Special Delivery in Slovenia

More than 40 years since dispatching its first-ever overseas shipment – to Slovenia, then, a republic of Yugoslavia – Franklin International is celebrating another first in the transportation of goods not to, but within, that country: Logos for the company’s two divisions emblazoned across a new van (or, as it’s commonly called in Slovenia, a “kombi”) that delivers adhesives to local customers of distributor KLP d.o.o. in this small, but rugged, country.

The divisions include Franklin Adhesives & Polymers, the Franklin International division that produces adhesives for industrial clients both domestically and globally, and the construction division, which produces Titebond-brand wood glues, construction adhesives and sealants. KLP initially distributed just industrial wood glues but later expanded its offering to include Titebond-branded glues.

Franklin itself has traveled some distance since that first overseas shipment, in 1976. The delivery heralded the beginning of a steadily growing global presence, leading the company to change its name from Franklin Chemical Industries to Franklin International in 1984. Emil Gaspari, who initially brought Franklin into the Slovenian market, also gets the credit for forming the alliance with distributor KLP d.o.o. in 1996.  Last year, Franklin honored KLP (as well as Franklin’s Croatian distributor) for the success of their respective 20-year partnerships. The celebration continues with the unveiling of the Franklin van.

The Franklin van joins a fleet of vehicles KLP uses to deliver products to local customers. The mountainous terrain and small size of Slovenia (which is about 15% the size of the U.S. state of Ohio, home state of Franklin International) rule out the use of larger, long-haul trucks for deliveries.