When Rochester Magnet started in 1988, the East Rochester-based company was a source of hard magnets and assemblies sold to the local industrial market.

Three years later, the company began converting flexible magnetic material. Large rolls were slit into "useable" sizes, and pressure-sensitive adhesive tape was laminated to the magnet. The flexible magnets helped the company enter a niche market and grow nationally.

"We convert flexible magnet to custom sizes for the print, point-of-sale display, signage and packaging markets, as well as a wide variety of industrial applications," said President Andrew Carpentier.

Rochester Magnet's products are used as "closures" for items as diverse as high-end packaging, purses, cell-phone holders, makeup cases and cars, Carpentier said.

The company was founded by Robert Dennis, who started the business selling "magnetic assemblies" to Eastman Kodak Co. and Xerox Corp., Carpentier said. Magnetic assemblies consist of one or more magnets and components, like steel, that affect the function of the magnets, according to the company website.

Rochester Magnet also converts pressure-sensitive adhesive tapes for a variety of applications.

Magnets are found in all kinds of everyday products, the company says on its website, including store signs, latches and holding devices. All electric motors have a magnet, and magnets are used industrially in windmills, speakers, computer hard drives and generators, among other products.

That growing demand, and the company's diversity of products, has helped Rochester Magnet nearly triple in size in the past three years, Carpentier said.

In the field of printable magnets — think, for instance, of sports team schedules that adhere to your refrigerator — Rochester Magnet touts their use in advertising "with a message that sticks." Customers can buy their printable magnets unmagnetized, and magnetize the sheets themselves with equipment the company sells.

The adhesive tapes sold by Rochester Magnet are used in industries such as graphic arts, binderies, printers and signage. Flexible magnets can be used for point-of-sale displays, masking, custom die cutting and warehouse labels, among other applications.

Magnets are used in jewelry for their supposed healing powers, as well as for clasps to hold together necklaces, bracelets and anklets. Magnets also are used for decorating; jigsaw puzzles are among the items that are more and more frequently using magnets for display, according to the company website.

Carpentier bought Rochester Magnet in 2010 and steered the company's strategy to "people, process and technology." Carpentier had 20 years of experience in finance, sales, marketing and operations at companies like Deloitte & Touche, Kodak and Dell Computer.

"We launched new market messaging and became more proactive in acquiring new (customers) and growing current customers," he said of his work with Rochester Magnet. Improving processes and expanding inventory allowed Rochester Magnet to reduce lead times to meet customers' needs with quicker turnarounds, he said.

As for the future, Carpentier said the company is now defined as a "converter of material," and not just a magnet company.

Location: 119 Despatch Drive, East Rochester

Alan Morrell is a freelance writer based in Rochester.