Blodgett Oven Company Chooses to Grow in Vermont

 
Blodgett Oven Company is a fixture along the bike path in the South End of Burlington.  For those of you who don't bike by there, Blodgett manufactures commercial ovens and cooking equipment for a worldwide market in a large industrial plant in Burlington.  To a passer-by, the plant appears to be dated and the site appears to contain equal measures of beach and lawn and industrial space.  You can find apicture of the plant taken from out on Lake Champlain at http://www.blodgett.com/info.htm.  Back in the day, waterfront industry was the norm, but now communities generally expect waterfront to be available for recreation rather than covered with industrial development.   Blodgett recently announced that it has outgrown its waterfront location and is seeking new commercial space in the local area.  Probably a good choice not to try to expand on the waterfront, if that's even possible anymore.  According to a report in the Burlington Free Press on January 22, 2008, one of the main reasons Blodgett wants to remain in Vermont is the quality of the workforce here, a source of innovative ideas over the years.  Blodgett is an excellent example of a company that could locate anywhere.  Their market is national and international.  Yet they choose to remain in Vermont and grow their business here.