2025 was another great year for Clayton Industries. Between our sales, service, manufacturing, and chemical divisions, 2025 saw the release of new products and expansion from Clayton around the world. With that in mind, we thought it was as good a time as any to bring as many members as possible of our team together for a few days of education and team building, and celebration.
Clayton is a global company. Since we started back in 1930, we’ve grown to operate around the world, and which meant there was plenty of travel from around the world for this one. In addition to our team from all over the United States, we were joined by other members of our international team, including members from Europe, Canada, Mexico, and Australia. Getting a few members of the team together in the United States alone can be a challenge, but bringing together multiple continents is something we don’t get to accomplish quite as often.
Sunday was our first day together, or at least when most of the flights started to land in Los Angeles. For the next few days, the city of Pasadena was our home, and despite the jet lag some of us were coping with, we started the evening off with an informal meetup at our hotel, followed by dinner at El Portal. The food was great, but actually getting to sit together at the same table instead of another online meeting was the real fun.
We kicked off Day 1 of our sales meetings with updates from around the world, including Clayton’s presence across North and South America, as well as Africa, Europe, and Asia. This also included updates from our global manufacturing locations, followed by another great meal. From there, we decided to try our hands at a local escape room, and we’re pleased to say that we were mostly successful, before dinner at Craft, by Smoke and Fire, which we descended upon during a rainstorm. So much for California weather.
Day 2 was particularly special for us, as we started the day with a factory tour at our head office in City of Industry, California. This was a bit of a treat for a few of our members specifically, who due to either distance or starting recently with the company, were visiting Clayton’s headquarters for the first time. From there, after a quick lunch, we were back in the classroom to hear new updates from our service, chemical and engineering departments.
That evening, in what’s become a tradition for Clayton, we took over Bistro 45 for our awards dinner. This year, we had plenty of company milestones to celebrate, including a member of our team who has officially been with Clayton for 40 years. We also had plenty of awards to hand out to our service and chemical departments for several spectacular individual achievements. We suspect a few of them may have been over the weight limit trying to carry home a bag full of plaques.
Day 3 would be our last, with final presentations being made by our sales and marketing departments, followed by our final meal together at El Cholo Mexican restaurant. Finally, we set off for our final day together with a guided tour of the Petersen Auto Museum. With nothing left but some goodbyes and flights to catch, our timer together was officially brought to an end.
Bringing our entire team together from around the globe helped us to remember how much we have to learn from one another, and hearing the experiences from across the Atlantic and the Pacific, as well as the chance to sit down at the same table, is an experience we wish we were able to share more often. Going over mutual challenges, laughing over a drink, and learning together are things that we sometimes take for granted.
2025 was a fantastic year for Clayton Industries, and we’re looking forward to an even better 2026!
