‘Farmers Market on Wheels’ to Beef up Services

By Mark Hansel, In Business Magazine, Las Vegas

Those who thought the days of stepping out on the front porch to get fresh milk in the morning were long gone should think again.

Winder Farms provides a service that may be eggs-actly what valley residents who are too busy to shop have been looking for. The Utah-based company, which began in 1880 as Winder Dairy, has been leaving milk, eggs and about 200 other items on the doorsteps of Summerlin homes for the past year. Recently the company announced an expansion that will let residents throughout the valley milk this service for all it’s worth.

Bad jokes aside, company Vice President Mike Winder, said the service is a perfect fit for busy area residents who either don’t have the time or just hate the inconvenience of running to the grocery store several times a week for a few staple items.

Wouldn’t it be great to eliminate those quick jaunts to the store that turn out to be a lot longer than expected because the person in the front of the long “express” line, who doesn’t know the meaning of “15 items or less,” needs a price check on rutabagas?

“Besides having to fight traffic on the street and in the parking lot, there are all those impulse items once you get in the store that just add to the shopping budget,” Winder said. “It’s no coincidence that those items are right by the register.”

While the service is not likely to replace the grocery anytime soon, Winder said local customers have embraced the concept of placing an order for regularly used items and waking up to have them waiting at the door once a week.

Here’s how the service, which Winder calls a “farmers market on wheels,” works.

Customers place a standard order for items they need every week. In addition to dairy products and eggs, customers can order meat and poultry, fruit, vegetables, salads and a host of other items.

They can also add items to the standing order on a given week as late as 8 p.m. on the night before the delivery.

Customers pay $2.95 per delivery and a one-time fee to purchase a cooler that keeps items fresh after delivery. Items are guaranteed to arrive before 8 a.m. (usually earlier), so many customers are able to bring them inside before leaving for the day.

Even with a limited service area, Winder Farms already has about 3,000 customers in the valley, and with the expansion Winder expects that number to grow significantly.

“We’re at about 25,000 customers in Utah, and Salt Lake and Las Vegas are not that different in population, so we think that is a realistic goal here,” Winder said.

Convenience only goes so far, however. If what comes to the door isn’t as good or better than what comes from the store, people are not going to buy it, which Winder recognizes.

“Quality is the most important thing to us,” Winder said. “It’s what we were built on.”

The signature product is, of course, milk, and the cold-filtered variety Winder sells is not stored in warehouses under fluorescent lights. It is shipped from the farm to the door and comes from cows that have not been injected with artificial growth hormones. Maybe that’s why no Winder Farms cow has ever played a professional sport.

The environmentally conscious will be happy to know that the milk also comes in a returnable bottle that is made of a hard plastic. In another throwback to the old milk delivery days, the used bottles are placed in the cooler and picked up by the driver.

Winder says none of the company’s meat products or eggs are injected with hormones, the fruit is picked, packed and shipped direct from the farm, and the bread is baked fresh daily.

The company continues to expand its product line, recently adding coffee and plans to offer free-range turkeys in time for the holidays. Other new additions to look for in the near future are deli meats and prepared meals.

The company’s Web site (www.winderfarms.com) provides delivery information, a complete list of products and pricing information.
Mark Hansel covers retail and real estate for In Business Las Vegas and its sister publication, the Las Vegas Sun. He can be reached at (702) 259-4069 or at hansel@lasvegassun.com.

Copyright © In Business Magazine

Winder Exec is also Author, Public Servant

By Rosemary Winters, The Salt Lake Tribune

WEST VALLEY CITY – Even at age 4, Mike Winder thought big.

As other kids dreamed up their Halloween costumes – garish or ghoulish, cowboy or cop, Frankenstein or fireman – Winder knew there was only one thing he wanted to be: president of the United States.

He had been watching, with his parents, a televised debate between President Carter and challenger Ronald Reagan when the inspiration struck.

So on Oct. 31, 1980, he suited up in his Sunday duds, complete with a red-and-white-striped bow tie and a straw hat banded with red, white and blue ribbons.

Voilà. He was a president – or at least an Uncle Sam-like convention delegate. But perhaps most notably he was campaigning as himself. No Carter or Reagan mask. No Washington wig. No Lincoln beard. Just Mike – who, at 4, thought running for president would be a “cool thing.”

So to say that Winder, West Valley City’s youngest councilman, has political ambitions would be an understatement.

And he’s still obsessed with the Oval Office. He recently wrote a book, Presidents and Prophets, about each president’s relationship with the LDS Church. A history buff, he’s also a member of the Center for the Study of the Presidency.

‘He has the ambition’

Twenty-five years after he masqueraded as a presidential wannabe, Winder won his first real political victory, securing an at-large council seat in Utah’s second-most populous burg, West Valley City.

It was a win even bigger than Reagan’s in 1980. And, like Reagan, Winder trounced an incumbent – beating three-term City Councilwoman Barbara Thomas with 71 percent of the vote.

Granted, he enjoyed widespread name recognition – milking his family’s dairy dynasty – but Winder, then 29, snagged a victory big enough to be recognized as a political force in his own right.

It still has people talking about what his next steps might be.

“I expect that Mike will seek higher office someday,” says Todd Weiler, vice chairman of the Utah Republican Party. “It would surprise me if he didn’t run for the state Legislature or even statewide elected office.”

Winder’s big sister, Aimee Newton, watched his penchant for politics unfold after his pretend presidential campaign in 1980. As kids, their favorite game to play was “cities.” Newton – the oldest of five – now a mortgage loan officer, always claimed the job of banker. Mike Winder snatched the title of mayor, making sure the routes for their big wheels were safe.

“He doesn’t enjoy [politics] because of the power and influence piece. He enjoys it because he really does care about people,” Newton says. “I could see Mike as the governor of Utah someday.”

West Valley City Mayor Dennis Nordfelt says you can document this prediction in your journal, he’s so sure about Winder being a rising GOP star.

“You [will] see Mike Winder holding high office at some point in the future. I don’t know if that would be governor or U.S. senator – or even something higher than that,” Nordfelt says. “He has the education and the background, and he has the ambition.”

Future mayor of WVC?

Most observers agree that it’s at least a safe bet that Winder could be West Valley City’s next mayor.

Nordfelt is not saying if he will run for re-election in 2009, but he doesn’t doubt Winder could take the job.

“If he wants to be the mayor, I’m sure he’ll have the opportunity,” says Nordfelt, who has talked with Winder about his political hopes.

“Usually, you kind of go up through the ranks. Maybe being mayor of the [state’s] second-largest city would be a good training ground and a way for [Winder] to let people become aware of what a great public servant he is.”

Winder dismisses the idea of running for a national office, such as Congress. He doesn’t want to leave West Valley City, where he lives in a 1950s green-brick rambler on the family lane that leads to Winder Farms’ headquarters and country store.

“This has been home to my family for six generations. I plan to raise my kids and die here,” Winder says inside Winder Farms’ “executive barn,” where he works as vice president of marketing.

“It would be tough to raise a family with one foot in [Washington,] D.C., and the other in Utah.”

Winder and his wife, Karyn, have three kids, and one more – the last, Karyn says – is due in November. Still, Winder could easily be an empty nester at 50.

National office, then? He doesn’t say.

He’s more open – if cryptic – about the possibility of running for mayor.

“I love West Valley City,” he says. “I will certainly be running in some capacity at the city level” in 2009.

Rising star

Winder, with fewer than two years on the City Council, is still cutting his civic teeth. He points to creating the Mayor’s Star of Excellence program, which honors the top 3 percent of the city’s high schoolers, as his single, personal accomplishment on the council. (Nordfelt explains that most council actions are done as a group.)

And earlier this month, he was reprimanded by the city manager for sending a systemwide e-mail to city staff promoting the release of his new book, published in late September by Deseret Book-owned Covenant Communications.

But Winder fessed up to the “mistake” when called by a Salt Lake Tribune columnist, who chalked up the error to “youthful exuberance.”

Already, the novice councilman has some impressive experience and political ties. As a senior at Taylorsville High, he served as student body president and statewide chairman of the Teenage Republicans – that post led him to hobnob with prominent Republicans, including Dick Cheney, at the Utah Republican Party’s 1994 convention.

“It was heady stuff for a teenager to be hanging out with Dick Cheney, [Sen.] Orrin Hatch and [Sen.] Bob Bennett backstage,” says Winder, who has a photo of himself shaking Cheney’s hand at the event.

