Lightning Nuggets Manufacturer Sold

Lightning Nuggets Inc., a Davenport, Wash., manufacturer of home and camping fire-starter products, has been sold to the former manager of a Post Falls apparel factory.

Maura Doohan acquired Lightning Nuggets last week from Davenport businesswoman Sharon Thompson for an undisclosed amount.

Doohan is the daughter of Michael Doohan, owner of Spokane-based KL Manufacturing Co. The textile maker recently closed its sewing shop in Post Falls.

“I studied the market and felt that this little product (Lightning Nuggets) shows great potential,” Doohan said. “We’re going to try to get into bigger chain stores and big catalog companies.”

Doohan said she plans to keep the company in Davenport, with about six employees. She hopes to boost annual sales to $450,000 or more.

Lightning Nuggets are small, waxy spheres of sawdust that light easily in fireplaces, wood stoves and campfires. The products are sold through Eagle Hardware and Garden, Ziggy’s, Eddie Bauer and several mail-order catalogs.

Thompson, the enthusiastic past president of the Davenport Chamber of Commerce, founded Lightning Nuggets in 1978. She said she decided to sell the company to devote more time to grandchildren, gardening and other interests.

However, Thompson will continue to work with Doohan as a consultant.

“She’s adopted Maura and is passing on the company as if she (Doohan) was one of her kids,” said Tina Saunders, an analyst with Zirkle & Co., the Spokane business broker that negotiated the deal.

, DataTimes