Jones Lang LaSalle
Going Global
Sunday, February 12, 2006
By HUGH R. MORLEY
The rapid rise of the global economy is reshaping the way New Jersey companies do business, creating new opportunities and challenges. This weekly column explores the growing ties between Garden State businesses and the rest of the world.
New cognac has scent of a woman
Paul Jones has something for the woman who thinks she has everything.
Pour Moi -- a new cognac with a hint of peach, iris and quince.
It's sold in what resembles a perfume bottle. And Jones, 49, says it's the first spirit ever created specifically for women.
"We believe that this will change the spirits market and the way it's marketed to women," he says.
That's big talk for an executive whose company -- Lyndhurst-based JTE Spirits -- has yet to put a single product on the shelf. But his boast is backed up by more than a few years experience.
For years, the Hoboken High School graduate traveled the globe as a vice president in the investment banking arm of JP Morgan Chase. From each country, he took home a sample of a local beverage to satisfy his love of premium liquors.
So when he retired 2½ years ago and began thinking about starting his own business, liquor came to mind. Maybe he could import some, he pondered.
He spent two years doing research -- traveling the Cognac region of France, tasting wine and talking to vintners. He came up with a strategy to take on the four big cognac brands that dominate the U.S. market: Courvoisier, Remy, Hennessy and Martell.
"I realized we needed to take cognac back to its roots," he says, "to create something new."
His company aims to create a market niche of top quality cognacs. Pour Moi, for instance, will go for $75 to $85 for a 375 milliliter bottle, about three times the price of established brands. Jones said it was created to his specifications by a "premier cognac house."
He also is importing eight or nine other quality cognacs, which he will slowly bring to market. He has three employees in the U.S. and one in France, where JTE Spirits has an office a block from the headquarters of Courvoisier, he gleefully reports.
He turns garbage into electricity
If they gave frequent-flier miles for talking trash, Peter Toscano would probably never buy a plane ticket again.
The CEO of Wantage-based International Power Group (IPWG), Toscano travels the world touting technology that turns garbage, hazardous materials and wastewater into electricity.
The company is trying to develop, build and manage plants across the globe. So Toscano spends his time convincing foreign governments and investors of the idea's benefits.
"We at IPWG look at landfills as the next great oil and gas reserves," said Toscano, 57, who gushes enthusiasm for his mission.
So far, it has proven a challenging task; the seven-year-old company has yet to build a plant. But it hopes to soon.
IPWG -- which was based in Lodi until 2004 -- announced the opening of an office in London three weeks ago. Shortly after, plans for another followed -- this one in Mexico City.
The company in June outlined plans to build a $300 million plant in Baja California, Mexico. It will convert 180 tons of municipal waste a day into electricity, the company says.
The blueprint for the plan was developed in Sweden, where 29 waste-burning facilities -- some of which have operated for 18 years -- create safe, clean energy, Toscano said.
"It's incredible what the Swedes have accomplished," he said. "They have basically eradicated the need for landfills."
Fewer dead car batteries in Italy
The Battery Brain is heading to Italy.
Clifton-based Smart Energy Solutions -- which makes the auto-battery charge protector -- said last week it has signed a deal to distribute the product to more than 2,000 retail and wholesale outlets there.
The Battery Brain monitors the charge in a vehicle's battery and automatically disconnects it when the charge declines, ensuring there will always be enough power left to start the engine. The deal with Elcart Distribution is Smart Energy's first move into Italy.
Have any news or comments for Going Global? Contact Hugh R. Morley at (201) 646-4318, or e-mail morley@northjersey.com.
Copyright © 2006 North Jersey Media Group Inc.
Copyright Infringement Notice User Agreement & Privacy Policy
Going Global
Sunday, February 12, 2006
By HUGH R. MORLEY
The rapid rise of the global economy is reshaping the way New Jersey companies do business, creating new opportunities and challenges. This weekly column explores the growing ties between Garden State businesses and the rest of the world.
New cognac has scent of a woman
Paul Jones has something for the woman who thinks she has everything.
Pour Moi -- a new cognac with a hint of peach, iris and quince.
It's sold in what resembles a perfume bottle. And Jones, 49, says it's the first spirit ever created specifically for women.
"We believe that this will change the spirits market and the way it's marketed to women," he says.
That's big talk for an executive whose company -- Lyndhurst-based JTE Spirits -- has yet to put a single product on the shelf. But his boast is backed up by more than a few years experience.
For years, the Hoboken High School graduate traveled the globe as a vice president in the investment banking arm of JP Morgan Chase. From each country, he took home a sample of a local beverage to satisfy his love of premium liquors.
So when he retired 2½ years ago and began thinking about starting his own business, liquor came to mind. Maybe he could import some, he pondered.
He spent two years doing research -- traveling the Cognac region of France, tasting wine and talking to vintners. He came up with a strategy to take on the four big cognac brands that dominate the U.S. market: Courvoisier, Remy, Hennessy and Martell.
"I realized we needed to take cognac back to its roots," he says, "to create something new."
His company aims to create a market niche of top quality cognacs. Pour Moi, for instance, will go for $75 to $85 for a 375 milliliter bottle, about three times the price of established brands. Jones said it was created to his specifications by a "premier cognac house."
He also is importing eight or nine other quality cognacs, which he will slowly bring to market. He has three employees in the U.S. and one in France, where JTE Spirits has an office a block from the headquarters of Courvoisier, he gleefully reports.
He turns garbage into electricity
If they gave frequent-flier miles for talking trash, Peter Toscano would probably never buy a plane ticket again.
The CEO of Wantage-based International Power Group (IPWG), Toscano travels the world touting technology that turns garbage, hazardous materials and wastewater into electricity.
The company is trying to develop, build and manage plants across the globe. So Toscano spends his time convincing foreign governments and investors of the idea's benefits.
"We at IPWG look at landfills as the next great oil and gas reserves," said Toscano, 57, who gushes enthusiasm for his mission.
So far, it has proven a challenging task; the seven-year-old company has yet to build a plant. But it hopes to soon.
IPWG -- which was based in Lodi until 2004 -- announced the opening of an office in London three weeks ago. Shortly after, plans for another followed -- this one in Mexico City.
The company in June outlined plans to build a $300 million plant in Baja California, Mexico. It will convert 180 tons of municipal waste a day into electricity, the company says.
The blueprint for the plan was developed in Sweden, where 29 waste-burning facilities -- some of which have operated for 18 years -- create safe, clean energy, Toscano said.
"It's incredible what the Swedes have accomplished," he said. "They have basically eradicated the need for landfills."
Fewer dead car batteries in Italy
The Battery Brain is heading to Italy.
Clifton-based Smart Energy Solutions -- which makes the auto-battery charge protector -- said last week it has signed a deal to distribute the product to more than 2,000 retail and wholesale outlets there.
The Battery Brain monitors the charge in a vehicle's battery and automatically disconnects it when the charge declines, ensuring there will always be enough power left to start the engine. The deal with Elcart Distribution is Smart Energy's first move into Italy.
Have any news or comments for Going Global? Contact Hugh R. Morley at (201) 646-4318, or e-mail morley@northjersey.com.
Copyright © 2006 North Jersey Media Group Inc.
Copyright Infringement Notice User Agreement & Privacy Policy
posted by Jones Lang LaSalle NJ News Blog at 1:49 PM
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