Announcement regarding future of Del Labs in Rocky Point expected today

Concerns are growing about the fate of Rocky Point’s Coty plant. WWAY received an anonymous tip from an employee who says an announcement, scheduled for Thursday, could mean hundreds of workers out of a job. Pender County Commission Chair, Jimmy Tate said he couldn’t confirm what the announcement was, but said, “It’s news the county does not want to deliver.”

The future of the Coty facility in Rocky Point has been uncertain for months.

“Right now jobs are kinda slim everywhere,” Rocky Point resident Randy Lewis said. “Every little bit helps, and that plant really carries a lot of people working.”

People who live and work in the area say they will feel the ripple effect if the plant shuts down for good. Even a Rocky Point staple like Paul’s Place, which has been around for almost a century.

“Business will go down hill really badly,” Paul’s Place employee Amanda Millis said. “About half of our business is from Coty.”

With a looming announcement the County Commission chair admits will not be a good one, concerns are mounting about what lies ahead for Coty’s workers.

“I know it’s not a big paying job,” Lewis said, “but it keeps people working and brings a paycheck home. That would really be bad if it did close down.”

Coty has been in Rocky Point since 1997. The plant’s future has been uncertain since May. That’s when the announcement came that manufacturing at the Rocky Point facility would stop within the next year. Its Leland facility will be completely shut down by December, but it looked like like the plant could have new life.

In December, a New Jersey-based over-the-counter drug manufacturer expressed interest in the Rocky Point plant, and county commissioners approved about a half a million dollars in incentives to lure them. The status of that deal remains up in the air for the moment.

The county manager said he was unaware of any announcement, and commissioner George Brown, who represents Rocky Point, did not return our calls.