Also as a teen, he pushed Taylorsville’s incorporation movement, which his parents, Kent and Sherri Winder, helped accomplish in 1996 after he left to serve an LDS mission in Taiwan. Kent Winder was elected to Taylorsville’s first City Council.

Mike Winder worked as West Valley City’s business-development manager from 2000 to 2004, when he was named one of “40 Under 40 Rising Stars” by Utah Business magazine. As a city councilman, he wants to continue work on economic growth, particularly with plans for a vibrant city center and a revitalized Valley Fair Mall.

Winder also led Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr.’s research and policy committee during the 2004 gubernatorial campaign. In 2005, Huntsman appointed Winder to a four-year term on the Utah Board of State History.

Speedracer, kid wrestler

Winder crossed paths again with Cheney Sept. 28. The West Valley City councilman was asked to drive a staff van in the vice president’s motorcade, which raced from the Salt Lake City International Airport to the Grand America Hotel for a super-secret meeting of the conservative Council for National Policy that was closed to the press.

Winder wasn’t allowed in, either. And he didn’t get to talk to or chauffeur Cheney.

But he enjoyed another rare thrill: driving on vacant downtown streets that were cordoned off for the veep’s entourage.

“To fly down 6th South at 60 miles per hour, make lane changes without signals and run red lights – that’s a memorable experience for any driver,” Winder recalls.

Most of his days, though, are not so flashy as that. When he’s not at Winder Farms or City Hall, he loves to play with his kids: Jessica, 8; Michael Jr., 6; and John, 3. They search for funny videos on YouTube. Or they play “tackle daddy” in the front room, which – so that there’s enough room for romping – holds only a grand piano, a “timeout” stool and an old leather chair Winder rescued from a Dumpster.

Karyn Winder says life has been busy – some days she thinks it’s “too busy” – since her husband joined the City Council and began work on his latest book.

But she expected this.

“When we were married, I knew he’d end up in politics. I just didn’t know when,” she says. “He has so much he wants to get done in life he had to start young.”

Hobby: Meet presidents

Mike Winder no longer wants to be U.S. president. But studying – and meeting – presidents has become a serious hobby.

Last year, he sat next to President and first lady Bush in St. John’s Episcopal Church, the so-called “Church of the Presidents,” in Washington, D.C. Winder managed to briefly exchange greetings with the first couple despite the watching eye of the Secret Service.

In April, he came as close as he’ll ever get to the 1980 presidential race: He met Jimmy Carter. Winder learned the former commander in chief taught Sunday school classes at his Baptist church in Plains, Ga. So Winder went to the class. And he gave Carter a copy of the Presidents and Prophets chapter about him – in case there were any errors or omissions.

Now that he’s older, Winder realizes “what a long shot” vying for the White House would be.

“I’ve grown up from the four-year-old who wanted to be president of the United States to an adult who wants to be a public servant – but also enjoys being a presidential historian on the side.”

And maybe a mayor. Or a senator. Or a governor.

Mike Winder

• Age: 31.
• Family: He and his wife, Karyn, have three kids and a fourth expected in November.
• Education: University of Utah, Master of Business Administration and a bachelor’s degree in history.
• Number of books he’s written: Six.
• Only election he’s lost: Student body president at Bennion Junior High.
• First election he won: Student body president at Taylorsville High.
• U.S. Presidents he’s met: George W. Bush and Jimmy Carter.
• President – dead or alive – he’d most like to meet: Theodore Roosevelt.
• Presidential candidate he’s backing for 2008: Mitt Romney.

Copyright © The Salt Lake Tribune

Bluster Doesn’t Sell: Milking the Part

Reporter Fails to Deliver on Milkman Legend

I ring the doorbell a second time, just like the movie said I would.

Today I’m a milkman, and I know this customer is home. She told the guard at Red Rock Country Club’s western gate to let me in.

Oh, right. It’s the postman who always rings twice. The milkman is the one who gets accused of resembling your kids.

I hear dainty footsteps. The doorknob creaks counterclockwise, slowly.

The milkman is staging a comeback in Las Vegas, where Sean McCrady delivers to 230 Summerlin residents. Winder Farms, which serves 24,000 customers in Utah, began operating here in March.

“Once we figure out the ropes and the challenges of doing this job in Vegas, we’ll expand and go out to Henderson, Anthem and the Southwest,” said McCrady, 31, who drives a different weekly route each day.

The first milkmen delivered in the 1850s, in white uniforms signifying the purity of their product. Since iceboxes were literally boxes filled with ice, milk couldn’t always be kept long, so horse-pulled milk wagons serviced the same houses every day or two. The milkman entered and replaced old bottles with new ones. During the day, he was welcomed mostly by bored and lonely housewives.

Today, the last part of the tradition apparently continues.

“Last week, she was trying to think of things to ask me,” said McCrady of the woman who lives here, “questions that you know she didn’t care about.”

Suddenly, I flashed back to the Sunnydale Farms dude my mom used to open the door to when I was a tyke in Oceanside, Long Island. Come to think of it, he was kind of short with a big nose, too.

“All the stories about the milkman are true,” McCrady said. When pressed to elaborate, however, he mentioned something about a silent “milkman code.”

“You never break the code, Corey,” he said. “There is no talking — kind of like the Vegas slogan. What happens to the milkman, stays with the milkman.”

In Utah, Winder Farms (formerly Winder Dairy) has been delivering nonstop since 1880. But in most of America, the milk well went dry about 100 years later, because of the proliferation of convenience stores, nondairy creamers and QVC (for the bored and lonely housewives).

How college students managed, in the interim, to continue building milk-crate bookshelves and coffee tables remains a mystery as deep as whatever happened to my favorite band in college, the Dead Milkmen.

The milkman’s double-decade Las Vegas hiatus probably explains why none of the guards this morning allow us through their gates without first copying down our license plate and then scanning the cabin for occupants donning turbans with fuses sticking out.

“They act like they’re surprised to see you, every time you come,” said McCrady, who has been driving the same routes for eight months, since he relocated from Ogden, Utah.

McCrady’s job is a little different from what it was back when whole milk was good for you and red wine bad. Milk is only one of 100 different grocery products — including soy milk — stocked in the 44-degree cabin of his GMC 3500 truck. A Dell PDA provides all his orders — entered and paid for on the Web — directions and gate codes. And McCrady works in a green Winder Farms T-shirt (although I requested one of the old-fashioned uniforms the company still has on hand).

“I really like the job,” said McCrady, who worked at a clothing store after high school, transitioning to car sales before applying at Winder. The company had no sales positions open, but did need drivers.

“I fell into it,” he admitted. “But I like it because it’s not too hard, and I have the rest of the day to play golf and kick it.”

McCrady reports for work at 10 p.m. every night to load orders at Winder Farms’ North Las Vegas warehouse. By 2 a.m., he hits the road for a shift that doesn’t end until 8 a.m. (That’s when deliveries are guaranteed by.)

“I only need about five hours sleep a night,” McCrady explained.

Starting Winder Farms milkmen earn a base salary of about $1,500 a month, with a 4 percent commission for every order. (This serves as extra incentive not to lose customers because of inaccuracy or rudeness.)

“Hi,” says the attractive woman who finally answers the door. I’ll call her Jo Ann, because that’s my girlfriend’s name and maybe she’ll be less upset when she reads this now.

I introduce myself as her new milkman, opening her doorstep cooler and making like Vanna White. Gracefully, I show off two gallons of whole milk, one half-gallon of 1 percent, a half-gallon of orange juice, grapes, carrots, broccoli, low-fat cottage cheese, vanilla and strawberry yogurt, and wheat and raisin bread.

Then I ask if she’d like to have her way with me.

Earlier, I asked McCrady what about the milkman appeals to women.

“They see you once a week, and they know you don’t have to stay very long,” he said. “So there’s no attachment, but no matter what happens, you’re coming back next week.”

McCrady is married and says he has never cheated “and I never would.” Still, he doesn’t hate knowing that the opportunity is there, and sometimes knocks as loudly as he does.

“There are definitely some customers you run into that you have an extreme appreciation for,” he said, “and some who have an extreme appreciation for you.”

I offer to feed “Jo Ann” the grapes she ordered, but she’s preoccupied with my entourage.

