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The Wardley Corporation was established in 1950 as a distributor of various aquarium and pet products, among
 them Wil-Nes aquarium pumps and filters, Happiness bird cages, Stutzman aquariums and Longlife fish foods. There were two employees-founder Edward Levey and his 23-year-old son, Allan. The company's name was taken from the elder Levey's name: "Ward" from Edward and "ley" from Levey.
Edward Levey was no newcomer to the pet industry. Originally he had worked with the Harold Pet Supply company (which later became Eight in One Pet Products). In this work, Edward traveled across the country and was particularly well-known in the South. Edward Levey took a huge business leap. At the age of 60, he decided to become a manufacturer and developed a line of tropical fish foods.
Looking back on his father's move to enter manufacturing and eliminate his distributor's lines, Allan Levey recalls, "It was a difficult decision because we got rid of 80 percent of our volume at that time-and that wasn't a hell of a lot of business in those days! The major fish food line at that time was Longlife Fish Food, which was like the Coca-Cola of its day. We went into competition with it-even though at that time we were distributing it."
The Wardley Corporation was one of 17 manufacturers that established the American Pet Products
Manufacturers Association, one of the most outstanding and successful trade associations serving the pet industry. Allan Levey was also instrumental in the formation of the Pet Industry Joint Advisory Council (PIJAC).
America's largest domestically manufactured line of aquatic fish foods and remedies, Wardley became part of the Hartz Group in 1994. With a broad range of more than 200 formulations addressing the special needs of serious aquatic hobbyist, Wardley has built a loyal following among both tropical fish enthusiasts and breeders in the more than 50 years since its founding. The Wardley brand, strengthened by Hartz' distribution, is the number one fish food sold in America today.
In the year 2000, Wardley will introduce a complete line of reformulated and repackaged foods. The stunning graphics and color coding promise to keep Wardley foods number one in the United States.
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