New Zealand
New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island coun ...
based packaging company with roots in the former Reynolds Metals Company, which was the second-largest
aluminum
Aluminium (aluminum in American and Canadian English) is a chemical element with the symbol Al and atomic number 13. Aluminium has a density lower than those of other common metals, at approximately one third that of steel. It ha ...
company in the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...
, and the third-largest in the world. Reynolds Metals was acquired by
Alcoa
Alcoa Corporation (an acronym for Aluminum Company of America) is a Pittsburgh-based industrial corporation. It is the world's eighth-largest producer of aluminum. Alcoa conducts operations in 10 countries. Alcoa is a major producer of primar ...
in
Reynolds Metals became known for the consumer product Reynolds Wrap foil, as well as for developing and promoting new uses for aluminum. Its RV ''
Aluminaut
''Aluminaut'' (built in 1964) was the world's first aluminum submarine. An experimental vessel, the 80-ton, crewed deep-ocean research submersible was built by Reynolds Metals Company, which was seeking to promote the utility of aluminum. ''Al ...
'' submarine was operated by Reynolds Submarine Services Corporation.
It was headquartered for most of its existence in
Richmond, Virginia
(Thus do we reach the stars)
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The Reynolds Metals Company was founded in 1919 as the U.S. Foil Company in
Louisville, Kentucky
Louisville ( , , ) is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky and the 28th most-populous city in the United States. Louisville is the historical seat and, since 2003, the nominal seat of Jefferson County, on the Indiana border ...
, by
Richard S. Reynolds Sr.
Richard Samuel Reynolds Sr. was the founder of the U.S. Foil Company.
Early life
Reynolds was born on August 15, 1881 in Madison County, North Carolina. He was the nephew of leading tobacco producer R.J. Reynolds and the son of Major Abraham ...
, nephew of tobacco king R. J. Reynolds. Initially, the new company supplied lead and tin foil wrappers to cigarette and candy companies. In 1924, U.S. Foil purchased the manufacturer of
Eskimo Pie
Edy's Pie (formerly known as Eskimo Pie) is an American brand of chocolate-covered vanilla ice cream bar wrapped in foil. It was the first such dessert sold in the United States. It is marketed by Dreyer's, a division of Froneri.
In wake of the ...
s, which were wrapped in foil. In 1928, Reynolds purchased Robertshaw Thermostat, Fulton Sylphon, and part of Beechnut Foil, adding them to U.S. Foil to create Reynolds Metals. In 1931, the company moved its headquarters to
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
and in 1938 the headquarters moved again to
Richmond, Virginia
(Thus do we reach the stars)
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, map_caption = Location within Virginia
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.
The company began producing aluminum foil for packaging in 1926. Reynolds Metals created the first high-speed,
gravure
Rotogravure (or gravure for short) is a type of intaglio printing process, which involves engraving the image onto an image carrier. In gravure printing, the image is engraved onto a cylinder because, like offset printing and flexography
...
-printed foil, aluminum bottle labels, heat-sealed foil bags for foods and foil-laminated
building insulation
Building insulation is any object in a building used as insulation for thermal management. While the majority of insulation in buildings is for thermal purposes, the term also applies to acoustic insulation, fire insulation, and impact ins ...
paper. In 1940 Reynolds Metals began mining
bauxite
Bauxite is a sedimentary rock with a relatively high aluminium content. It is the world's main source of aluminium and gallium. Bauxite consists mostly of the aluminium minerals gibbsite (Al(OH)3), boehmite (γ-AlO(OH)) and diaspore (α-AlO ...
(aluminum ore) in
Bauxite
Bauxite is a sedimentary rock with a relatively high aluminium content. It is the world's main source of aluminium and gallium. Bauxite consists mostly of the aluminium minerals gibbsite (Al(OH)3), boehmite (γ-AlO(OH)) and diaspore (α-AlO ...