“Cameras?” she responds, blocking her face. “Great, I’m being recorded.”

I reveal myself as a reporter, and she reveals herself as disappointed.

“I thought I was gonna win something,” she says.

I inform her that my original offer is still open.

“Actually, if it was that milkman,” she replies, pointing at McCrady.

What they say about milkmen is apparently all true — when they aren’t me.

Copyright © Las Vegas Review-Journal

The Milkman Returns

Utah-based Dairy Delivers Organic Products Fresh to Customers’ Doorsteps

By Jack Bulavsky, Las Vegas Review-Journal

The milkman you see driving around Summerlin these days is delivering more than just milk and butter. He has organic eggs and yogurt, cheese, preservative-free bread, meats, freshly squeezed juices, fresh fruits, vegetables, salads, cookie dough, pizza and so much more.

So, who is this super milkman who has more than 130 products available for home delivery? He is one of the Winder Farms milkmen, who have been delivering dairy products from Utah-based Winder Farms for 126 years.

“We’re a farmer’s market on wheels,” said Kent Winder, fifth-generation owner. “My staff recently told me that since 1880, when my family started the business, we have made over 87 million deliveries. We must know what we’re doing.”

Winder said business has been strong since deliveries began in Summerlin, Aug. 25. He expects to have 5,000 homes on his delivery route by the end of the year. At that point, expansion into other areas of the valley is planned.

“In Utah, people know us for our milk,” said Winder. “Here, it’s different. Customers are ordering our bread, meats, and especially our fruits and vegetables. We’re as careful about our nondairy products as we are our milk. That’s because we select products from other family owned businesses that make all-natural items without any additives. Almost all our products are organic, pesticide-free, preservative-free, or hormone-free. This is what sets us apart from other food home delivery companies.”

Winder said the milk, which comes from dairy herds grazing comfortably in Heber, Utah (near Park City), is free of artificial growth hormones. Those contented cattle are fed dry and high-moisture alfalfa hay, cotton seed, distilled and regular corn, and a full mineral package. A cow nutritionist even visits once a month. The milk is bottled in Salt Lake City and shipped to warehouses in Ogden, Orem and St. George, Utah, and North Las Vegas, before being delivered to customers.

Even though the temperature in Las Vegas was 112 on Aug. 25, Winder said heat isn’t a problem.

“We give each new customer a cooler and reusable ice pack and only ask that they place the freezer pack in the cooler before setting it out at night,” he explained. “That keeps everything cold until you take it inside.”

Getting this really fresh milk is quite simple. Customers open an account and create a standing order (the amount and variety of products to be delivered weekly). Deliveries are made once a week between midnight and 8 a.m. on Thursday or Friday. Customers can change or adjust their orders up until 8 p.m. the day before delivery. The cost for this personal grocery service, besides the items themselves, includes a one-time set-up fee of $29.95 along with a weekly $2.95 delivery charge. Deliveries are made throughout the year, except on Christmas and New Year’s Day.

“Convenience is a strong selling tool,” said Winder. “People value their time and money, and all ordering and communication can be done on the Internet. Customers have told me they are actually saving money by ordering from us because they are buying what they need and no longer buying unnecessary items on impulse while walking up and down grocery aisles.”

Winder recently moved to Las Vegas to ensure that all aspects of his company got off on the right track.

“This is like being back on the farm after a baby calf is born,” Winder said. “You take that calf and hand-feed her until she is able to take care of herself. That’s what I’ve been doing since moving here this past summer.”

Winder is looking forward to introducing Winder Farms to Henderson early next year. For more information, visit http://www.winderfarms.com.

Copyright © Las Vegas Review-Journal

Farm Family Hopes to Revive Door-to-Door Delivery

Winder Farms in Las Vegas

By April Dziubala, Las Vegas Business Press

Winder Farms, a West Valley City, Utah-based provider of high-end, organic foodstuffs, has spent six generations making its name within the Beehive State. Now it’s branched out, extending its home delivery service to Las Vegas this summer. Already individual orders are exceeding those of established customers. The company has more than 100 clients in Summerlin, where the service is currently offered, and expansion is on the horizon, according to its co-owners, the husband-and-wife team of Kent and Sherri Winder.

Kent Winder, president of Winder Wholesale and a sixth-generation Utah farmer, said the family business will eventually deliver to other areas of Las Vegas, including Henderson. Further down the road, he added, Winder wants to introduce its products and delivery service to Reno, Boise, Sacramento and Denver. But that expansion will probably not happen for several years, until the Las Vegas management team is firmly in place.

Winder Farms, formerly Winder Dairy, has been in business since 1880. It began by delivering milk produced by vegetable-fed cows and still does.
Winder Farms specializes in dairy products but offers over 130 additional foodstuffs, with an emphasis on organic, chemical-free farming.

“We feed our cows dry alfalfa hay, high-moisture alfalfa hay, cotton seed, distillers corn, regular corn and a full mineral package,” Kent Winder told the Business Press. “A cow nutritionist comes out at least once a month to look the cows over and tell us what (they) need.”

A Winder Farms corporate statement reads, “we pay a premium to our farmers for all natural milk made without growth hormones added … many people around the world share our animal and public health concerns about using rBGH. In fact, it is banned from use in Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and the European Union.”

In addition to producing and delivering milk that is free from any added hormones, Winder Farms generates organic cheeses, eggs, freshly squeezed juices and preservative-free bread. The Winders’ operation contracts with Southwestern farms and businesses for produce, and for a multitude of other items such as pizza and seasonal goods. It’s gone beyond dairy products and baked goods to offer 133 products — including bacon, sausage, steak and apples, as well as antibiotic- and hormone-free Piedmontese beef — all available for home delivery.

Whether the products come from Winder Farms or a contractor, a company brochure promises buyers, “Almost all of our products are either all natural, organic, pesticide free, preservative free or hormone free.” Sherri Winder said, the use of antibiotics and hormones is not tolerated. “The more natural, the better,” she added. Winder Farms’ milk, for instance, is never subjected to fluorescent lights, which can destroy vitamin A and riboflavin.

Those who sign up for Winder Farms home delivery service pay a $29.95 startup fee, and receive a Coleman porch cooler and freezer pack, to maintain product integrity. Customers then pay a $2.95 weekly service fee, on top of the cost of the goods, and can order “as much or as little as they want,” Sherri Winder said. Moreover, the service fee is waived if customers don’t order during that particular week, she explained.

Summerlin subscribers are ordering an average of $28 worth of goods per week, versus the $14 to $15 a week that Winder’s Utah clients spend. Sherri Winder attributes the discrepancy to the fact that Utah residents continue to identify Winder Farms primarily as a dairy, whereas Summerlin residents are “taking full advantage” of the Winder Farms catalogue.

So far, Winder Farms has received positive feedback from Summerlin customers, who comprise the target demographic, Kent Winder said. “We’re so glad you called,” is customers’ response when Sherri Winder calls to remind new subscribers to put their ice packs out, she said. The co-owner makes it a habit to ring up the night before a customer’s first delivery to “welcome them to the family.”

All deliveries are made on Thursday or Friday, depending on the route, and are guaranteed to arrive before 8 a.m. Furthermore, customers can change their orders up until 8 p.m. the night before delivery. Products are “packaged at the source,” Kent Winder said, and distributed from local points like the warehouse in North Las Vegas that services Summerlin.

Winder Farms will eventually outgrow its North Las Vegas quarters, added Kent Winder, who visits the site daily with Sherri. He anticipates Winder Farms having 30,000 Las Vegas customers in the next two to five years, while the company currently serves 25,800 in Utah.

The growth of the delivery service is supported by the Winders’ propagation of their three main selling points: convenience, savings and quality. Kent Winder said that Winder Farms provides “convenience with a smile” and saves consumers money by sparing them from trips to the grocery store, which use gas and time, and often lead to impulse purchases.

Overall, Kent and Sherri Winder are just happy to be here. “This is an exciting adventure,” Sherri Winder said. “We’re here to put a stake in the ground as the first Winders to go out of state.”

