ALENE CANDLES EXPANDS NEW HAMPSHIRE OPERATIONS

Milford-based Alene Candles, a contract and private-label candle manufacturer, is expanding its New Hampshire operations with the opening of a new warehouse facility in Amherst.

The company has leased 208,000 square feet at One Bon Terrain Drive, which will mean the addition of 12 new positions, the company said. It added that the new facility will enable it to keep pace with growing demand for custom-designed filled candles for the gift, cosmetic and retail markets.

Alene also has a major operation in New Albany, Ohio, a suburb of Columbus. In October 2020, the company expanded its Ohio presence with a new $30 million, 280,000-square-foot facility.

Rod Harl, Alene’s president and CEO, called the new warehouse in Amherst “a strategic, long-term investment, enabling us to keep pace with current orders from our retail partners and position us for continued growth.”

Alene employs more than 200 people in southern New Hampshire and northern Massachusetts year-round. Alene’s workforce expands to more than 1,200 at the start of the holiday production season in summer.

TORONTO FIRM ACQUIRES MANCHESTER’S AWATO

Toronto-based Xello, a K-12, college, career and future readiness program, has announced the acquisition of Awato of Manchester, a platform for career development that’s used in New Hampshire schools as well as post-secondary institutions, including Southern New Hampshire University, North Carolina Central University and Lake Michigan College.

Awato will continue to support and enhance its career pathfinding platform while collaborating with the Xello team on tools designed to better connect secondary students to community members and higher education opportunities.

PORTSMOUTH PET TECH COMPANY MERGES WITH ILLINOIS FIRM

Wagz, a Portsmouth-based pet technology company, has agreed to merge with SigmaTron, an international electronic manufacturing services company based in Illinois.

When the deal closes in September, SigmaTron is expected to issue 2.443 million shares of common stock of SigmaTron to the shareholders of Wagz, resulting in the stockholders of Wagz owning up to approximately 28% of SigmaTron, and Wagz operating as a wholly owned subsidiary of SigmaTron.

Wagz CEO Terry Anderton, who will remain with the company, said the merger will allow Wagz’s team “to focus on R&D and building our brand in the market,” while SigmaTron streamlines supply chain sourcing and manufacturing products, “giving us a huge advantage both in margin and capabilities” by “being able to control the entire process from raw materials to end user sales, all in house.”

HOSPICE PROVIDER TO MERGE WITH SOLUTIONHEALTH

SolutionHealth, parent organization of the Elliot Health System in Manchester and the Nashua-based Southern New Hampshire Health system, and Home Health & Hospice Care, a provider of home care and hospice services in 25 southern New Hampshire communities, have signed a definitive agreement to combine entities.

Under the terms of the agreement, Home Health & Hospice will keep its name and remain independently licensed. The organization will keep its own board of trustees.

In a statement, the organizations said details and notice of the proposed affiliation have been submitted for regulatory review and approval. They said the merger will allow them to integrate medical records and expand access to care.

The proposed merger isn’t expected to take effect until early next year. The process will include at least one session where the public can learn more or offer input.