Robert Coombs had over 60 years of experience in the maple sugaring business and participated extensively in local, state and national agricultural organizations. He revolutionized the maple sugar business in Vermont. He purchased sap that other sugarmakers had not boiled down and turned it into syrup, grading and packing it in standardized cans or jugs to build customer awareness and increase the state’s sales to the point of becoming one of the top packers in the country. After purchasing cans from the Empire Can Company in New York to sell to Vermont producers, the Leader Evaporator Company, on whose board Coombs sat, purchased the Brooklyn enterprise and founded the Maple Country Can Company in St. Albans, Vermont. The move created a larger consumer market and created the largest maple syrup equipment company in the United States.