PROFILE FACTS

Company: Winder Farms
Owner: Kent & Sherri Winder
Address: 4168 N. Pecos Road, Suite 106, North Las Vegas, NV 89081
Year founded: 1880
Phone: 800-Winder-1 (800-946-3371)
Web site:www.winderfarms.com

Copyright © Las Vegas Business Press

Winder Farms in Las Vegas

Cows on Parade Mean a Chance to Win Free Delivered Groceries for Six Months

By Jeannette Carrillo, Las Vegas Review-Journal

Have you been seeing spots around Summerlin lately? Don’t worry, you can put off that visit to the optometrist, but get your laptop ready. These days, spots in the dairy world mean a chance to win six months of free, farm-fresh groceries delivered to your doorstep courtesy of Winder Farms.

Famous in and around Salt Lake City, Winder Farms, which began its operations in 1880, has extended its farmer’s market on wheels route to Summerlin. The company celebrated its first area delivery Aug. 25.

From its humble beginnings in 1880, Winder Farms has logged more than 87 million deliveries and has grown its line to include more than 125 farm-fresh products, most of which are all natural, organic, and preservative, hormone and pesticide free.

To celebrate its “moove” into town, Winder Farms has unleashed four of its prized bovines to help introduce itself to the community. With delivery set for the Summerlin area for now (bordered by Cheyenne Avenue to the north, Jones Boulevard to the east, Spring Mountain Road to the south and the Red Rock National Conservation Area to the west), the company plans to expand to other sections of the valley soon.

But for now, if you think you’ve spotted a cow chipping golf balls at Angel Park Golf Club, swinging alongside your youngster at the corner park or sipping on a cappuccino at the local bookstore, don’t be alarmed. Rather, log onto http://www.WinderFarms.com, or call 800-946-3371 to enter the six-month-free contest. Rules are available online or by a service associate. The contest ends Oct. 3.

How it works

After paying a one-time sign-up fee of $29.95, which includes a Winder Farms logo cooler and an ice pack to help keep groceries chilled, customers can select from a variety of items, including the farm’s famous hormone-free milk, bread, bacon, eggs, sausage, yogurt, pizza, cheese, fruits, vegetables, beef, jam, honey, butter and more. Following registration, all that’s required is a one-week delivery schedule, a $2.95 delivery fee and a $5 standing order. Deliveries originate from St. George, Utah, and are guaranteed at your doorstep by 8 a.m. New clients will receive a gift grocery pack, and there is no minimum contract term.

Copyright © Las Vegas Review-Journal

Milkman Delivers Milk, Saves Family from Fire

Winder Milkman Stuart Wood Saves Customers in Layton

By Wendy Leonard, Deseret Morning News

A milkman’s job can be dangerous. At least it was for one Winder Farms delivery man Thursday morning.

While performing his regular early morning duties of delivering milk to his customers, Stuart Wood noticed smoke and flames coming from the porch of a home in Layton he’s been servicing for nearly three months. He reacted quickly and secured a lifelong customer.

“I saw a pile of logs glowing like a campfire and when it burst into flames, my first thought was that I had to get the family out,” he said. When no one answered the door, Wood broke into the home, near 1300 North and 2300 East, only to meet a barking dog and a sleepy homeowner.

With a little bit of help, he single-handedly saved the home from further damage.

“If it wasn’t for him, holy cow, our house would have burned down,” said Tanya Filtz. She wasn’t home at the time, but her husband, Ron Filtz and two young daughters were. She said what Wood did for them is priceless and can’t be rewarded by a simple tip.

Ron Filtz said the milk tasted a little sweeter that day.

“He kind of delivered us twice that day,” he said. “He delivered our lives and then our milk.”

It was just after 3 a.m. and he couldn’t remember where an extinguisher was. Filtz said Wood asked about a hose and immediately went about putting out the fire. They never called the fire department for help.

“After the fire was out, he delivered the milk and was on his way,” he said. The family feels lucky for a number of things, including that Wood was running a tiny bit late that day.

It isn’t often that delivery people are called on to perform such tasks as putting out fires, said Winder Farms northern Utah manager Butch Rognon.

“They’re out there in the middle of the night and not a lot of people are out, so if something goes wrong, they’re going to know about it,” he said.

However, Rognon believes any one of his carriers would have done the same thing for a customer. “They kind of take an ownership of their route and build a rapport with their customers,” he said.

After putting out the fire, Wood said he drove a ways down the road but had to pull over and call his own family.

“I saw how fast it turned into a huge fire, it was just five steps,” he said. “It made me really appreciate what I have.” When he got home that day, his 4-year-old son wrapped his arms around him and told him how proud he was.

“I was grateful I was there when I was,” Wood said.

The fire started in a log pile on the porch of the Filtz home and was extinguished before it could cause much damage to the home. “He’s a true hero in our eyes and we can’t thank him enough,” Tanya Filtz said of Wood.

Ron Filtz said the family will continue buying the milk and he hopes Wood continues to be their milkman.

“It could’ve been so different,” he said. “He just took the initiative to put it out. How do you say thanks for saving your life and your house?”

Copyright © Deseret News Publishing Co.

Milkman Rescues Layton family

Driver Puts out Fire on Porch

By Bryon Saxton, Standard-Examiner Davis Bureau

LAYTON — Milkman Stuart Wood, 32, delivered twice for the Filtz family of Layton on Wednesday.

Wood, employed by Winder Farms, first used a garden hose to put out a fire on the Filtz home porch at 1279 N. 2260 East, then went to his truck and retrieved the family’s weekly milk order.

“He was in the right place at the right time,” Ron Filtz said of Wood, who at 3:10 a.m. banged on the doors and entered the home yelling the family’s name. Filtz and his two daughters, ages 5 and 7, then evacuated the home.

“My first thought was just to get the family out,” said Wood, a South Weber resident.

Filtz’s wife, a nurse at a local hospital, was at work at the time.

Wood said as he was approaching the home to make his delivery, a wood pile, which appeared to have been smoking for some time, burst into flames.

“As I got closer, little flames began shooting out the logs. Then it engulfed the whole pile of logs,” Wood said. He added that the flames reached the eaves on the home and were beginning to curl over onto the roof by the time he was able to make contact with the family.

“I’m not sure what started it. But it must have been burning embers for hours and hours,” Filtz said. “It was just odd the way it happened. If he would have been there five minutes later, we may have been trapped in the house.”

Once they had time to reflect on what could have been lost, Filtz said, there was an emotional moment.

“I gave him a big old hug,” he said. “He is a hero.”

Because of Wood’s quick action, Filtz said, the fire did not damage his east Layton home.

Wood, who has worked for Winder Farms since October, said he didn’t do anything anybody else in his situation wouldn’t have done.

“I’m just glad I was there when I was,” he said.

Being a hero is new for Wood, who a few minutes after putting out the fire said he had to pull over to the side of the road and call his wife. He said he began shaking as a result of the adrenaline rushing through his body.

“It felt like a dream,” he said.

Fortunately for the family, Wood was running late that day.

“For some strange reason, he was running about an hour late that night. But it was very fortunate,” Winder Farms Northern Utah manager Butch Rognon said.

“I think all of my delivery guys would do the same thing. They all care for their customers,” Rognon said.

And although it took Wood about nine minutes to wake up the family and put the fire out, Rognon said, he still managed to make his 8 a.m. delivery deadline for his customers.

“He did all that and made his deadline,” said the proud boss.

Copyright © Ogden Publishing Corporation

Old is the New, New

Older Utah Company Still Innovating

By Jeff Vanek, Connect Magazine

When one talks about companies that are cutting-edge innovators, one often thinks of newer, high-tech companies. It’s easy to do, with all the hype and hoopla these companies generate. Yet, there are many companies that have been around for a while that are leading innovators in their respective markets. In fact, it has been their constant innovating over the years that has kept them around. It has been said that you can’t teach an old dog new tricks. The fact of the matter is, some old dogs never stop crafting new tricks.

The four Utah companies featured in this article were selected by connect’s reader-comprised editorial board. All are good examples of mature companies (each have been around from 20 years to 125 years) still driven to innovate. Each has an interesting story of how innovation has allowed them to continue to satisfy the needs of their customers through the years.

When it comes to products, you don’t get much older than dairy products. Cows have been domesticated for thousands of years. So, how does a 125-year-old family dairy innovate? By expanding the products it offers and updating production and business processes.

In 2004, West Valley City-based Winder Dairy partnered with the private equity firms of Dolphin II and Peterson Partners to bring in a fresh infusion of capital. The family dairy wanted to expand its offerings.

