About a mile down a scenic road in the village of Canonchet, Hope Valley, Hopkinton, Rhode Island, U.S.A., is the headquarters, manufacturing facility, and shipping warehouse of Greene Plastics Corporation/THE BEADERY® Craft Products. The company was founded in 1932, and this year celebrates 75 years in business with special sales and events.
The corporation manufactures and imports decorative beads, mosaics, and the like for jewelry, crafts, and
home décor. The company was originally located
n Wakefield, RI, but relocated in the 1950’s to its
present headquarters in Hope Valley. Its founder and
namesake was Oliver Watson Greene.
Greene Plastics was purchased in the 1950’s by
William White. In 1985 it was sold to an ESOP
(Employee Stock Ownership Plan) trust. Now
profits and shares of the company are allocated
to the employees as tax-deferred retirement accounts.
Greene Plastics/THE BEADERY® employs some 120 people locally. The headquarters and manufacturing facilities are located on Canonchet Road in a complex of buildings added over the years to an original mill building dating from 1848. This was the Asheville Mill constructed of native granite, and is recognized as a historic place by the Hopkinton Historical Association. It was originally a textile mill. A warehouse was added across the street in 1990.
In the early years, thermoformed beads from Greene Plastics were sold primarily to the booming fashion jewelry industry, for which Rhode Island had been a major manufacturing center. Later injection molding enabled creation of many styles and colors of beads. The rare process of compression molding was also used, and the results were beads and related items such as cabochons formed of extremely hard compounds that simulated costly semi-precious materials.
The now well known trademark, THE BEADERY®, came into use in the 1970’s. Under this name, a growing segment of the bead market involved various “do-it-yourself” handicrafts, such as beaded Christmas ornaments, bead jewelry and items for the home. The product line expanded to include hundreds of shapes and colors of beads. Other small, decorative parts such as acrylic faceted stones similar to rhinestones, pendants and charms, mosaic pieces, beadcraft kits, and gift items such as transparent boxes with multiple compartments of themed, color- and style-coordinated beads are also offered. Various cords, jewelry wire, jewelry findings and even jeweler’s hand tools are all available. This makes THE BEADERY® a one-stop supplier for sellers of beadwork designers, and artisans. Expansion into other markets, such as the toy industry, has been ongoing with the design of attractive and fun activity sets including everything from sparkly beads to fanciful construction sets.
In a highly competitive market, the local company has pre-
vailed - due in part to innovative, cost-effective manufacturing
techniques, and to a commitment to quality. THE BEADERY®
is also known for distinctive product and packaging design and
for meeting and leading fashion trends in its industry. In recent
years, the importing of complementary items has rounded out
the product lines to meet growing demand. Significant expansion
of marketing internationally brings increasing sales in over 30
countries.
Until recently THE BEADERY® products were sold directly
to other businesses: wholesalers, large chain stores, craft shops
and other manufacturers. Now they are available for
purchase online by everyone at
www.thebeadery.com.
