Topic: How To Invest

Pat: What do you think of Richards Packaging Income Fund?

Article Excerpt

Richards Packaging Income Fund, $6.00, symbol RPI.UN on Toronto (Shares outstanding: 10.1 million; Market cap: $60.7 million), is a full-service packaging distributor that targets small- and medium-sized North American businesses. The fund first sold shares to the public at $10 a unit and began trading on Toronto in April 2004. Richards distributes more than 5,000 different types of rigid-packaging containers a year from 19 distribution centres and five manufacturing plants located throughout North America. Rigid packaging is made from stiff plastic and includes bottles, caps, trays and food cups. The fund gets these containers from over 600 suppliers and makes them at its own manufacturing facilities. Richards’ customers include over 9,000 regional food, wine and spirits, cosmetic, pharmaceutical and other companies. Richards also offers packaging design and helps customers choose the appropriate packaging with factors such as usability, child resistance and their brand image in mind. It also offers logistics-management services, through which Richards maintains an appropriate supply of inventory for a..