“We provide a great service and product to our customers. We want to provide even better service by offering more farm-fresh items right to their door. Expanding our product line was a part of our vision, as well as reaching more people,” says Mike Winder, vice president of marketing, and a sixth-generation member of the family to be involved in the business. As part of the new focus, the business changed its name from Winder Dairy to Winder Farms.

These days, it would be best to think of Winder Farms as a farmers’ market on wheels, one that comes right to your door with the freshest dairy and produce. Milk and dairy products like butter and cottage cheese are still a main offering of Winder Farms. Using a special processing technique handed down from generation to generation, customers get great-tasting milk at their doorsteps within 24 hours of it being milked from the cow. For several years now, freshly baked goods have also been available to customers. The recent change in focus from being primarily a home-delivery dairy to a home-delivery farmers’ market has meant a greatly expanded line of products.

Besides milk, freshly squeezed orange juice, lemonade and other juices are offered. In August of 2005, Winder Farms launched a line of produce that includes such offerings as Fuji and Gala apples, grapefruit, grapes, oranges and even prepared salad bowls. In October fresh vegetables including tomatoes, Utah yellow onions, and russet potatoes were added to the product list. Winder Farms will also add seasonal produce as it becomes available, such as strawberries and raspberries in the summer. During the 2005 holiday season, Winder delivered free-range turkeys and hardwood-smoked hams.

Winder Farms is also changing the way it does business. Today’s innovations include a Web site that enables customers to place and manage their product orders online. The company is also looking at new technologies in order to increase productivity. Some of these technologies include scanners and barcodes on products, as well as route optimization software and handheld devices for delivery vehicle drivers.

It just goes to show that even the oldest businesses have to keep up with technology to compete. When they do, everyone benefits, especially the customer.

Copyright © Connect Magazine

Winder Dairy Delivers New Product Line

Old Business Staying Fresh

By Heather Stewart, Utah Business Magazine

Winder Dairy, one of Utah’s oldest businesses is trying to stay fresh with a new, expanded product line. The company, which has been delivering farm-fresh dairy products to homes for 125 years, has changed its name from Winder Dairy to Winder Farms to reflect its broadened product offerings.

“We really believe there’s an opportunity to take our reputation for very fresh, very good tasting milk and bread products and expand it into other products and services,” said Eric Jacobsen, chief operating officer of Winder Farms.

Jacobsen said Winder Farms would become “a farmer’s market on wheels,” offering fresh squeezed juice, lemonade, fruit, vegetables, prepared salads and seasonal food including turkey, ham and pies.

“We’re trying to get as many of these products through a local company as we can. We want to get these products from the local marketplace,” Jacobsen said.

The company currently delivers to more than 17,000 homes along the Wasatch Front, and in Tooele, Park City, Heber City, Cedar City and St. George and has made over 87 million deliveries since 1880. For the first 48 years, delivery drivers traveled the streets in horse-drawn wagons.

“Celebrating 125 years for any business is a remarkable thing,” said Gov. Jon M. Huntsman, Jr. “As the oldest dairy in Utah, [Winder Farms is] valued as an important contributor to Utah’s business, agricultural, social and civic life throughout the Wasatch Front and beyond.”

To commemorate Winder Farms’ anniversary, the West Valley city council issued a proclamation declaring Sept 18-24 as Winder Farms week in the city. As West Valley City’s oldest business still in operation, Winder Farms employs over 175 workers and is one of the top 25 sales tax providers for the city.

Six generations of Winders have managed and operated the dairy. However, Winder Farms recently formed partnerships with outside investors Dolphin II and Peterson Partners to help it expand into new markets with additional products.

Copyright © Utah Business Magazine

Winder Celebrates 125 Years with Name Change

One of Utah’s Oldest Companies Expands Product Line to Celebrate Birthday

By Dawn House, The Salt Lake Tribune

WEST VALLEY CITY – Winder Dairy, one of Utah’s oldest businesses, is expanding its home delivery service, bringing fruits, vegetables, prepared salads and seasonal foods such as turkey and pies to customers’ doorsteps.

The switch to a farmer’s market on wheels, reflected in its new name, Winder Farms, was announced Thursday during the company’s 125th anniversary celebration.

“We are upgrading almost everything, from products to delivery trucks, to better serve our customers,” said Mike Winder, vice president of marketing and a member of the sixth generation of Winders to operate the business.

Grant Jensen, a Salt Lake City customer since 1942 – nearly half the time Winder has been in business – welcomed the expanded deliveries. “Change is good,” he said.

Company officials said they will buy goods from more than 100 Utah vendors and will be capable of delivering to more than 26,000 customers along the Wasatch Front, in Tooele, Park City and Heber City, and as far south as St. George and Cedar City.

The name change and a new company logo – the latest of more than 30 trademarks used during the past 12 decades – comes on the heels of brand diversification brought to Winder Dairy by two investment companies.

Last year, Dolphin II and Peterson Partners, both Utah-based venture capital firms, formed a partnership with the Winder family. Investors not only provided cash – they also took management positions in the company.

Chief Executive Eric Jacobsen, founder of Dolphin II, whose portfolio includes software development operations, said Winder’s product line will be expanded even more in coming months. The plan, he said, is to stay away from artificial additives. Winder’s bakery items already contain no preservatives and its milk comes from cows not treated with growth hormones.

The name change isn’t the first for the Dairy. In 1889, Mormon pioneer Wilford Woodruff wrote in his diary, “I visited the J.R. Winder Creamery today.”

For his part, Gov. Jon Huntsman, Jr. remembered that, as a boy, his family’s Winder milkman didn’t just deliver milk, but also brought “the latest weather and political forecasts, which were always spot on.”

Other remembrances were of patriarch John R. Winder, who owned both Jersey cows and a deep, cold well on his Poplar Farm at 2700 S. 300 East. That’s where he stored the creamy milk.

In 1880, the Winders began delivering their product in tall cans, scooping the milk into customers’ kitchen pans. Glass bottles of “Rich Jersey Milk” were introduced in 1907. The price of a quart of Winder milk in 1918 was 18 cents.

The family switched from horses to a Ford Model T truck in 1915, but when its tires frequently burst, the Winders went back to horse deliveries until 1928.

In 1931, the farm moved from Salt Lake City to its present location at 4400 W. 4100 South.

The family started its bakery operation in 1958, when glass bottles were replaced with polycarbonate containers. Eight years ago, the company began service to southern Utah.

Winder Farms employs more than 175 workers at its headquarters, processing plant and country store in West Valley City, and at satellite offices in St. George, Ogden and Orem.

Copyright © The Salt Lake Tribune

Winder Dairy Marks 125th

Family Firm in West Valley Gets a New Name: Winder Farms

By Brice Wallace, Deseret News

WEST VALLEY CITY — Milk, eggs, butter, bread, oranges, grapes, bread and juices combined with a family-led work force and loyal customers have been the longtime ingredients for a successful business smörgåsbord.

Dozens of people gathered Thursday for what Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr. described as “an udderly cool celebration” marking the 125th anniversary of Winder Dairy, a six-generation family venture founded by John R. Winder in 1880.

“I just want to tell you that celebrating 125 years for any business is a remarkable thing, and I just want to salute you on that,” Huntsman said. “Along the way, I know that it’s taken a lot of pulling together on the part of the Winder family.”

The family involvement has been the most prominent constant over the years, although in the 1920s and ’30s three Winder dairies were operated by brothers who combined the operations in 1932. Other constants are loyal employees like Robin Grant, now marking his 50th year with the company, and faithful customers like Grant and Maxine Jensen, who have been receiving Winder deliveries for 63 years.

But 125 years also has brought many changes, the latest being a new name and logo. Starting Thursday, the business began using Winder Farms as its moniker. What was known in 1889 as the J.R. Winder Creamery also has had more than 30 logos over the years.

Along the way, the operations moved from the Poplar Farm at 2700 S. 300 East to West Valley City in 1931; milk containers advanced from cans to glass to polycarbonate bottles; deliveries moved from horse-drawn vehicles to trucks; and a partnership was forged between the family and Dolphin II and Peterson Partners in 2004.

The product lines have expanded often, too, including the addition of bread to the dairy products in 1958.
In fact, it’s the expanded list of commodities that prompted the switch to the Winder Farms name, according to Eric Jacobsen, founder and managing director of Dolphin II.

“We really believe there is a great opportunity to take that reputation for very fresh, very-good-tasting milk and bread products and expand it into other products and services,” he said.

