Kirkman
History
Kirkman® Laboratories started in 1949 as a manufacturer of vitamins. Fifty-nine years and several owners later, the company has become one of the largest suppliers of nutritional supplements for those with special requirements and sensitivities.
The company was started by partners Lyle Wellman and Bill Graham in Seattle, WA. When Stan Bachman bought the company in 1964, he moved the company to Portland, OR.
In 1967, Bachman received a moving letter from Dr. Bernard Rimland asking if Kirkman® could
help him manufacture a high strength vitamin B-6/magnesium product. As the late Dr. Rimland told it: “The first problem was to find flavored vitamins, since some of the vitamins of interest, especially B-6 and B-3, are very bitter. I wrote to all 26 vitamin manufacturers in the Thomas Register to ask if they would be willing to make flavored vitamins for a study we were planning on autistic children. Twenty-four of the 26 companies did not reply. One of the two who replied simply said, “Not interested.” The other company, Kirkman® Labs of Portland, Oregon said, “Certainly, we’ll be glad to help. Just tell us what you need.’ A very welcome, and important, letter!”
In 1982, when Bachman wanted to retire, he sold Kirkman® to his good friends Ken Humphrey and Helen Humphrey. The Humphreys developed a close personal relationship with Dr. Rimland. Sales of Super Nu-Thera®, the high vitamin B-6/magnesium product Dr. Rimland developed with Kirkman®, was a very small part of the overall business, but the Humphreys knew it was of critical importance to some individuals with special requirements and sensitivities. They answered every call for Super Nu-Thera® personally, and that continued for many years until the demand required that they train others to answer the calls.
In 1999, the Humphrey’s son, David, an attorney, joined Kirkman®. David expanded the supplement business to serve the growing numbers of individuals with special requirements and sensitivities. David bought Kirkman® in 2001. By that time he had added more than 200 products to Kirkman’s manufacturing list.
David continues to act as CEO of Kirkman®, and Super Nu-Thera® continues to be one of Kirkman’s most popular products. The company has more than sixty employees and has been named by Oregon Business Magazine as one of the top companies to work for in Oregon.
In 2011 Kirkman® introduced Ultra Tested™ in response to studies linking environmental contaminants to children's health issues. Ultra Tested® products are tested for 950 environmental contaminants including pesticides, fungacides, insecticides, biocides in addition to 24 heavy metals, bacteria, yeast, mold and common allergens.
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