Paramount Trading Jamaica Limited is finally moving to reactivate its long-acquired Clean Clean household products brand, with plans to bring the dormant portfolio back to market by year end as it looks to tap a new source of consumer-driven revenue.

The 35-year-old company acquired the brand more than 10 years ago for about $20 million from another manufacturer but is yet to fully commercialise the portfolio. CEO Hugh Graham, in a recent interview, said that Paramount is now clearing the final hurdles as it readies the products for a more aggressive market push.

“We bought the assets and brand of Clean Clean in about 2012 from Lascelles deMercado. While we have used the fixed assets, we haven’t done much with the brand, but we are now looking at how we can take the products to market and in a much larger way,” Graham told the Jamaica Observer earlier this week.

He said the company has completed the process of clearing the intellectual property and other legal rights associated with the acquisition and is now updating the brand ahead of its relaunch.

“We are looking at year end as a possible timeline for that,” Graham said.

“We are now in the process of updating the brand in terms of look and some other important features,” he added.

The brand’s portfolio includes products such as cleaners, sanitisers, detergents, laundry detergent, dishwashing liquid, bleach, bathroom cleaners, and all-purpose hard-surface cleaners.

Graham said the products will be positioned alongside other cleaning supplies being rolled out through Paramount’s partnership with Manpower & Maintenance Services Limited — broadening the company’s distribution footprint in the consumer retail market.

“Manpower also has its cleaning stores which they are now rolling out, so we will also have these products alongside. This is definitely one area that we are working to have ready,” he said.

Under the arrangement forged last year, Paramount is manufacturing and supplying specialised chemical products for Manpower’s cleaning and sanitation operations, including different strengths of bleach, concrete cleaner, and Imper Mur — a treatment for damp indoor walls.

The Clean Clean roll-out forms part of Paramount’s broader diversification strategy, with the company moving deeper into packaged consumer products for retail outlets while maintaining its core distribution business in industrial chemicals, lubricants, and oils.

Paramount’s management has set an ambitious target of quadrupling revenue and profit in the coming years, with Graham expecting the company’s latest product initiatives and partnerships to help accelerate progress towards that goal.

For the financial year ended December 2025, revenue rose to $1.7 billion, while the company returned to profitability with net profit of $26.1 million.

GRAHAM…while we have used the fixed assets, we haven’t done much with the brand, but we are now looking at how we can take the products to market and in a much larger way (Photo: Joseph Wellington)

As it seeks to drive revenue growth further, Graham said Paramount is also increasing its investment in talent and human resources.

The company recently appointed Omar Henry as strategic sales manager, and Loncey Earle as head of its lubricants business. Earle’s appointment comes as Paramount pursues a potential international lubricant manufacturing partnership that could see it produce branded lubricants in Jamaica for local and export markets.

Graham said the lubricants business presents significant growth opportunities, including the potential to increase exports and make greater use of available production capacity.

“We believe that, from the lube side, we have lots of growth opportunities which we’re also actively pursuing,” he said.

Paramount’s lubricant division recorded a 43.1 per cent decline in revenue for the year ended May 31, 2026, with sales falling to $60.6 million from $106.4 million a year earlier.

Graham said the decline resulted from a deliberate decision to reduce some existing lubricant production to preserve blending capacity for a prospective international customer as Paramount positions the division for contract manufacturing. Under the model being pursued, Paramount would manufacture and package lubricants for established brands with existing distribution networks.

The company’s recent ISO certification for its lubricant business should also strengthen its appeal to international customers.

“Export opportunities are back on the table with this certification as buyers in outside markets now have assurance that they are sourcing quality,” Graham said.

Paramount’s expansion plans, being pursued against a challenging financing environment marked by high interest rates, Graham said has, however, slowed plans to build out new facilities and upgrade machinery and equipment.

Still, he said continued investment in technology remains critical to improving efficiency across the business.

“Everything now is technologically driven, with artificial intelligence (AI) being here and for the future, so investments will need to be placed in new equipment and new enterprise systems and processes that are more efficient,” he said.

Graham also said that while the company has already been using AI to boost efficiency, it is taking a measured approach in developing policies and procedures to govern its use.

“We want to get some staff training in and also to improve on the cybersecurity aspect of it at the highest level,” he noted.