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November 3, 2025
TWO RIVERS – From sports fields to construction sites, and everything in between, Carron Net Company President Bill Kiel said nets quietly play a vital role in safety, recreation and industry.
At Carron Net Company (1623 17th St.), Kiel said that quiet reliability has been a family tradition for four generations.
The Manitowoc-based manufacturer, he said, is one of only a few in the United States still producing 100% nylon netting, supplying custom-made solutions for clients across the country.
Specializing in designing and fabricating nets for new construction as well as replacements and retrofits of existing installations, Kiel said all production is handled in house, allowing the company to meet precise specifications and maintain its reputation for quality and craftsmanship.
History in Two Rivers, beyond
Kiel said Carron Net’s story began in 1933, when Edward Carron and his son, Norman, started making fishing nets in the kitchen of their home in Two Rivers.
What began as a small family venture, supplying local fishermen, he said, soon caught the attention of hardware and supply companies along the Lake Michigan shoreline.
Kiel said the turning point for the business was when the Carrons realized their craftsmanship could extend beyond fishing nets – opening the door to a much wider market.
Carron Net’s first commercial product, he said, wasn’t for fishermen, but for athletes
Looking to expand beyond fishing gear, Kiel said in 1934, the family mailed postcards to coaches and athletic directors across Wisconsin, offering handmade basketball nets.
The first order came from a coach in Delavan, he said, who bought a net for $1.
Kiel said that postcard – the one that started it all – still hangs framed in the company’s office today.
During World War II, Kiel said Carron Net supplied the U.S. military with cargo and camouflage netting.
After the war, as returning GIs brought home a renewed enthusiasm for sports – and a little extra money to spend – Kiel said demand for athletic equipment surged.
“That was a big time for the company,” he said. “Because everything was rationed during the war, there was a lot of surplus netting available afterward. That really put us on the map as a sporting goods company.”
Kiel said the post-war surplus also benefited the local community, with stay-at-home mothers earning extra income by tying basketball nets from their homes and returning them to Carron for payment.
“Even today, people in the community tell us their parents or grandparents used to tie nets for Carron,” he said.
By the 1990s, Kiel said Carron Net had exited the fishing net business entirely.
Overfishing in the Great Lakes – particularly Lake Michigan – he said, had devastated the industry, leaving little demand for their original product.
However, around the same time, Kiel said a new opportunity emerged for Carron Net: guard netting for warehouses, distribution centers and production facilities.
Always quick to adapt, he said Carron Net shifted its focus to that growing market, and for the past 25 years, the company has concentrated on sports, industrial and safety netting.
A family affair
Now in its fourth generation of family ownership, Kiel said he is supported in operations by his daughter, Kellyn, who serves as vice president.
Though Kellyn is his daughter, Kiel said the title of vice president didn’t come easy just because she was the boss’s daughter.
When her dad took over as president in 2000, Kellyn said she spent snow days and summer breaks at the office – cutting up nets for sample books and helping out wherever she was needed.
As she got older, Kellyn said she moved from odd jobs to the manufacturing floor, learning firsthand how to make the nets herself.
That experience, she said, remains one of her biggest assets today, giving her a clear understanding of production times, construction methods and the many details that go into each order.
Joining the company full-time after graduating from college in 2023, Kellyn said she assumed the role of vice president this past March.
“I’ve worked with everyone in our production plant, and now I’m managing them,” she said. “I feel like I have these connections with our employees, and I don’t want to see them go anywhere. I think it’s really cool what we do here.”
Looking to the future, Kiel said the plan is to eventually pass the company on to Kellyn.
He said he’s proud that she’s taken her experience seriously and is committed to keeping the family business alive – something that matters deeply to him.
Company evolution
Kiel said the technology behind nets hasn’t changed much over the years, nor has the basic process of making them.
What has evolved for Carron Net, however, he said, is how the company operates and where it focuses its efforts.
When he joined the company, Kiel said it still produced netting entirely by hand, buying raw materials and crafting every piece themselves.
Though making everything by hand – including tying and finishing – once seemed economical, Kiel said the company eventually realized it was more costly than anticipated.
Today, he said, Carron Net outsources the production of netting.