Winder recently added orange juice, lemonade and fruits and soon will launch vegetables and salads. During the holidays, expect to see turkey, ham and other items.

“And we will continue to announce new products over the next year or two to expand our product line into the freshest, healthiest, best-tasting products that you can get in Utah,” Jacobsen said, adding that the company will continue to try to get its items from the local marketplace.

The growing product line is the result of customer research, “and we heard that this is, in effect, what they wanted,” he said. “They wanted, in their words, a farmers’ market on wheels delivered to their front door.”

The front doors of about 17,000 homes and 350 businesses along the Wasatch Front, Tooele, Park City, Heber, Cedar City and St. George now get Winder products. And Huntsman noted that those deliveries often have included more than food.

“The one thing that I looked forward to most from the Winder delivery man when I was growing up was, No. 1, the weather forecast, which was always spot-on, and, No. 2, the political forecast, which always was spot-on as well,” the governor said.

“I had more early political tutorial from the milk delivery person than I did from anyone else. So other than delivering milk, I think the delivery people who worked at Winder Farms are responsible for the edification and education of so many in this metropolitan area.”

Winder by the numbers
39,000: Number of days of deliveries since founding in 1880
87.4 million: Number of deliveries since 1880
1 million-plus: Number of deliveries by horse-drawn wagon
25,800: Number of Utah homes getting deliveries in 2004
3,500: Number of Utahns employed during company history
175-plus: Number of employees now in West Valley City and satellite offices in St. George, Ogden and Orem
Six: Number of Winder generations involved in the company

Copyright © Deseret News Publishing Co.

A Utahn Who ‘Truly Loved People’

Ned Winder 1922-2005

By Cathy McKitrick, The Salt Lake Tribune

Funeral services will be Friday at noon at the Jordan North Stake Center, 3900 S. 4000 West, West Valley City. Friends and family may call Thursday from 5 to 8 p.m. at Valley View Funeral Home, 4335 W. 4100 South, and from 10 to 11:45 a.m. Friday at the stake center. Interment will be at Valley View Memorial Park.Ned Winder had that special touch – with family, with friends, with firefighters he fed, with newlyweds he advised.

“He was one of the unique characters of the world,” said West Valley City Mayor Dennis Nordfelt. “He truly loved people and could demonstrate that through a wonderful sense of humor and one of the biggest hearts I’ve ever been associated with.”

On Tuesday morning, Winder died of a heart condition. He was 83.

Winder – who helped run Winder Dairy and Valley View Memorial Park, both family businesses – had deep roots in West Valley City and beyond.

“He was out mowing lawns Monday and married people in the [LDS] temple earlier this week,” said grandson Mike Winder. “He set a perfect example of how to genuinely care for people.”

While his service is described as legendary, Winder’s quick wit made him unforgettable. His many years laboring in the LDS Church included extensive missionary work and “sealing” couples in temple marriage ceremonies.

“We called him ‘Marrying Ned,’ ” said Linda Gillette, whose four daughters and one son requested him specifically to perform their wedding ceremonies. “He was very human, very down to earth. He got their marriages off to a good start.”

Winder shared “uncommon wisdom and memorable advice” with newlyweds, said Bruce Olsen, managing director of public affairs for the LDS Church.

“Ned Winder was one of those unique characters who had a genuine love for everyone he met and an infectious way of showing how much he cared,” Olsen said.

Winder also loved sports – and sports cars.

“He was famous for driving his maroon Porsche around town with the license plate ‘NED,’ ” Mike Winder said. “He joked that he loved that car and asked if he could get it sealed to him.”

Philanthropist Bob Rice described Ned Winder as a “rabid University of Utah sports fan” and a longtime supporter of high school athletic programs, serving as head announcer for high school basketball tournaments.

“He had a great spirit about him,” Rice said. “I’ll miss his friendship.”

Scores of West Valley City firefighters will miss him, too.

“He’d show up on the weekends with his black Mercedes that he loved to drive, full of Winder Dairy goodies for us,” fire Capt. Walt Schanuel said. “He was a cutup. He always had a joke.”

Capt. David Dumas described Winder as good-natured and gentle.

“He endeared himself to the guys here. He showed up almost every Sunday like clockwork,” Dumas said. “He’d tell a joke, tell us to be careful and then be on his way.”

Winder leaves behind Gwen, his wife of 57 years, along with seven children, 37 grandchildren and 26 great-grandchildren.

“When I heard he had passed away, my first thought was, ‘I can’t imagine a world without Ned Winder,’ ” Nordfelt said. “But then I realized, he has had such an astonishing influence on so many, I will feel that the rest of my life.”

Copyright © The Salt Lake Tribune

Utah’s Prominent Citizen Ned Winder Dies at 83

Best Known for His Involvement with Winder Dairy, Ned Winder Dies at 83

By ABC 4 News

Utah has lost one of its most prominent citizens. Best known for his family business, Winder Dairy, Ned Winder died Tues at the of 83.Ned Winder was born into the dairy business which began in the 1880s, but it was under Ned’s management, and because of his love for people, it grew to the 20-thousand customer business it is today.

“He would send baby bibs to people when they had a baby and two dollar bills to sterling scholar winners, and he was always giving, giving, giving. . .and it built up a reputation of love for people,” Winder’s grandson, Mike Winder said.

Winder had a soft spot for kids, and thousands of school children visited the dairy every summer. But Winder’s service went far beyond the walls of the dairy. He is honored for serving his nation. His grandson said, “Grandpa was part of the greatest generation. He was on U.S.S. Hew Hadley in the Pacific as a gunner, and they still hold the record for most fighter planes shot down in a single battle.”

Winder’s service to his community is also remarkable. He was the youngest president of the Salt Lake Chamber of Commerce, president of the United Way and Utah Safety Council, commissioner of the Great Salt Lake Boy Scout Council, president of the Sons Of Utah Pioneers, founder and president of the Rose Park Lions Club, and that is just to name a few. Winder was also responsible for marrying thousands of Utahns in the salt Lake Temple, but it’s perhaps the accomplishments that are less visible that are most memorable.

“There were couples who were in hard times that he would quietly help in the community, and he did that so often that I don’t think we will ever know the full extent of the lives he touched,” Mike Winder said.

Funeral services for Ned Winder will be held Friday, September 2nd at noon at the Jordan North Stake Center on 3900 S. 4000 West.

Business, Civic Leader Ned Winder Dies

Utah’s Favorite Milkman Dies at 83

By Deseret News

Edwin Cannon (Ned) Winder, a noted business, religious and civic leader, died Tuesday, Aug. 30, 2005, at LDS Hospital of a heart condition. He was 83.

Mr. Winder was born on June 1, 1922, in Salt Lake City to Edwin Kent and Alma Cannon Winder. He grew up on the farm of Winder Dairy, the family business formed by his great-grandfather, and for many years was a partner and spokesman for the company. Tens of thousands of schoolchildren learned firsthand that milk comes from a cow as they were tutored on one of his many guided field trips.

He was also a partner in Valley View Memorial Park.

In World War II, he was a Navy gunner on the destroyer the USS Hugh Hadley, also serving as chaplain to his fellow sailors. As a young man, he served The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints as a missionary in the Southern States Mission. In later years, he served as a mission president in the Guam Micronesia Mission, the Australia Adelaide Mission and the Florida Mission, where he helped initiate missionary work in Puerto Rico.

He also worked with the church’s Missionary Department, serving as secretary for 21 years. At the time of his death, he was serving as a stake patriarch and had been a sealer in the Salt Lake Temple since 1978, where he married thousands of couples.

His many civic duties included serving as president of the Salt Lake Chamber of Commerce, the Salt Lake Area United Way, Sons of the Utah Pioneers and the Utah Safety Council; commissioner of the Great Salt Lake Council-Boy Scouts of America; director of the Utah Manufacturers Association and First Security State Bank.

He also served on the advisory boards of Salt Lake Community College and the Salt Lake Detention Center; board of directors of the Salt Lake Planetarium; founder and president of the Rose Park Lions Club; dispatcher and announcer for the Days of ’47 Parade; director of the Utah State Fair Foundation Board; and was two-time president of the Bleacher Utes (now the Crimson Club) at the University of Utah.

