New business hopes to expand

SUPERIOR – Lawns and gardens around the area could be getting a facelift soon if one local business owner has his way and it might not stop at the Mineral County borders.

Mike Simpson of Creative Development, a company that manufactures decorative wood products for landscaping and other applications, wants to not only help make Mineral County a more beautiful place. He is hoping to create jobs by expanding his company, currently operated from his home in Superior, to be able to mass-produce his brightly colored wood chips and other products.

Simpson said he is set to not only offer his products locally, but nationally and even internationally if he can get set up to produce his invention on a large scale. Simpson said his products are environmentally friendly, 100 percent biodegradable. The company could also potentially help solve one of the most serious problems facing areas like Mineral County.

By potentially harvesting deadfall from the forests of Mineral County and other areas to be chipped and used by Creative Development in the manufacture of its products, Simpson and his company could potentially reduce fuel loads in areas at risk of wildfire.

It remains to be seen whether the company would be able to harvest deadfall in the area, but in the meantime Simpson said he is focused on expanding his operation and putting people to work with well paying jobs in an environment he said he wants to be a place where people enjoy coming to work and producing a quality product for the consumer.

“We are set up for shipping,” Simpson said. “The bags are absolutely ready to ship overseas. This is a high end, quality product that we are color treating for landscape and bedding materials. You can use it indoors or in plant beds. We also have pet bedding in a variety of colors. We have an endless imagination to produce whatever our customers want. We plan on producing in bulk. The product sells itself. We believe in this product.”

Simpson said the next step involves making the transition to a facility where the product can be mass-produced.

He said, at this stage, he and his wife and other people committed to the emerging company are pushing for an expansion.

“We think this a phenomenal product,” Simpson said. “We offer a lot of colors. We hope to be in business with mass production in the fall.”

Simpson said the company has a website and is ready to fulfill orders at this time.