Sauer Brands history

Aside from helping to mix and taste-test the flavorings, she designed an exhibit for the 1889 Virginia State Fair to advertise the quality of C.F. Sauer extracts.

In 1917, Eugenia Duke was stationed at Camp Sevier, a National Guard Training Camp.

In 1920, Sauer added herbs and spices to his product lines as well as other companies to his portfolio, mostly in support of the flavor extract business.

After the Richmond facility was destroyed by fire in 1923, he elected to exit the bottle business and to buy the containers ready-made.

By 1927, Sauer’s grew to be the largest producer of extracts and spices in the nation.

In 1929, Eugenia sold her mayo business to the C.F. Sauer Company and the rest is history! For over 100 years, Duke’s has celebrated its vibrant history cultivated a commitment to family recipes, tradition, and authenticity.

Following a brief recession a year after the war ended in 1945, the United States economy soared, and like many companies, C.F. Sauer rode the wave of prosperity.

One of the major campaigns he undertook was sole sponsorship of “The Joan Brooks Show,” which premiered on a local Richmond radio station in 1948.

Following his father’s death, he was named president on January 30, 1953.

In 1955, they completed a major addition to the modern Duke’s Mayonnaise manufacturing plant in Greenville, South Carolina.

Later, in 1956, the company acquired a refinery in Charlotte, North Carolina to produce vegetable oils for the Duke’s family of products.

It was also during this time, in 1961, that C.F. Sauer acquired Lynchburg, Virginia-based Famous Virginia Foods Corp., maker of pickles and other condiments, shortly before that company filed for bankruptcy.

In December of 1964, the company purchased Dean Foods – a margarine manufacturer that produces several private label retail products as well as bulk packaged margarine and liquid butter substitutes for the institutional and foodservice markets.

In 1967, Alford’s Barbecue Sauce was added to the line.

C.F. Sauer added new equipment in 1971 and expanded its product lines to include seasonings, gravy mixes, and sauces.

In 1976 Connie Sauer learned from the Wall Street Journal of a small Shelby, North Carolina-based custom plastic molding company, Metrolina Plastics, Inc., that was for sale.

By this time C.F. Sauer had expanded its Richmond operations, having purchased a nearby Sears, Roebuck and Co., Inc., building in 1981 for about $7.7 million.

By the time C.F. Sauer celebrated its centennial in 1987, sales had reached the $200 million neighborhood.

In 1989 the High's Ice Cream parlor chain of more than 30 stores was acquired as well, followed a year later by the addition of the Knoxville, Tennessee-based Kay's Ice Cream chain.

In 1990, a major expansion of the Greenville manufacturing facility was completed, greatly increasing production capabilities.

And a new distribution center was added to the Richmond manufacturing location in 1991.

The Kay's chain declared bankruptcy in 1992 and the High's stores began to close, so that within a few years only a single High's store remained of a chain that had once numbered in the hundreds in the mid-Atlantic states.

The passing of leadership to the fourth generation of Sauers began when C. F. Sauer IV was elected president of the company in 1993.

Will served as company treasurer and as a member of the board of directors of The C.F. Sauer Company until her death in 1994.

In 1996 the company acquired the Bama Oils Division of Welch Foods, Inc., adding the Bama mayonnaise, salad dressing, sandwich spread, and tartar sauce lines.

The C.F. Sauer Company moves to 2000 West Broad Street, in Richmond, and grows to 250 employees.

Has Been Providing the World with Flavor for 115 Years," http://www.richmond.com, September 6, 2002.

In 2019, after 132 years of private ownership, The C.F. Sauer Company was acquired by Falfurrias Capital Partners of Charlotte, North Carolina.

Company sponsors first-ever Duke’s Mayo Bowl in Charlotte, NC. Acquisition of Chicago Custom Foods in April 2020 — the leading maker of popcorn flavoring and seasoning in the United States Duke’s Southern Sauces launches six new flavors.