On the surface, a 42-year-old family business that specializes in package manufacturing is one of the least likely candidates to start a cutting-edge consumer product branding, marketing, packaging and merchandising agency firm. But don’t tell that to Sun Valley-based Marfred Industries, a company which in the last six months has purchased two different firms in an attempt to diversify the company’s capabilities. The new company that has emerged from the acquisitions is Thousand Oaks-based Vyant, a firm which bills itself as the first in its category to offer brand development, packaging design and manufacturing, direct response marketing and merchandising from a single source. “We don’t see it as a completely different industry,” Brian Malloy, Vyant’s managing director said. “We see it as a completely new way to go to market within the same industry. We’re always looking for ways to innovate and provide value for our clients and found a need for a company to lend real marketing assistance in partnering with them in getting their products launched and revitalized.” The decision to launch Vyant wasn’t one that Marfred rushed into, as the company did a great deal of work to determine which companies would be the best to acquire. When the dust settled, Marfred decided to purchase Gateway Arts, an award winning branding and design agency based in Thousand Oaks, as well as the Marketing Place, a Los Angeles-based direct response and fulfillment shop that prides itself on being on the cutting edge. The decision to purchase two new firms and shift the direction of the business is never easy to make for a company. However, it can be complicated even further in a family business, particularly one like Marfred that employs eight family members. Yet Marvin Fenster, the president and CEO of Marfred, maintains that the decision to diversify came without any major dissent. “We never really get into heated debates,” Fenster said. “We have a board composed predominantly of the family members and we reviewed all the merits behind the decision to start Vyant. We’re all actively involved in the business and we saw a changing marketplace. Making the decision wasn’t that difficult at all.” Vyant is planning to target West Coast consumer product manufacturers in industries ranging from cosmetics to food, from toys to consumer electronics. It plans to help companies launch new products and revitalize legacy brands. In addition, the new firm is launching a direct marketing division called VyantDirect, that will offer total direct response campaign development, management and fulfillment for business-to-business, business-to-consumer and non-profit needs. According to Ernest Doud, the president of family business consulting firm Doud, Hausner & Associates, Marfred’s decision to spin off Vyant is rare for venerable family businesses, but not unprecedented. “It’s unusual for family business manufacturers to do such a thing and the fact that it’s unusual is too bad,” Doud said. “Assuming that they’ve done their homework, it’s wonderful that they’re looking to the future and not their past. It’s important for companies to assess themselves and their marketplace to stay successful. It’s a very healthy process and good for them.” According to Fenster, the company realized that starting up Vyant would fill a much needed niche in the marketplace, as manufacturers are constantly looking to update their brands. “We have never been a traditional packaging company and the company has always maintained a very high entrepreneurial level. We have reinvented ourselves so many times over the last 42 years to make sure that we always stayed in touch with the changing markets and the needs of our customers,” Fenster said. “We really felt that by creating Vyant this would just be another giant step that separates us from our competition. We couldn’t think of another company in the market that can provide what we can to our customers and clients.” Malloy believes that Vyant will have an already built-in customer base due to Marfred’s extensive list of clientele. “Obviously, the low hanging fruit is educating the 5,000 active Marfred customers. We definitely have credibility with them and we have 52 sales people that have been talking up the services of Vyant on the trade show front,” Malloy said. “We’ve already gotten a fair amount of referrals as well, as we’ve done some branding and packaging design that has already garnered attention.”