He has been inducted into the West Valley City Hall of Fame, named an “Outstanding Alumni” of Cyprus High School, received the Sam Walton Business Award, given the “Legend in our Community Award” by Chamber West, and just this spring was given the “Super Fan” award from the University of Utah basketball team. He was widely known for his sense of humor and his love for people.

Services are scheduled Friday, Sept. 2, at noon at the Jordan North Stake Center, 3900 S. 4000 West. Friends may call Thursday from 5 to 8 p.m. at Valley View Funeral Home, 4335 W. 4100 South, and from 10 to 11:45 a.m. at the stake center on Friday prior to the services. Interment will be at Valley View Memorial Park.

Copyright © Deseret News Publishing Co.

Every Day is Earth Day at Winder Dairy

All-Natural Milk in Earth-Friendly Bottles

Press Release

WEST VALLEY CITY — April 12, 2005 — For the past 125 years, Winder Dairy, Utah’s oldest dairy, has operated under the philosophy that “every day is Earth Day.” In fact, Winder’s core business platform is the delivery of all-natural milk in earth-friendly, returnable milk jugs.

“Our customers drink more than two million containers worth of milk each year. That’s enough to fill the Delta Center nearly 100 times,” said Mike Winder, Vice President of Marketing at Winder Dairy. “We are proud to say that every one of those containers is recycled, which makes for a lot of milk jugs that don’t end up in the landfills.”

As part of its effort to better the community and the earth, Winder Dairy uses returnable bottles made of polycarbonate, which are sanitized and reused more than 100 times.

In addition, Winder does its part to keep its customers and dairy cows healthy. By not injecting their dairy cows with the artificial growth hormone rBST, Winder keeps its milk all-natural, which is great for both the cows producing the milk and the customers drinking it.

As part of Earth Day 2005, celebrated on April 22, Winder Dairy urges its customers and the community to renew their efforts to help save the Earth. Winder Dairy wants to emphasize that every little action to help save the Earth can make a difference.

“Everyone can celebrate Earth Day by spreading the word about recycling, planting a tree, starting a compost pile, encouraging your neighborhood to grow gardens, picking up litter, carpooling to work and saving energy whenever possible,” said Winder.

Earth Day, founded in 1970, promotes environmental citizenship and encourages people to take action worldwide to help save the Earth and the environment. The week leading up to Earth Day has been designated Earth Week.

Winder Dairy hopes that you celebrate Earth Day this year. For more information on Winder Dairy please call 1-800-WINDER1 or http://www.winderdairy.com.

Winder Dairy is Looking to Future

New Partnership Will Allow Company to Expand and Upgrade

By Jenifer K. Nii, Deseret News

The 125-year old dairy announced plans Thursday to expand operations and products, thanks to a “substantial” investment from two Utah-based private investment firms: Dolphin II and Peterson Partners.

As a result of the new partnership, Winder also announced that two Dolphin executives — managing partner Eric Jacobsen and partner Mike Dutton — have joined the Winder executive team as chief executive officer and chief operating officer, respectively.

Dolphin II is a private equity firm with offices in Park City and Westport, Conn. Peterson is a Salt Lake-based firm best known for its early investment in JetBlue Airways.

Mike Winder, executive vice president of the dairy, said the new Winder/Dolphin management blend is the “perfect mix” of company stalwarts and new blood.

“We felt it was time to up it to the next level and take the company forward — to better products, better service and more customers served,” Mike Winder said. “The Dolphin and Peterson groups were about more than just the money. Their emphasis was on partnering with us to achieve our goals. That’s what separated them and made them stand out from the others.”

Based in West Valley City, the company delivers dairy and other grocery products to about 17,000 residential customers and businesses throughout Utah — from north of Brigham City, down through the Wasatch Front to St. George.

The new partnership, and the resulting capital infusion, will allow Winder to upgrade its infrastructure and broaden its footprint, Jacobsen said. But in the short term, he said Winder’s focus will be on existing operations.

“We want to make sure that we are properly and adequately serving all of our existing customers, including customer service staffing levels and drivers,” Jacobsen said. “That’s our plan for the next six to nine months.”

In that time, Winder also will begin expanding its product line, Mike Winder said. Customer surveys indicate a desire for fresh fruits and juices, baked goods and vegetables.

“We’re envisioning delivering all the good, wholesome, ‘down-on-the-farm’ freshness right to people’s doors,” he said.

In the long term, Jacobsen said Winder believes it can double or even triple the number of households served within its existing service area. Beyond that, Jacobsen said Winder will look at increasing its service radius as far away as Las Vegas.

“We looked at the company and saw 125 years,” Jacobsen said. “It’s very well-known and very well-respected. We looked at it and saw a wonderful opportunity to bring in outside management expertise to create efficiencies, to expand the customer base and to deliver more products and services. We saw great potential for a company that we believe can be much better, much bigger and much broader.

“We’re getting ready for the next 125 years.”

Copyright © Deseret News Publishing Co.

Winder Brings Goodness Home

Utah Dairy, New Partners, Expand Service to Include Fresh Produce

By Glen Warchol, The Salt Lake Tribune

Winder Dairy, one of Utah’s oldest businesses, is taking a leap into modern marketing and brand diversification with help from two investment firms best known for high-tech ventures.

Dolphin II and Peterson Partners, both Utah-based venture capital firms, have formed a partnership with the dairy, which has delivered milk door-to-door for 125 years and now serves 17,000 customers from St. George to Brigham City. The deal involves more than a cash infusion. The investors have taken management positions at the West Valley City-based dairy.

Winder’s new management team plans to make the dairy more efficient. “There is amazing potential to apply technology in this business,” said Dolphin II founder Eric Jacobsen, now Winder Dairy’s chief executive.

But he believes the best prospect for expansion rests with what many investors perceive as a throwback business: home delivery.
Jacobsen plans to use Winder Dairy’s well-established brand to capitalize on a growing market trend that goes beyond fresh milk. Consumers nationwide have displayed a willingness to pay a premium for fresh, high-quality and locally produced food, especially if it is conveniently delivered to their doors.

“People want fresher, better tasting products,” Jacobsen said. “We want Winder Dairy to go after that ‘good food’ category” of consumer.
Winder Diary already has a reputation for high-quality dairy products from cows not treated with growth hormones, said Mike Winder, the company’s vice president of marketing. It was a natural step to add fresh fruit, vegetables and baked goods. Furthermore, the dairy has the infrastructure and fleet of trucks necessary to distribute an expanded product line.

“Today, people know us for healthy dairy products,” Jacobsen said. “If we can expand that into other fresh products from the farm, we have a great potential.”

For the Winders, the decision to branch out was precipitated in February 2004 with the death of Gordon Liddle, a family cousin and the company’s president for the past two decades. Said Mike Winder: “That forced us to ask ourselves, ‘Where do we take the company from here?’ ”

The Winders quickly realized they would need capital and expertise to broaden their reach. “We founded a great company,” he said, “but we wanted other bright minds involved as we try to navigate what we want to do.”

That’s where Dolphin II, whose portfolio includes financial services and software development operations, and Peterson Partners, best known for its investments in JetBlue airline and the Envirocare hazardous waste-disposal facility, became involved.

“I had gotten to know Gordon and the Winders,” said Jacobsen. “They’re really good people. They have done great things for this community and I wanted to do what I could to help out.”

Jacobsen laughs at the direction that decision has taken him.

“I spent my career in high-tech,” he said. “When I tell people I work every day in the dairy business, they do a double take.”

Copyright © The Salt Lake Tribune

Spring Names Top 100 Utah Entrepreneurs

By Deseret News

Early-stage venture capital fund Spring Capital on Wednesday announced the 2005 class of the vSpring Capital Top 100 Venture Entrepreneurs.

The list, also known as the v100, is composed of people with ties to Utah who are most likely to lead a successful startup venture in the next five to seven years in the information technology or biotechnology industries as a chief executive or chief technical officer.

Nominations are made by members of the Utah business community. The nominees are then invited to participate in a confidential online survey to vote for the top 10 individuals they feel would most likely meet the selection criteria. Nominees garnering the most votes from their peers in this annual process are then elected into the v100.

Those making the v100 list are encouraged to participate in activities throughout the year that are designed to increase exposure, resources and collaboration among group members.

The new class includes 42 new members. In total, members of the class have raised more than $4 billion in capital assets and created more than 15,000 new jobs during their careers.

