Lawrenceville, GA – Increasing demand for kitchen cabinets in the multifamily residential building sector led Republic Elite to acquire and reopen a dormant wood products manufacturing plant located in Lawrenceville, GA. Republic Elite was formed by the 2016 merger of cabinet manufacturer Republic Industries and Elite Multifamily Interiors, a countertop fabrication and installation business.
Last year the company manufactured and installed 675,000 kitchen cabinets. Headquartered in Addison, TX, Republic Elite recently invested $10 million — $5 million in 2020 alone — to expand and increase efficiencies in its Marshall, TX manufacturing facility, where it produces more than 800,000 cabinets annually and employs over 600.
“This is an exciting time for Republic Elite. Our rapid growth has presented real challenges with space and talent,” says the firm’s VP of Procurement & Special Projects Jeff Kroyer. “This was a rare opportunity to acquire a high-quality manufacturing facility in a location that has excellent transport links, and to leverage a local population with skills relevant to our business.” Republic Elite will create more than 125 jobs at the Lawrenceville plant by 2022, according to Gwinnett County EDC Director Randall Toussaint.
The Georgia acquisition will increase Republic Elite’s overall capacity by 40%, as it reactivates a 100,000 sq. ft. plant formerly operated by Windsor Fixtures, Inc., an 80-employee millwork products and retail store fixtures firm doing about $25 million in annual revenue. Much of Windsor’s equipment was sold at auction in March 2021, and Republic Elite is retooling the operation to “incorporate the latest manufacturing principles – digital factory, connected machinery, robust lean manufacturing processes – to enable predictive quality and maintenance, and allow data-driven decisions to be made on the shop floor in real time,” according to its press release.
“Our growth east is fueled by demand, which is why this acquisition is such a critical building block for us,” says Chief Business Officer Adam Sumrow. “Through this presence in Georgia, we aim to reduce our carbon footprint, our freight costs and expand our melamine collections to new clients.”
