Employee pride, product excellence drive paper’s success

Domtar’s Cougar brand builds a following

When a group of investors built a paper mill on the east bank of the Wisconsin River in Rothschild in 1909, they couldn’t have foreseen the emergence decades later of an iconic brand of premium paper known globally.

Manufactured today by Domtar, the Cougar brand of paper—with its velvety feel—is widely prized by printers and creative individuals. The paper, made exclusively at the company’s Rothschild mill, has been chosen by presidential staffs, best-selling authors, and luxury brands to evoke their brand image.

Developed in 1972 by Weyerhaeuser, the mill’s previous owner, Cougar today has a brightness level of 98 and is available in a range of finishes, with high opacity and printability.

Brand-building on a family foundation

In 2007, the mill joined Domtar, the largest integrated manufacturer and marketer of uncoated paper in North America and the second largest in the world. Cougar’s following continued to grow, even at a time when the broader paper industry faced a variety of challenges. Its high-profile uses include White House holiday cards, presidential inauguration invitations, best-selling heirloom books, and festival posters for prestigious musical events.

The paper is made with 10% post-consumer content and a unique, hardwood sulfite pulp, but company officials say its most important ingredient may be its people. Among the mill’s nearly 350 employees are third- and fourth-generation workers and their families.

“Part of it is a generational thing,” says Sherri Selting, paper operations manager at the Rothschild mill. “We’ve had grandfathers, fathers, mothers, sons, and daughters working at the mill. There is this sense of pride that they are producing the highest-quality product. They want it to be successful for their families, and they do the very best they can.”

Meredith Collins, Domtar’s channel marketing manager for Cougar, agrees. “They are so passionate about what they do,” says Collins. “They have a love of papermaking. They are truly artisans in what they do. The reason the product is so great is the people behind it.”

Adds Collins: “Everyone has probably interacted with Cougar. It’s a brochure you get in the mail, a poster, an invitation, stationery. It’s a tried and true method of communication.”

An environmental ethic runs deep at Rothschild

The Cougar brand, while growing in the number of available weights and varieties, has stayed consistent in its quality and reputation even as the mill has adapted to new environmental standards.“There’s a lot of pride at the mill in our sustainability when manufacturing these products,” says Dave Faucett, the mill’s general manager. “Whether it’s avoiding putting things in a landfill, using environmentally friendly chemicals, or creating green energy, our environmental footprint is small and continues to be reduced.”

“Not only do we promote our sustainability through our products, but it’s a mill-level attribute that gives our employees pride and inspiration,” says Faucett, who has worked at the mill for 29 years.

With those values behind it, Faucett says the Cougar brand continues to evolve and succeed. “There’s a lot of pride to protecting and defending our position in the marketplace from a quality standpoint, ensuring that everything that goes out the door is nothing but the best,” he adds.