,
Arkansas
Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the South Central United States. It is bordered by Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, and Texas and Oklahoma to the west. Its name is from the O ...
and opened its first aluminum plant near
Sheffield, Alabama
Sheffield is a city in Colbert County, Alabama, United States, and is included in the Shoals metropolitan area. As of the 2010 census, the population of the city was 9,039. Sheffield is the birthplace of "country-soul pioneer" and songwriter Arth ...
, the following year. In 1947, the company released Reynolds Wrap Aluminum Foil. Reynolds Metals pioneered the development of aluminum siding in 1945, and Richard S. Reynolds began predicting a growing demand for additional aluminum during peacetime. He believed new aluminum-producing facilities would need to be built to meet demand. Reynolds Metals Company leased, and later bought, six government defense plants that were up for disposal. Reynolds later expanded into non aluminum products such as plastics and precious metals, introducing Reynolds Plastic Wrap in 1982.
After the Second World War, the sense of aluminum's utility expanded to include its ornamental characteristics. By repurposing military by-products into consumer goods, aluminum was now being marketed for its decorative appeal as well, creating a product of both functional and eye-catching qualities. Reynolds advertised aluminum for its multi-faceted property, now reaching areas of fashion, home improvement, and architecture. Reynolds marketed aluminum foil as gift wrap, aluminum yarn for Vogue dress patterns, and even extended their advertising strategy to include wrapping their office headquarters in aluminum.
Four sons of founder Richard S. Reynolds, William G. Reynolds, Richard S. Reynolds Jr., David P. Reynolds, and J. Louis Reynolds, were all part of the running of the business. Richard S. Reynolds Jr. succeeded his father as president in 1948 and under his leadership, the company underwent a major expansion with operations extended to countries around the world such as
Venezuela
Venezuela (; ), officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela ( es, link=no, República Bolivariana de Venezuela), is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many islands and islets in th ...
and the
Philippines
The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no),
* bik, Republika kan Filipinas
* ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas
* cbk, República de Filipinas
* hil, Republ ...
. In 1976 David P. Reynolds, also known for his involvement in
Thoroughbred horse racing
Thoroughbred racing is a sport and industry involving the racing of Thoroughbred horses. It is governed by different national bodies. There are two forms of the sport – flat racing and jump racing, the latter known as National Hunt racing in ...
, took over as president. He was the last member of his family to head the company and would retire as chairman.
Reynolds Metals developed other, less well-known products; not all became commercially viable, such as an aluminum bus developed with
Rohr Industries
Rohr, Inc. is an aerospace manufacturing company based in Chula Vista, California, south of San Diego. It is a wholly owned unit of the Collins Aerospace division of Raytheon Technologies; it was founded in 1940 by Frederick H. Rohr as Rohr Air ...
, a 12 foot aluminum utility boat, and other aluminum motor vehicles., The aluminum vehicles were surpassed in weight and cost by steel, plastics and fiberglass. However, when Reynolds Metals developed the world's first aluminum submarine, the ''
Aluminaut
''Aluminaut'' (built in 1964) was the world's first aluminum submarine. An experimental vessel, the 80-ton, crewed deep-ocean research submersible was built by Reynolds Metals Company, which was seeking to promote the utility of aluminum. ''Al ...
'', the experimental product participated in a key rescue. In 1969, ''Aluminaut'' rescued '' Alvin (DSV-2)''. Aluminaut's assistance enabled
Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution
The Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI, acronym pronounced ) is a private, nonprofit research and higher education facility dedicated to the study of marine science and engineering.
Established in 1930 in Woods Hole, Massachusetts, i ...
to continue operating its submersible. Alvin's work continues 45 years later.
By 1991, Reynolds Metals employed 30,800 workers at more than 100 operations in 20 countries, including 64 plants in the United States, and had a total production capacity of more than 1 million tons of aluminum and aluminum products. The company was acquired by
Alcoa
Alcoa Corporation (an acronym for Aluminum Company of America) is a Pittsburgh-based industrial corporation. It is the world's eighth-largest producer of aluminum. Alcoa conducts operations in 10 countries. Alcoa is a major producer of primar ...
on May 3, 2000 to become the largest aluminum company in the United States.
