# Terry Awalt

> Terry Awalt is the retired founder and former CEO of JSI Store Fixtures, the Milo, Maine manufacturer that grew from a family basement and a single table saw into a North American supplier of refrigerated and nonrefrigerated grocery displays. His career joined customer-led manufacturing, patented produce-display ideas, rural job creation, a difficult operational reset, a $90 million acquisition by LSI Industries in 2021, and two decades of community fundraising before his retirement in 2025.

- **Role:** Retired founder and former CEO of JSI Store Fixtures
- **Organizations:** JSI Store Fixtures, LSI Industries
- **Nationality:** American
- **Known for:** Co-founded JSI Store Fixtures and helped grow it from a basement operation into a North American grocery-fixture manufacturer., Named inventor on multiple U.S. patents covering produce display devices, stands, pads, and a closed-cell foam end-cap riser., Led JSI through a restructuring and return to Maine-centered production before its 2021 acquisition.

## Career timeline

- **1990** — Lost his job selling supermarket equipment and developed the business concept that became JSI Store Fixtures.
- **1991** — Co-founded JSI Store Fixtures with family members in the Awalt family basement, beginning with a table saw.
- **2000** — JSI relocated into the former Dexter Shoe plant in Milo, Maine after outgrowing its earlier facilities.
- **2003** — Received a U.S. patent for a one-piece closed-cell foam produce display device.
- **2005** — Received a U.S. patent covering a method of manufacturing a closed-cell foam produce display member.
- **2013** — Testified before the U.S. International Trade Commission about plywood sourcing and JSI's role as a major rural Maine employer.
- **2016** — Led JSI's expansion into Canada through the acquisition of Shaw Woodworks in Ontario.
- **2018** — Returned to renewed founder leadership as JSI restructured and consolidated production back to Maine with a $2 million investment.
- **2021** — Stayed on as founder and CEO when LSI Industries acquired JSI for $90 million in cash.
- **2025** — Retired from JSI after more than three decades of leadership.

## Achievements

- Co-founded JSI Store Fixtures and helped grow it from a basement operation into a North American grocery-fixture manufacturer.
- Named inventor on multiple U.S. patents covering produce display devices, stands, pads, and a closed-cell foam end-cap riser.
- Led JSI through a restructuring and return to Maine-centered production before its 2021 acquisition.
- Remained CEO when LSI Industries acquired JSI for $90 million and retained its brand, leadership, four facilities, and more than 300 employees.
- Helped establish a family memorial golf tournament whose lifetime fundraising for local children reached $454,010 in 2025.
- Led JSI during periods in which it received the Governor's Award for Business Excellence and national recognition as an SBIA Portfolio Company of the Year.

## Latest updates

- **2025-10** — JSI announced that Terry Awalt had officially retired; Alan Harvill took on the JSI CEO role in a shared leadership structure with EMI Industries.
- **2025-08** — Awalt was listed among the sponsors of the 20th Clayton Johndro Memorial Golf Tournament, which raised a record $50,000 and brought lifetime giving to $454,010.

## Links

- Website: https://jsistorefixtures.com
- LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/terry-awalt-489a3911
- Twitter/X: https://twitter.com/jsi_fixtures
- Facebook: https://facebook.com/jsistorefixtures/

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Profile page: https://yespress.io/terry-awalt
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-08-27