“We are doing the consulting on the installation of the beach volleyball venue at the Beijing Olympics. You may ask what a small company from Muskoka is doing half way around the world and involved in something like that.”
Becoming the official sand consultant company for the Federation de International Volleyball (FIVB) in Switzerland is an example of the market opportunities this has created. The company provided its sand expertise for the 2000 Olympics in Australia and the 2004 Athens games as well.
Current owner Bruce Smith, who acquired the company in 2001, has strongly supported and encouraged the development of new products and markets. For example, Hutcheson has also made playgrounds safer for children by developing a sand that meets CSA safety standards for impact cushioning.
Despite its international profile, Hutcheson’s roots are still firmly fixed in its traditional regional market of Muskoka and Central Ontario, supplying materials to local contractors and to homeowners for their gardens and yards. “This is where we live. It is where we learned the value of product quality and customer service and it is the community that really sustains us,” says Don Mackenzie.
