Ownership of Mayfield candle factory leveled by tornado investing over $30 million to expand, adding over 300 new jobs

mayfield-candle-factory-12-19
mayfield-candle-factory-12-19

The Mayfield candle factory leveled during the tornado outbreak on December 10, 2021, is investing over $33 million to expand its existing facility in Hickory.

Gov. Andy Beshear announced that Mayfield Consumer Products (MCP) LLC, a manufacturer of candles and other home fragrance products, will invest a total of $33.3 million and employ more than 500 people full-time over the next five years as the company rebuilds.

MCP has already begun construction on a 40,000-square-foot expansion that includes a $2.3 million investment. The company now plans an additional 63,000-square-foot expansion with a $31 million commitment, pushing total space at its Hickory Industrial Park facility to 300,000 square feet (Hickory is approximately six miles from Mayfield).

The project will consolidate operations in Graves County following the total loss of the Mayfield facility during last year’s storm. Company leaders expect the expansion to be completed by 2023.

“We dearly love this community and its citizens,” Mary Propes, founder of MCP said. “MCP’s resolve to rebuild here and to play a central role in helping to restore the place we call home has been a top priority since the morning of Dec. 11, 2021. This community has a bright future, and we are committed to being a big part of that progress.”

Founded in Mayfield in 1998, the company currently employs 160 people.

“Following last year’s devastating storm in western Kentucky, we are glad to see jobs returning to the area,” Beshear said. “This reinvestment by Mayfield Consumer Products is good news for Graves County and the surrounding region as they work to rebuild and recover from the deadliest tornadoes in our state’s history.”

The company is facing a class action lawsuit filed only days after the tornado struck. The suit, filed by at least eight MCP workers, claims “flagrant indifference” as MCP supervisors allegedly did not allow workers to leave the facility before the tornado struck, collapsing the building and killing nine people while injuring scores of others. The lawsuit also claims company officials have participated in a cover-up to hide management’s culpability.

The suit seeks punitive and compensatory damages.

There were over 100 people working at the plant the evening the twister struck.

(Photo: The Mayfield candle factory after being struck by a tornado)

By Ken Howlett, News Director

Contact Ken at ken@k105.com