Rick Thompson

Rick Thompson worked in a metal stamping company before learning of the opening at Ken-tron Mfg., Inc. in Owensboro, Kentucky. The company has two divisions, the metal stamping side and the wire side, which developed into making the wire for musical instrument strings in the 1980s. Rick came on board in 1987 as a quality control manager and later moved into sales. It was there that he took an interest in both sides of the business. In 2012, the owner of Ken-tron, Bob Hudson, asked Rick if he would become the company’s president, and so he did. Under his leadership, the string division grew and continued to produce even during the pandemic of 2020. Rick knew his customers would need the strings at some point so he continued operations, which in the end served his customers greatly.