When Bill Milne bought his father's sanitation company,
Alex Milne Associates, in 1980 and turned it into an environmentally friendly chemical company, people laughed at him. "They thought I was Mr Hug-A-Tree," he says. But despite the lack of green consciousness at the time, Milne knew ecology would become a hot topic. "I'd been a scuba diver since 1950, so I could see the marine environment going downhill," he says. He'd retired at age 40 from his first career and "walked around the world with a backpack and a girlfriend" for two years. That experience, he says, gave him the perspective he needed. His first major product, launched in 1987, was
a protective wax for boats that wouldn't destroy the sea bottom.
Today, no one is laughing at Milne. With the explosion of of environmental awareness and the launch of an innovative, all-natural mosquito repellent, he's seen his revenue grow 100 per cent since 2008. He says the launch of
Mosquito-less spray, an all natural and effective insect repellent, is a large part of that growth. The product is made from garlic oil, an idea he got when he spoke to some farmers about what they used to keep bugs off their horses.
Looking further into 2010, at age 71, Milne is still working on developing another new, innovative line of products for launch. He's developed and marketed
several products for the equine market that use zeolyte, and claims the substance will revolutionize the Canadian gardening market when he brings his new development to stores this year.
Writer: Edward Keenan
Source: Bill Milne, President, Alex Milne Associates