[Viewpoint] Mega-mergers continue reshaping the landscape

In June, it was announced that the Sorex Group purchased Whitmire Micro-Gen, an industry supplier with an extensive product line and a respected reputation throughout the pest control industry. If you’re a subscriber to PCT’s weekly e-newsletter, you knew of the purchase a few hours after it was announced. That’s because whenever a major event occurs, we send a "Breaking News" alert to all of our e-newsletter subscribers, yet another reason to sign up for this service if you aren’t a PCT subscriber already. To learn more about our weekly e-newsletter service, contact PCT Internet Editor Brad Harbison at 800/456-0707, or visit www.pctonline.com.

While most pest management professionals in the United States aren’t familiar with Sorex, the company has a long and distinguished reputation in Europe. Here’s a little background on the company: Sorex Group is the holding company for two companies — Sorex Ltd. and Network Pest Control Services Ltd. The companies operate independently in the United Kingdom market but combine their strengths outside the UK in a single international business division called Sorex International. More than 50 years ago Sorex originally developed its business by being the first company to commercialize warfarin. Sorex then invented brodifacoum and difenacoum.

Currently, Sorex markets both its own brands — developed and patented through its R&D operations — while selling additional brands licensed from various supplier partners. Sorex focuses on the urban pest control market and supplies consumer companies a range of products in the farm health and hygiene market with a range of rodent control, disinfectants, detergents, ectoparasiticides and insect control products.

Some speculate that there’s at least one more major merger in store for the pest control industry at the manufacturer level here in the United States. I don’t know if that will occur or not, but in an era of consolidation in virtually every industry, it’s nice to see a new face in the structural pest control industry. Sorex’s international expertise may teach us a lot about the world pest control market. And it will surely keep all other manufacturers on their toes.

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A couple of housekeeping notes: You may notice this month that all PCT-related e-mail addresses in this issue have been changed from "@pctonline.com" to "@giemedia.com." The reason is that our staff members and contributors receive so much spam that our IT department has asked us to eliminate those addresses. Please make a note in your address books.

And last but not least — the deadline for PCT’s annual Technician of the Year Awards is at the end of this month. Have you sent in your nominations yet? Fill out the form online at www.pctonline.com/tech2004. Remember, this is the only national awards program in the pest management industry to honor your company’s front-line workers. We look forward to hearing from you by July 31!

The author is editor of PCT magazine.