Fresh out of graduation from Harvard, Binnie began to make a name for himself by buying and selling companies in collaboration with a wealthy investor for whom he had been doing financial research. Binnie acquired the assets of Polytech, a
Minneapolis, Minnesota–based manufacturer of household and commercial plastics, including food storage bags and wraps,
trash bags, and plastic sheeting. Polytech made the "Ruffies" brand trash bag which actor/comedian
Jonathan Winters helped to make famous. Binnie also acquired
American Western, a
Sioux Falls, South Dakota–based private label manufacturer of similar products, along with four other plastics manufacturers that included a line of
coat hangers. He consolidated the six companies into
Carlisle Plastics, Inc., building a large corporation, employing thousands of workers. He was chairman of the board from 1985 onwards and chief executive officer and President from 1985 to 1994. By 1996, he owned 62.5% of Carlisle's Class B shares making him the majority owner. By the early 1990s, he was one of the youngest CEOs in
New York Stock Exchange history and was featured in
Forbes Magazine as a "whirlwind of a manager." Carlisle Plastics was voted one of Walmart's "Vendors of the Year". During his tenure, the firm opened facilities in the United States, Europe, Latin America and Asia. In September 1996, he sold his controlling interest to
Tyco International. Binnie is currently the president of
Carlisle Capital Corporation, a New Hampshire investment and venture capital company. "Current estimates show this company has an annual revenue of $2.5 to 5 million and employs a staff of approximately 5 to 9," according to the tracking site Manta.com in 2009. In 2010, he formed New Hampshire 1 Network and, in 2011, he founded Carlisle One Media, acquiring television station
WZMY for $9.25 million and renaming it
WBIN. By late 2011, he had tripled the number of employees at the station, recruiting from
CBS,
ESPN, and local competitor
WMUR. Also purchased were Vermont television stations
WVBK and WVBQ and Nashua station
WYCN. Binnie has partnered with Jeff Shapiro in a bid for
Nassau Broadcasting's radio stations in Northern New England, subject to bankruptcy judge and FCC approval. In 2017, WBIN-TV announced that it had sold its television broadcast rights for $68.1 million. WBIN-TV also entered into a channel-sharing sale of its remaining television license rights with a major television group. While the final sale figures were undisclosed, it is estimated that in total the station sold for nearly $100 million, nearly $90 million more than the $9.25 million originally paid by Binnie. Binnie is additionally involved in the revitalization of historic downtown Manchester buildings including the former Citizen's Bank Building on Elm Street and three buildings in Manchester's mill yard. ==Racing career==