Owner of growing propane company buys new building

Collett Propane has purchased another building in Xenia to accommodate its growing seal coat and salt business, said the company’s general manager.

The propane company purchased a 6,840 square feet facility in the industrial park on Lavelle Drive for $280,000 in July according to the county auditor records. The building’s previous owner, TJAR Innovations, is renting the space from Collette Propane.

Company vehicles and equipment will be housed at the new location.

The new space is less than a half mile from the company’s Xenia office, on Burnett Drive, which houses 30 employees.

Seal coat and salt sales have helped the company withstand the recession and grow substantially within the last few years, said the general manager, Dave Wedderburn.

“Rather than people putting new asphalt in they’re trying to take care of what they have,” he said.

About 75 percent of the business’ seal coat and salt revenues comes from residential customers.

“Our propane business is seasonal,” said Jane Newton, the Collett Propane president and daughter of co-founder Don Colette. “We needed another business to offset that time. It’s keep cash flowing all year round.”

The family owned business, which started in 1952 by brothers Don and Chuck Collett, expanded into seal coat and salt sales 10 years ago, Newton said.

“We enjoy being in a family business,” she said. “…We keep plugging along. It’s a lot of work but it’s a lot of benefit in the end.”

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