News: Medford - Little Black Mutual Merger (17 Jan 2019)

Transcriber: Robert Lipprandt
bob@wiclarkcountyhistory.org 

Surnames: Soldan, Wilke, Wilson

----Source: The Star News (Medford, WI) 1/17/2019

By Brian Wilson, News Editor

In 1889 a group of residents from the towns of Little black, Deer Creek, Pine Creek, Browning, Medford, Grover and Molitor gathered to form what would become Little Black Mutual Insurance.

Over the past 30 years, the company has grown expanding to offer a wide range of insurance options through-out the state. Now, one of Taylor County’s oldest and most stable businesses is experiencing a new beginning. On January 1, Little black Mutual Insurance of Medford officially merged with Farmington mutual Insurance of Osceola.

The company’s headquarters will remain in downtown Medford to take advantage of the space in the current building and access to technology in the city. A new name for the company will be decided on at the policyholder’s annual meeting this spring.

Mike Soldan will serve as president of the new company with former Little Black Mutual CEO Tony Wilke moving into the chief financial officer position.

Wilke describes the merger as a marriage of two very similar companies. Both Little Black Mutual and Farmington Mutual were long established companies with sold reputations and a strong base of policyholders. What they lacked was size and the economies of scale and competitive edge that comes from being a larger firm.