The class includes:

Curt Allen, Agilix Labs president and chief executive officer; Paul Allen, Infobase Ventures managing partner; Dallin M. Anderson, Montigen Pharmaceuticals CEO; Matt Asay, Novell’s director of the Linux business office; David Bateman, Property Solutions founder; David Bean, Attensity Corp. chief technology officer and co- founder; David J. Bearss, Montigen Pharmaceuticals chief scientific officer; Ragula Bhaskar, FatPipe Networks CEO; Patrick Burke, Myriad Genetics business development manager; Greg Butterfield, Altiris president and CEO; Patrick M. Byrne, Overstock.com president and chairman;

Mark Calkins, Agilix Labs, vice president of platform marketing; Don Cash, Omniture vice president of sales; Brad Christensen, Novell’s director of product management; Craig Christensen, Altiris vice president and general counsel; James Clarke, Clear Link CEO; Josh Coates, Berkeley Data Systems president and CTO; Tom Creighton, Epixtech chief architect; Gregory Critchfield, Myriad Genetics Labs president; Gary L. Crocker, AnzenBio and Crocker Ventures president and managing director; Nicole Toomey Davis, Enclavix president and CEO; Terry Dickson, Avinti CEO;

John Dunn, Banyan Ventures director; Mike Dutton, Dolphin II partner; Adam Edmunds, Silent Whistle president and CEO; Bjorn Espenes, Infopia CEO; J.D. Gardner, vSpring Capital venture partner; Lee Gibbons, LDS Audio CTO; Stephen W. Gibson, The Academy for Creating Enterprise founder and social entrepreneur; Darin D. Gilson, Banyan Ventures managing director; Brett Graham, Ingenix vice president of strategic planning; Michael Hall, Senforce president and CEO; Richard D. Hanks, Mindshare Technologies chairman and president; Jon Hansen, MSTAR.NET and Chicago Venture Partners CEO;

Nathan S. Hatch, Helius senior vice president of marketing and corporate development; Ron Heinz, Helius CEO; Sheryl G. Hohle, BioCatalogia president and CEO; Spence Hoole, Diversified Insurance Brokers partner; Eliot Jacobsen, 0 to 60 Ventures president; Eric Jacobsen, Dolphin II managing director; Josh James, Omniture CEO and co-founder; Rob Jeppsen, Primary Intelligence chief strategy officer; Seth B. Johnson, Redi2 Technologies CEO; Greg Jones, Visual Influence president; Kimberly Jones, Verite CEO; Jeff Kearl, LogoWorks chief marketing officer; Gary Kennedy, Double Eagle Ventures owner;

Dwain Kinghorn, Altiris chief technology officer; Rebecca Olpin Krull, Star Bridge Systems director of sales; Fred Lampropoulos, Merit Medical Systems CEO; Bruce Law, Sprout Marketing president and founder; Carl Ledbetter, UV Partners partner; Scott C. Lemon, Agilix Labs president; Amy Lewis, Mediconnect.net CEO; Ron Lindorf, Humanvoice chairman; Drew Major, Move Networks founder; William Marble, Calixus board member; Ty D. Mattingly, Raser Technologies consultant; David McGinn, Agilix Labs chief financial officer and chief operations officer; Peter D. Meldrum, Myriad Genetics managing partner;

Glen Mella, Control4 chief marketing officer; Craig Miller, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints director of member needs; W. Tim Miller, Echelon Biosciences president; Blake Moderzitski, UV Partners general partner; Matt Mosman, Levanta CEO; Jan Newman, Altiris vice president of business development; Thomas Ngo, NextPage CTO; Amy Paul, Bard Access Systems president; Brad Pelo, NextPage chairman of the board; Jim Perry, Perrypoint Ventures CTO; Ben Peterson, MingleMatch president; Greg Peterson, GH Peterson Holdings managing partner; Glenn D. Prestwich, University of Utah and Sentrx Surgical presidential professor and chief science officer;

Michael Proper, DirectPointe president and CEO; John E. Richards, BYU Center for Entrepreneurship associate teaching professor; Larry Rigby, Zars president and CEO; David Rowe, Trend Micro executive vice president of global marketing; Todd Shepherd, Studeo co- founder and partner; Eric Smith, Control4 CTO; James Sorenson Jr., Sorenson Media CEO; Bryan Sparks, Solera Networks managing partner; Tim Stay, Marketing Ally founder; Joshua J. Steimle, MWI CEO; Ian Stiles, Agilix Labs software architect; Tom Stockham, MyFamily.com president and CEO; Weston Swenson, Forum Systems CEO;

Cydni R. Tetro, NextPage vice president of product and corporate marketing; Daren Thayne, MyFamily.com CTO; Kent L. Thomas, CFO Solutions founder and managing member; Rodney Tiede, Broadcast International president and CEO; Mike Tippets, Helius senior vice president of engineering and strategy; Jay Verkler, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints director of the FCH Group; Brett Walker, VitalSmarts chief marketing officer;

Brad Walters, MaxStream chairman, president and CEO; Will West, Control4 CEO; Greg Whisenant, Wasatch Solutions president; Weston Whitman, Harvard Business School MBA candidate 2005; Gary Williams, Brigham Young University associate director of the Center for Entrepreneurship; Phillip J. Windley, The Windley Group associate professor; Ralph Yarro, Canopy Group president and CEO.

Copyright © Deseret News Publishing Co.

Pioneer Dairy Family Still Delivers

By Tom Wharton, The Salt Lake Tribune

Snow covered the central Salt Lake City street and the traffic was lighter than normal. In the morning darkness, the sight of a Winder Dairy truck making its daily rounds seemed odd.

Though my parents once had fresh milk delivered to their door, seeing the milkman surprised me. I did not realize getting milk delivered to the door was still an option.

I have met Ned Winder, whose family has owned the dairy since 1880, making it one of Utah’s oldest businesses. For years, Ned volunteered as the lead announcer at Utah high school basketball tournaments. He was known for off-the-cuff comments that broke the tension in the midst of exciting games.

Ned, now in his 80s, attends prep games with family members, often sitting in the front row. The last time I saw him, he grabbed me and handed me a cold bottle of Winder apple juice.

Kent Winder, Ned’s son and now executive vice president of the fifth-generation of Winders to run the dairy, has many stories to tell about his father.

There was the time, for example, when Ned delivered milk in Salt Lake City’s Avenues during a rainstorm. He dashed up to a porch and slipped on the wet wooden deck, sliding right through the home’s screen door into the house. The owner, who was reading the paper, calmly looked down at Ned and said, “Next time you can leave the milk on the porch.”

On another day, Ned rounded a corner to put milk in a box, only to be hit in the face by a dishpan of water being tossed out.

Kent remembers his father taking what was then the company’s amber glass bottles of milk to University of Utah basketball coach Jack Gardner, who always kept milk on the sideline to help calm his ulcer. Ned would drive up to the parking attendant, tell him he was Jack Gardner’s milkman, hand the attendant a pint of cream and get waved through.

Gordon Liddle, company president and a Winder on his grandmother’s side, said the dairy was founded by John R. Winder and his wife, Elizabeth. Their well near the original dairy at 2700 S. 300 East in South Salt Lake seemed to have colder water than others, making it possible to preserve excess milk.

The Winders began bottling milk in 1907 and bought their first truck in 1915, only to decide that horse-drawn wagons were more reliable. In 1931, the dairy moved to its present location at 4100 S. 4400 West in West Valley City. Its plant was built in 1958.

The dairy’s 800 cows moved to less urbanized Payson in 1974. The turnaround time from cow to doorstep can be as little as 12 hours or as long as 72. The company uses no growth hormones.

These days, 34 Winder Dairy trucks serve about 20,000 home-delivery customers. They deliver more than 100 products that include root beer float-flavored milk, butter, cheese, cookie dough, fresh-made bread, juices, water softener salt, Gossner’s cheese and laundry detergent.

Most trucks are packed at 11:30 p.m. It is a rare day when the last one does not return to the dairy headquarters by 9:30 a.m.

Liddle said he feels the pressure of keeping the small family operation alive.

“You have to be quick and you have to be right,” he said in the office whose nearby lobby is decorated with cases of old milk bottles and a poster that reads “All I need to know about life I learned from a cow.”

Customers served with fresh milk before they wake up each morning appreciate the Winders taking up that challenge.

Copyright © The Salt Lake Tribune