Looking back, Kiel said each generation of the family has had its own defining era, with his focused on modernizing the business and raising professional standards.
“Change comes hard, but we had to adapt,” he said. “If you think about what’s happened since 2000, we’ve had Sept. 11th, we’ve had the Great Recession of 2008 and most recently, COVID-19. We’ve had earth-shattering events along the way, and even if we wanted to stay the same way, we couldn’t have.”
In an era dominated by technology, Kiel said Carron Net’s work remains largely hands-on – with nearly 90% of its production involving cutting and sewing nets, a process he calls “low-tech.”
Thankfully, Kiel said, not everyone wants a desk job and enjoys the hands-on duties.
Over the years, Kiel said the company has moved from primarily employing an older workforce to drawing in younger employees who appreciate the steady work and the pride of making something tangible.
Kellyn said she has witnessed this adaptation firsthand with younger workers entering the company.
“People who want to make something and have that dedication love to see what they’ve created,” she said. “What we offer here is the touch and feel of the thing you just made. That is attractive to creative folks, especially the younger ones who are also creative outside of the workplace.”
Custom netting for the win
Much of Carron Net’s business, Kiel said, centers on custom netting, especially for barrier and guard uses.
Though he admits getting everyone aligned was a challenge at times, Kiel said he credits the company’s experienced team for where Carron Net is now and where it’s headed.
“Custom netting is any kind of net that you wouldn’t be able to walk into a store or buy on Amazon,” he said. “So much of what we do is made-to-order and custom. There are a lot of other netting companies in the country, but not a lot of them do the labor-intensive, high-touch stuff that we do.”
Though Carron Net supplies private-label netting to major sports brands – each with its own specific requirements – Kiel said its true expertise shines in large, custom installations.
Sporting venues, manufacturing facilities and industrial sites, he said, all present unique challenges – noting that every space has a different footprint, meaning off-the-shelf solutions simply won’t work.
In the sports world, Kiel said net configurations are tailored to what customers want to achieve, often allowing multiple uses within a single space.
In industrial settings, he said warehouse installations across the country – such as those for Walmart – each have unique requirements.
Casting new nets
Kiel said staying relevant in a constantly evolving industry has never been a challenge for Carron Net, which has consistently maintained its position in the market.
Understanding that netting is often overlooked – until it’s needed – he said, keeps Carron Net top of mind within the industries it serves.
Additionally, Kiel said its active involvement in various industry groups related to material handling and guarding products has helped the company maintain a strong presence.
Now actively involved in the company, Kellyn said she has begun engaging with a range of groups and associations.
She has also become a member of young professionals and women’s leadership networks – which she said provide valuable connections in a manufacturing field where men have long held most management roles.
However, Kiel said that is starting to change – citing a growing presence of young women executives at a recent industry conference in Arizona as a hopeful sign for the future.
In Carron Net’s early days, Kiel said the company’s management was dominated by men, with women taking on different roles.
He said it’s a point of pride to see Kellyn in a leadership role and on track to one day take over the company.
“I’m really pleased that at some point in the future she’s going to be the one who breaks the glass ceiling,” he said. “We’ve heard the praise from the generation of family members who are thrilled for her, because they would’ve loved that opportunity.”
Pride in quality
Proud to be a leader in the family-owned and -operated company, Kellyn said Carron Net will remain focused on netting, drawing on its 90-plus years of experience.
“We’re small, so everybody works together – you’re not going to be left hanging out there,” she said. “I think being present and keeping the business here and keeping our quality standards excellent makes all the difference. Our employees are very committed, and they won’t send bad quality netting out. If something looks off, they’ll fix it.”
Kiel said whether it’s a major league client, like the Green Bay Packers – “our employees love it that we’re sending stuff to the Packers, because almost everybody here is a Packers fan” – a high school, a little league or even someone’s backyard tennis court net, every project receives the same attention to detail.
“They really care about [the work they do],” he said. “It’s a very tangible feeling. We’ve worked really hard to make our environment a lot nicer and a good place for folks to work.”
Kiel said he knows that matters because people spend so much time at work, and when they feel good about coming in, they’re more likely to put their best effort into the products they make for customers.
For more on Carron Net Company, head to carronnet.com.
