SALT LAKE CITY — Bolstered by community and family support, Natalie Kaddas and the manufacturing company she leads have risen right up through the glass ceiling.
And in a new 50,000-square-foot facility in Salt Lake City, that progress is expected to continue.
"It's just an honor to run such a great organization," Kaddas said during a ribbon-cutting ceremony Wednesday for the new home of Kaddas Enterprises, a leading heavy gauge thermoform plastic manufacturing company that has tripled in size and become a multimillion-dollar enterprise under her leadership.
Kaddas, a 46-year-old mother of two, became the company's CEO in 2006 when her in-laws were ready to retire. Her husband, Jay, is an engineer who works primarily in design at the company.
"There aren't a lot of women in manufacturing, so we are a bit unique," Kaddas said. "It's not right or wrong; it's different, and we have a different perspective. So we try to offer that different perspective. It's an honor to lead such a great group of people."
Salt Lake City recently awarded Kaddas Enterprises an economic development loan, helping to make the expansion possible. Kaddas said she feels Salt Lake is a community that supports small businesses and wants to see them succeed.
"It's nice to be a part of that, that rallying cry and that excitement," she said.
She also credits her inclusion in the Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Businesses program with much of her company's growth.
"The Goldman Sachs program has been transformational," she said. "It taught us how to look at the value proposition, how to leverage that, how to strategically grow, and that has made all the difference."
Carol and John Kaddas, who started Kaddas Enterprises in 1966, attended the ribbon-cutting ceremony to support their daughter-in-law and the advances she has made with the family company.
"She is absolutely amazing," Carol Kaddas said. "We wanted her to come work for us, but we never told her that because she had her own career and she was doing very well. At one point, she said, 'Can I have a job?' and I said, 'Yes, come quick.'"
Carol Kaddas, who is turning 80 on Thursday, said her daughter-in-law has taken the business to new levels because she knew what sort of education she needed, discovered new business processes previous company leaders never learned, and then implemented those processes successfully.
"She slipped in like she was made for it," Carol Kaddas said.
Kaddas Enterprises creates industrial applications, including in the aviation and transportation industries. The company also specializes in products that cover and protect power infrastructure against animal-caused power outages, helping to protect wildlife, especially birds, and save companies from power loss.
Natalie Kaddas said she is honored to have the opportunity to grow her business, which had become too big for its smaller facility.
"We can take on additional businesses, we can do new things, we can add additional jobs, and we haven't had that opportunity before," Kaddas said.
At the ribbon-cutting ceremony, Kaddas was joined by Salt Lake City Mayor Jackie Biskupski, Salt Lake County Mayor Ben McAdams and Goldman Sachs CEO Lloyd Blankfein to speak to a crowd gathered outside the new facility.
Biskupski said she is committed to understanding the needs of Salt Lake's small businesses and to helping them grow and thrive.
"Natalie, we are so proud of your headquarters being located right here in Salt Lake City," Biskupski said. "I want to personally extend my congratulations to you and your achievements, and for all you are doing to enrich our community with your success."
McAdams praised Goldman Sachs for bringing success to Kaddas' business and other small businesses in Salt Lake City.
Blankfein said Salt Lake City is second biggest city of involvement for Goldman Sachs, just after New York City.