On January 21, 2008, Alcoa sold its consumer unit to
Rank Group Ltd
Graeme Richard Hart (born 1955) is a New Zealand billionaire businessman and the country's wealthiest person.Graeme Hart
Graeme Richard Hart (born 1955) is a New Zealand billionaire businessman and the country's wealthiest person.Reynolds Metals Company International Headquarters building is in
Henrico County, Virginia
Henrico County , officially the County of Henrico, is located in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. As of the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census, the population was 334,389 making it the List of ci ...
, near
Richmond
Richmond most often refers to:
* Richmond, Virginia, the capital of Virginia, United States
* Richmond, London, a part of London
* Richmond, North Yorkshire, a town in England
* Richmond, British Columbia, a city in Canada
* Richmond, Californi ...
. Built , is a
Modernist
Modernism is both a philosophy, philosophical and arts movement that arose from broad transformations in Western world, Western society during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The movement reflected a desire for the creation of new fo ...
building designed by the architect
Gordon Bunshaft
Gordon Bunshaft, (May 9, 1909 – August 6, 1990), was an American architect, a leading proponent of modern design in the mid-twentieth century. A partner in Skidmore, Owings & Merrill (SOM), Bunshaft joined the firm in 1937 and remained with ...
of
Skidmore, Owings & Merrill
Skidmore, Owings & Merrill (SOM) is an American architectural, urban planning and engineering firm. It was founded in 1936 by Louis Skidmore and Nathaniel A. Owings, Nathaniel Owings in Chicago, Illinois. In 1939, they were joined by engineer Jo ...
. During its use by Reynolds, the Executive Office Building was known as Reynolds EXO. It was named to the
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic ...
, one of the rare mid−20th century buildings on the list. Making extensive use of
aluminum
Aluminium (aluminum in American and Canadian English) is a chemical element with the symbol Al and atomic number 13. Aluminium has a density lower than those of other common metals, at approximately one third that of steel. It ha ...
, down to threads in the carpeting, it is now owned by the
University of Richmond
The University of Richmond (UR or U of R) is a private liberal arts college in Richmond, Virginia. It is a primarily undergraduate, residential institution with approximately 4,350 undergraduate and graduate students in five schools: the School ...
and serves as the worldwide headquarters of
Altria Group
Altria Group, Inc. (previously known as Philip Morris Companies, Inc.) is an American corporation and one of the world's largest producers and marketers of tobacco, cigarettes and related products. It operates worldwide and is headquartered in ...
.
Consumer products
Reynolds Wrap was first made by a Reynolds Metals Company division, Reynolds Packaging, a business created to supply aluminum foil for packaging
tobacco
Tobacco is the common name of several plants in the genus '' Nicotiana'' of the family Solanaceae, and the general term for any product prepared from the cured leaves of these plants. More than 70 species of tobacco are known, but the ...
. When Alcoa purchased Reynolds Metals, it shed some non-metals packaging and printing businesses but preserved the Reynolds consumer brand, as well as the Reynolds Kitchens, which are still across the street from the former Reynolds headquarters building. Alcoa's Reynolds division was a leader in household baking and cooking products, which included Cut-Rite Wax Paper.
Reynolds published cookbooks such as ''Outdoor Cooking with Reynolds Wrap'' (1950) and ''Casual Cooking'' (1954) in an attempt to promote the sales of Reynolds Wrap.
In 1958, the company launched the "Designs for Giving" campaign, in which professional artists and designers were hired to create special patterns for gift wrapping. Designs included "Birds and Bees" for baby showers, "Born Lucky, Born Rich" for birthdays, and "Flight of Fancy" for weddings or Christmas.Reynolds Consumer Products went public with an initial public offering on
NASDAQ
The Nasdaq Stock Market () (National Association of Securities Dealers Automated Quotations Stock Market) is an American stock exchange based in New York City. It is the most active stock trading venue in the US by volume, and ranked second ...
under the ticker symbol REYN on Friday, January 31, 2020.