PORTLAND, Maine — The popular pepper sauce brand, Tabasco, has always been made on Avery Island in Louisiana, but the company was actually incorporated right here in Maine back in 1907.
Anthony Simmons is the former CEO of Tobasco's parent company, McIlhenny Co., and the great great grandson of McIlhenny's founder, Edmund McIlhenny. Simmons was the keynote speaker at the 22nd Maine Family Business Awards this year and was surprised with a copy of the incorporation papers at the event.
Simmons sat down with 207 to discuss more about Tabasco's ties to Maine and how his family's company has continued to grow for more than a century.
207: "Were you surprised to be presented with the incorporation papers? What was that like?"
Simmons: "I knew that we were incorporated in the state of Maine so I thought it was a very nice, fitting thing to receive that. We have a full-time archivist and the copy will go to our archives to be displayed as part of our heritage."
207: "Did you ever come to Maine as a kid, or growing up did you have any memories of coming here?"
Simmons: "No, I have a lot of relatives here. We have a lot of connections to Maine. My cousin married a fellow named Rob Gardiner from Gardiner, Maine. Some of my other cousins live here in Maine. So, we have a lot of connection to Maine but me personally, no."
207: "You are part of the fifth generation of family leadership with the company. What is it like to work with your family?"
Simmons: "As people talk about all the time, it's very difficult to keep a family business together. Only about 12 percent of family businesses make it to the third generation, and somewhere between two and four percent of family businesses make it to the fourth. So, fifth, sixth generation family businesses have found a way to keep the family happy and keep the business thriving and hit a balance that allows you to hang on to your family business, but, it's tricky."
Watch the full 207 interview to learn more about Simmons, the McIlhenny Co., and Tabasco's ties to Maine.