Stuart R. Benton | The Original Bradford Soap Works Inc. CEO and president
I grew up in Bangor, Maine, where sports played a big part in my life. My high school football coach demanded the best from all of his players both individually and as a team. We were not a large school but through passion, determination and teamwork we made it to two state championships in the highest school classification.
Of the many messages I took on from my high school coach, my guiding precept is, “Never wish you had.”
My coach impressed on us that if you work as hard as you can, in practice, in the weight room or in the classroom, you will avoid having regrets. I believe that to be successful you need to have this sort of passion for everything you do.
At Bradford, we have been making soap for more than 140 years, and passion is one of our core values. As the result of passion, we have created many industry firsts, which include:
• The first all-natural bar soap for Tom’s of Maine
• The first dermatological soap for Galderma/Cetaphil
• The first soap company to be organically certified
• The first company to use Rainforest Alliance-certified palm oil
Passion has made us successful where many manufacturers have struggled to adapt to the changing world.
Bradford is comprised of generations of families who continue to pass on this legacy to their children and grandchildren. As I look ahead, I am confident that our collective passion to innovate will guide us for generations to come, with no regrets.