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Hickory Farms history
Hickory Farms company history timeline
In 1951, finding specialty meats and cheeses could take some doing if you lived in small-town America and had no neighborhood deli.
Founder Richard Ransom first began by selling hand cut cheese at local fairs in 1951
By 1959, Hickory Farms was selling 1.5 million pounds of beef stick via over 250 temporary booths as well as mail order.
In 1959, Hickory Farms Summer Sausage was added to the fairs and shows that were run by husband and wife teams.
Hickory Farms opened its first franchised store outside Toledo in 1960, the same year the company was incorporated.
Hickory Farms had 57 retail outlets by 1965, and opened its 100th store just three years later.
Powell, Mary Alice, “Shopping in a Store That Smells Good,” The Toledo Blade, May 5, 1968.
“Hickory Farms Elects President,” The Toledo Blade, February 26, 1975.
By 1975, franchising had enabled the chain to grow to over 300 units in 43 states and Canada.
Ransom, who moved from president to chairman and chief executive officer in 1975, revived the booth idea that year, using small kiosks in malls to penetrate markets too small for a full-sized store and to supplement permanent store sales during the holiday season.
“Hickory Farms Founder Plans Sale of Firm,” The Toledo Blade, June 21, 1980.
By the time he sold it in 1980, Hickory Farms was a $164-million-a-year specialty food business, with outlets in every state but Mississippi.
“It is almost impossible to enter a Hickory Farms store without tasting something,” Forbes magazine observed in a 1983 business profile, describing the ranks of smiling, apron-clad women positioned at store doorways and in the aisles with trays of food.
“General Host to Keep Hickory Farms,” The Toledo Blade, April 9, 1987.
—, “Hickory Farms’ Buy-Out Deal Works Because of Innovative Banking Idea,” The Toledo Blade, May 23, 1988.
Hickory Farms purchased its largest remaining franchisee, Hickory Farms Northwest, in 1991, adding 14 stores in Washington and Oregon.
In 1991, it bought Blue Diamond Growers’ Almond Plaza catalog business, which sold almonds and other nuts.
Other smaller store purchases brought the total number of company-owned stores to over 100 and reduced franchised locations to 55 by 1992.
His wife, Elizabeth Meinert Ransom, died in 2009.
"Hickory Farms, Inc. ." International Directory of Company Histories. . Retrieved June 21, 2022 from Encyclopedia.com: https://www.encyclopedia.com/books/politics-and-business-magazines/hickory-farms-inc
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Hickory Farms competitors
| Company name | Founded date | Revenue | Employee size | Job openings |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hip Chick Farms | 2011 | $4.9M | 50 | - |
| Pinebelt Wireless | 1958 | $6.1M | 35 | - |
| Swiss Farms | 1968 | $1.2M | 25 | - |
| Black Dog Farms | 1994 | $15.4M | 100 | - |
| Anderson Seed Farms | - | $980,000 | 25 | - |
| Harry & David Holdings Inc | 1886 | $1.7B | 8,000 | 1 |
| Hanover Shoe Farms | - | $35.0M | 5 | - |
| Wilson Farm | 1884 | $11.7M | 2,000 | 12 |
| Origin Enterprises Plc | 2006 | $6.4B | 2,600 | - |
| Kurt Weiss GH | 1910 | $1.4B | 1,000 | - |
Hickory Farms history FAQs
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Hickory Farms may also be known as or be related to Hickory Farms, Hickory Farms LLC, Hickory Farms, Inc. and Hickory Farms, LLC.