At some point in our lives we’ve all been stung or bitten by bees, wasps, mosquitoes, jellyfish, black flies, fire ants, or even spiders. Afterwards we all look for immediate relief from over-the-counter products, but only one claims to not only provide fast, temporary relief of pain and itching, but is also distributed right here in Cornwall. An office above a garage marks the headquarters of Randob Labs, LTD, producers of Sting-Kill.
Dan Creagan, owner of the Sting-Kill product for the last 15 years, moved to Cornwall in 1977. He grew up in Westchester and graduated from the University of Dayton (Ohio) with a degree in communication arts.
After college, he worked as a sales representative for JB Williams Company selling products to drug stores and wholesalers. When JB Williams was bought by Nabisco, Creagan left the company to work for his former boss.
“I didn’t care working that much in the giant corporate world,” Creagan said. “I was never a big corporate man. I left and went to work with my former boss. I became his partner in the rep business. One of the products we were selling at the time was Sting-Kill, owned by a major drug company called Marion Labs.”
Eventually Creagan wound up on his own as a sales rep and Sting-Kill changed hands a number of times, ending up with the Kiwi Shoe Polish company.
“One day I called Kiwi Shoe Polish, said ‘I understand you own Sting-Kill, but I see you haven’t done a lot with it, you’re not promoting it a lot. I was a sales rep for them at one time. I always liked the product. What are your plans for it?’ Right away the guy on the phone said ‘we’ve been looking to sell that product.’ Sales were down at the time, so I thought maybe it’s something I could do. Kiwi Shoe Polish was owned by Sarah Lee. So I wrote a letter to Kiwi saying I’m interested, and they forwarded the letter to Sarah Lee. Then I found out Sarah Lee was owned by a Dutch Holding company.”
A simple letter and response took about three months. It took a year and a half to put a deal together. Creagan purchased the rights to the product for $250,000. He then bought a packaging company to package his own product.
Sting-Kill is a topical pain killer that will help alleviate the pain from a sting or bite immediately.
“We’ve the highest concentration of pain killer that’s allowed over-the-counter,” Creagan said. “Other products don’t work as well. We have 20 percent Benzocaine. Other products have 5 percent.”
The product comes in disposable wipes or swabs and can be purchased locally at Hazard’s Pharmacy on Main Street or at Brett’s True Value in Vails Gate. The product is carried nationally by a number of larger companies such as Walmart, Tractor Supply Company, and even Amazon.
The solution is manufactured in North Carolina and then shipped to New Jersey where its placed in vials. Final packaging is completed in Mount Vernon.
One of Creagan’s biggest challenges, as a salesman now for 40 years, is trying to find buyers for the product.
“Unless you’re looking for new customers, your old customers will eventually go away. “
He receives more rejections and it often takes years to get in to see someone who represents a company.
Advertising can be expensive, but Sting-Kill gets a lot of free publicity. The product sponsors a BBQ team called the Killer Hogs. The team has been successful in competition and was even featured on the Food Network.
Creagan works alongside his son, Jim, a chemist, who’s in line to take over the company in the future. Jim is working on a natural insect repellent and a poison ivy product which could be brought to market in the next year/year and a half.
“The initial test looks pretty good,” said Creagan.