A familiar sight along Highway 11, Napoleon celebrated its 50th anniversary at its head office on Friday. Known for it’s barbeques, fireplaces and HVAC systems, founders Wolfgang and Ingrid Schroeter began their journey in 1976 with wooden hand railings. “We did a lot of railings in the very beginning,” said Wolfgang. “For instance, we did Pratt Homes. We did all their railings in the houses; we did steel stairs everything in metal, basically.” The Schroeter’s started out with wood stoves. “In the 70s, a lot of people were afraid we’re going to run out of oil and everybody was looking for a wood stove as a backup, and so that’s how we got into the woodstove business.” Now, Napoleon has manufacturing facilities around the world, including right here in Barrie. “Very, very proud, especially in Barrie and surroundings, it’s been very good for us,” said Ingrid. “It’s just amazing; we don’t live very far from here, so we drive by here and see all the cars.” The manufacturing plant has more than 400 employees creating products that are sold in the showroom right besides the plant. Mike Tzimas, president of Napoleon, said the factory and their employees are a critical part of their business. “We have some of the best workers in the world, some of the best technology and innovation and we manufacture all three of our product lines right here in Barrie,” said Tzimas. Tzimas has helped guide Napoleon through turbulent times, including the COVID-19 pandemic and now tariffs. “It’s those types of challenges that bring people together; tariffs is another great example of that. We were one of the first in our industry to respond accordingly, instituting tariff surcharges to make sure that we were very transparent in what that on cost meant,” said Tzimas. “Made sure our partners in the U.S. understood that and whatever counterparts were coming in from the U.S. into Canada.” Employees at the factory sharing similar sentiments. “We hit our 50,000 in one year of barbeques, so that’s just a goal by itself,” said Jamie Laughlin, one of the supervisors in the factory. “The challenges were great; the team stepped up and it’s just amazing.” Laughlin has worked at Napoleon for almost 30 years. “It’s been great; the family’s been great to us and there’s so many benefits here,” said Laughlin. “How much you can grow with the company and that’s really what the best thing is.” He added the next 50 years at Napoleon: the opportunities could be endless. “I hope the sky’s the limit; the sky’s limits for this place and we get bigger and better as we go,” said Laughlin With management and employees wanting to continue the legacy that was started 50 years ago. “We’re super proud to be Canadian. We’re super proud to be based out of Simcoe County, Barrie and Oro and we’ll continue to drive that legacy,” said Tzimas The Schroeter’s are ready for Napoleon to stand the test of time with the hard work and dedication their team has. “We just keep on going what we’re doing and with the teams that we have, I can’t see why it doesn’t continue another 50 years and maybe 100 years,” said Ingrid. “It’s a legacy.”
