Deco Labels and Flexible Packaging Limited (also known as Deco Labels and Tags) is a Canadian label company, specializing in pressure-sensitive labels for plastic-wrapped grocery products, and based in

Etobicoke Etobicoke (, ) is an administrative district of, and one of six municipalities amalgamated into, the city of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Comprising the city's west-end, Etobicoke was first settled by Europeans in the 1790s, and the municipalit ...

, Toronto, Canada. It is primarily known for its association with the Ford family of

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...

politicians, including Member of Provincial Parliament Doug Ford Sr.,

Toronto Mayor The mayor of Toronto is the head of Toronto City Council and chief executive officer of the municipal government. The mayor is elected alongside city council every four years on the fourth Monday of October; there are no term limits. While in ...

Rob Ford Robert Bruce Ford (May 28, 1969 – March 22, 2016) was a Canadian politician and businessman who served as the 64th mayor of Toronto from 2010 to 2014. Before and after his term as mayor, Ford was a city councillor representing Ward 2 Etobi ...

, and

Ontario PC Party The Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario (french: Parti progressiste-conservateur de l'Ontario), often shortened to the Ontario PC Party or simply the PCs, colloquially known as the Tories, is a centre-right political party in Ontario, Canada ...

Leader and

Premier of Ontario The premier of Ontario (french: premier ministre de l'Ontario) is the head of government of Ontario. Under the Westminster system, the premier governs with the Confidence and supply, confidence of a majority the elected Legislative Assembly of On ...

Doug Ford Jr. Douglas Robert Ford Jr. (born November 20, 1964) is a Canadian politician and businessman who has served as the 26th and current premier of Ontario since June 2018 and leader of the Progressive Conservative (PC) Party since March 2018. He r ...

It has annual sales of approximately $100 million per year.

History

Deco was founded in 1962, by Doug Ford Sr. and Ted Herriott. The company was originally a Toronto location for Avery labels, but quickly separated from its parent company. In 1965, Herriott left the company, over a dispute whether it should expand into the tag business. In the following years, it experienced significant growth and success, under the leadership of Doug Sr. In the 1995, Doug Sr. became MPP for Etobicoke—Humber, and his sons Doug Ford Jr. and Randy Ford assumed control for day-to-day operations of the company. In 1999, the company opened a branch in Chicago, led by Doug Jr. The branch eventually achieved $11 million in annual sales. Further, less successful operations in Ohio and Florida followed. In 2002, Doug Jr. became president of the company, replacing his father. In 2006, Doug Sr., nearing his death, divided up the company, leaving 40% to Doug Jr, 40% to Randy and 20% to

(the third brother). In 2008, Deco purchased Wise Tag and Label, a New Jersey tag business. The acquisition was not successful, and the firing of Wise Tag's manager led to a 2012 lawsuit. In 2010, Doug Jr. was elected Toronto City Councillor (replacing his brother Rob), and Randy took control of day-to-day operations of the company. Former Deco employees suggest that the company was well-managed under Doug Jr., but that the company declined under Randy's leadership. The Toronto division has also struggled to deliver orders on time. In 2011, Doug Jr. and Rob allegedly used their positions as city councilor and mayor to benefit Deco, in connection with two clients of the company,

RR Donnelley R.R. Donnelley is an American Fortune 500 integrated communications company that provides marketing and business communications, commercial printing, and related services. Its corporate headquarters are located in Chicago, Illinois, United State ...

and Apollo Health and Beauty Care. An investigation was launched in 2014, and concluded that Doug Jr. broke the code of conduct. In 2018, after being elected Ontario PC leader, Doug Jr. said that he would put his ownership stake in Deco in a trust if elected premier in the upcoming election. In June 2018, Renata Ford, Rob Ford's widow, launched a $16.25 million lawsuit against Doug and Randy Ford, a few days before the provincial election in which Doug was elected premier. The lawsuit alleges that Doug and Randy were bad managers of Deco Labels, and were guilty of various financial improprieties in their role as trustees of Doug Sr's estate. According to the suit, Deco lost $5.5 million in the six years before 2018, from a total value of $10 million in 2006, due in part to various acquisitions. In order to shore up the company's finances, the lawsuit alleges that the Ford brothers sold other investments owned by Doug Sr's estate. As a result of these activities, the estate declined considerably in value, to the loss of Renata. Doug and Randy deny the allegations, suggesting that they are "completely false".

Business

Deco specializes in producing labels for consumer products, especially in the grocery sector. It also produces labels for the

City of Toronto government The municipal government of Toronto ( incorporated as the City of Toronto) is the local government responsible for administering the city of Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a rec ...

. Deco is headquartered in

Rexdale Rexdale is a neighbourhood of Toronto, Ontario, Canada, located north-west of the central core, in the district of Etobicoke. Rexdale defines an area of several official neighbourhoods north of Highway 401 (Ontario), Highway 401 and east of Highway ...

, Ontario, with an American office near

Chicago, Illinois (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

. It has a 70,000-square foot production facility in Toronto, and a 45,000-square foot facility in Chicago, with a total of 200 employees. the company was jointly owned by Doug Ford Jr. and Randy Ford. According to the June 2018 lawsuit, Doug owned 100% of the Chicago branch, while Randy owned 100% of the Toronto branch. Regulatory filings by Doug Ford Jr. in May 2018 suggested that he was the sole owner of the "Deco Labels and Tags", also known as "Deco Chicago".

References

{{Reflist Companies based in Etobicoke Manufacturing companies based in Toronto