, smaller businesses board up shop and an overall shrinking of the labor market in our region.
But while economic news around the world is still pretty bleak these days, we received a double-dose of good business news this week in Southern Clarion County. First, we learned that Klingensmith's Drug Store, which came onto the New Bethlehem scene a little more than a year ago, has purchased property along Broad Street and plans to expand its business at some point next year.
Then, news arrived that the former Davis Cookie Co. factory in Rimersburg, idled for about a year, will soon reopen under new ownership of iBake Foods and will begin production of cookies this fall.
Of course, the good news was partnered with a little bad news as Klingensmith's, a Ford City-based business, also announced that it will close its Clarion store.
Still, for Southern Clarion County, the promise of an expanded business, along with the reopening of a local manufacturer, is welcome and possibly a sign that the hardships of the past several years may be beginning to ease. In fact, it's especially reassuring to see that these two companies - one in Ford City and the other based in New York - see the potential of investing in our communities. We hope others will follow suit since we know of more than a few empty store fronts, and some large manufacturing spaces, that could use new tenants. And while the investment of companies from outside this immediate area is nice, we know there must be some local folks with good business ideas of their own who can help turn this week's good news into a wave of job creation for our area.