Florida Firm Buying Calhoun Bottled Water Company

Silver Springs Bottled Water Co. has announced it is acquiring and expanding Hickory Springs Bottling Inc.'s existing Calhoun County operations

The $16.3 million investment is expected to generate 37 new jobs over the next five years.

The expansion is being achieved with a 60,000-square-foot addition to the existing facility located at 347 Old River Road in Elloree.

To expand operations, Silver Springs will be adding new, high-speed bottling equipment.

Hiring for the new positions is expected to begin in the next few weeks.

Job applicants may contact SCWorks.org.

Silver Springs Bottled Water Co. was established in 1986 and has been under the ownership of the Richmond family since 1991.

Since that time, the company, headquartered in Marion County, Florida, has become the largest privately held bottled water firm in the state of Florida.

Silver Springs is acquiring the existing Hickory Springs operations in Calhoun County in an effort to expand its footprint beyond the Sunshine State.

Silver Springs Bottled Water CEO Kane Richmond said, "The Silver Springs Bottled Water group of companies is pleased to announce the acquisition and expansion of Hickory Springs Bottling Inc. We are excited to build on the foundation that has been established by Rick Stewart and his team at Hickory Springs Bottling."

"We're looking forward to Mr. Stewart's continued leadership through this exciting time of expansion," he said. "The positive environment established by the state of South Carolina, Calhoun County and the Central South Carolina Alliance were key factors in making the timing and location of this expansion right. We are eager to become an active part of the growing local community."

Gov. Nikki Haley said, "The fact that Silver Springs Bottled Water has decided to expand the Hickory Springs operations in Calhoun County is a real reason to celebrate in South Carolina."

Haley said the investment and the additional jobs it will create "truly will make a difference in the lives of South Carolinians."

"We couldn't be more excited to watch this great company continue to grow here for a very long time," she added.

"It is my honor to welcome the Silver Springs Bottled Water Company to Calhoun County,"Calhoun County Council Chairman David K. Summers Jr. said.

"We are proud of our low taxes and pro-business environment, which have always yielded economic success for the Palmetto State. Our central proximity to the port (of Charleston) and the major metropolitan markets in South Carolina makes us a prime location for future investments," Summers said.

The spring that supplies the Calhoun County operations was initially discovered in the early 1800s by a British naturalist.

Source: TheTandD.com

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