“Committed To Our Local Communities!”
See Pages 12 & 13 www.shelbyinfo.com Our 43RD Year • Issue No. 5 • February 5, 2026
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Webb Chemical & Paper Co. in Shelby celebrating 50 years in business By Alan Hodge Not many firms can boast of having been in business for half a century, but Webb Chemical & Paper Co. in Shelby is marking that milestone in 2026. The company was officially founded on October 1, 1976, by Huey and Freida Webb. Sadly, Huey passed away on Feb. 15, 2015, but Frieda still carries the torch forward and recently reminisced on how they built the firm together from a hand to mouth beginning into the $15 million in annual sales cleaning and paper supply powerhouse it is today. “Huey was driving a truck and gone a lot,” Freida started out. “His father passed away and he wanted to be home more so he could spend time with his family. He took a job with Harrill Chemical and Paper driving local delivery. The job wasn’t working out. One day he told me he was going to go in business for himself. I thought, oh, Lord. His idea was to approach the people he had been delivering to for Harrill’s and offer them better service. We had four thousand dollars between us. He bought a 20-foot box truck and that’s how we started.” At first, the going was tough, but Huey and Freida were tough-
Frieda Webb and her husband Huey started the company on Oct. 1, 1976. She still shows up for work every day and loves every minute of it. The company’s modern office and warehouse is located at 2500 W. Dixon Blvd., Shelby. (Photos by Alan Hodge) er. “I was working for other folks Abernathy, St. in Shelby. Then during the day and doing the we moved to 724 W. Marion St paperwork for Huey at night,” where we were for 26 years. It she said. “Our customer base was 25,000 sq, ft. One of our first started growing, and so I decid- customers included Uni-Source ed to stay at our office full-time. out of Charlotte. Huey would Our first building was in an old, deliver products like toilet paper, 1,000 sq.-ft. Texaco service sta- tissue, paper towels, and janitotion we rented at 2009 New rial supplies for them.” House Rd. We stayed there two Other early customers Huey years and then we moved to 108 and Frieda had that launched the company into bigger and better things included Stowe Mills, Pharr Yarns, Henredon Furniture, and Leviton electric products. The company operated out of this building at 724 W. Marion St. As the business grew, so did in Shelby for over 20 years before moving into its current locarevenues. These days, Frieda tion in 2008. The location is now home to Shelby Fabrics. estimates annual sales at $15“We offer around four thou16 million. From the 1,000 sq. matically. sand paper products, cleaning “We have fifty-five employees ft. former gas station structure, chemicals, bubble wrap, all types now,” Frieda said. “That includes the company now operates out of a beautiful building at 2500 two managers, nine office work- of packaging tape, and carW. Dixon Blvd. with a cavern- ers, five service technicians, ten tons,” Frieda said. “We service, ous 60,000 sq. ft warehouse. in the warehouse, ten drivers, schools, nursing home, restaurants, hotels, motels, healthcare, The fleet of trucks now numbers and nineteen sales staff.” and facilities management, to The number and type of prodeleven. From just Huey and Frieda ucts that the company distributes name a few,” A tour of the warehouse reveals A look inside Webb Chemical and Paper Company’s 60,000 handling everything, the number has also grown, as well as the See WEBB, Page 4 of employees has increased dra- variety of customers. sq. ft. warehouse.
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