Tariffs provide timely opportunity for Palmetto tool manufacturer

Tools and injection molding manufacturing CEO Mike Guidoboni had a problem in January 2023. The building near the Sarasota-Bradenton International Airport, where he leased 5,000 square feet for his company, Spectrum Custom Molds & Manufacturing, was abruptly acquired. Spectrum had been in the space for five years.

When the company Spectrum was leasing from was acquired, Guidoboni was building a facility four times as large for his business on a 10-acre site about 16 miles away, just south of SeaPort Manatee in Palmetto. But it wasn't yet complete. So Spectrum had to relocate for several months to a temporary space to keep the business going before it was able to move into the new building in 2023. "We had basically four or five weeks to get out," Guidoboni says. "It was a hurdle."

Spectrum has now been in its 20,000-square-foot space along US 41 in Palmetto — a $5 million project, including buying the 10-acre site in June 2020 for $925,000 — for two years. And business, Guidoboni says, is doing well, with demand for its services especially increasing amid concerns over tariffs.

Being in its own space, Guidoboni says, "stabilizes the operation long-term and lets us control our destiny versus another company dictating what we need to do."

The building cost $4.2 million to construct, according to his son, COO Adam Guidoboni. The company has also made significant capital investments in technology: he says it put more than $800,000 over the last year and a half into purchasing the latest machines for making its products. “Tooling is the biggest demand,” Mike says.

Spectrum makes tools for building everything from plumbing parts to auto components to feminine products. About 70% of the business deals with medical items, such as blood transfusion equipment and accessories, according to Adam. The company is also building tools for scuba divers, riot gear and firefighting, among others.

Domestic opportunities

Due to concerns over tariffs, Spectrum has seen an increased interest in quoting jobs, the Guidobonis say, and they have received larger orders from places that used to seek items overseas. They also got some new customers, including a boiler company that brought production of its electrical boxes back from China and a Las Vegas lighting company “struggling with the tariffs,” Mike says.

"Most of the tooling in the last 35 years has been offshore," Mike says. Now, companies are “trying to reshore those opportunities so they can control the supply chain without having to be involved in those geopolitical or sociopolitical environments," he adds.

“Tool building is done right here, production is done here, packaging is done here, and shipping is done here,” Mike says. “We used to refer to it as a one-stop shop, and it really is, but now it's geared more toward reshoring and controlling your supply chain, and we offer that capability under one roof."

The company is also building the first United States tools for its biggest customer; the Guidobonis decline to disclose the name of the business. They identify it only as a medical company around for 20 years.

The customer, which has more than 400 tools made in China, ordered four tools to be built in Manatee County so far, with a dozen to be built by the end of the year. It is looking to raise that to 30 tools in 2026, Adam says. It can take a week or up to six months to build a tool, depending on its complexity, he adds.

“Companies are trying to guarantee their delivery of products,” Adam says. “They're able to do that by keeping it domestic, and they're willing to pay a little more for it, to get the quality, to get the guarantee.”

Spectrum is not concerned about tariffs on its machines, which come from companies such as Okamoto and Nissei, because it can take delivery from distributors in the U.S., the Guidobonis say.

The company has more than 140 recurring customers, according to Adam, who expects demand to continue building organically. Spectrum, he adds, has not spent a “single penny on marketing." Instead, it relies on quality and word of mouth to gain clients.

“Our customers realize we do have the technology, we do have the equipment and the skill set,” Adam says. “So that's driving larger-volume orders to us.”

Spectrum expects to post $1.5 or $1.6 million in revenue in 2025, and the company’s five-year goal is to reach near $5 million. 

Hiring challenge

One element the Guidobonis have discovered over the years, a common chorus among business owners, is that a good employee is hard to find.

Spectrum, which Mike purchased in 2018 as a small tool shop, has gone through about 80 employees over the past eight years trying to find the right fit, he says — a high churn rate. 

Before moving into its new headquarters, it had six employees. With the expansion, it currently has nine. 

“We have very low attrition,” Mike says now, of his current roster of workers, “because they just fit the mold.”

Mike, who served two tours as a paratrooper in the U.S. Army, says the team the company has built “reminds me of the military,” in that it is “cohesive” and “willing to work overtime if we have to, willing to do whatever it takes to be successful.” 

A recruiting challenge manufacturers face, according to Adam, is that trade schools do not train students in real-world skills. To address that, he says he has been working with Manatee Technical College, providing feedback about what is needed in the field. Spectrum has also hired interns from the school, some of whom have turned into full-time employees.

Grow or go

Over the next five years, Adam says his goals are to grow employment and fill out the facility from its current 13 machines to around 24 machines. Within 10 years, he also plans to expand to 40,000 or 50,000 square feet by continuing the building past the back wall.

Ultimately, the goal is for Spectrum to work on more higher-end and difficult projects, while maximizing efficiency and quality, Adam says. 

“My mindset is, if you're not growing, you're dying,” Adam says. “If we're not acquiring machines and hiring and our revenue isn't going up every single year, then we'd be a dying company.”