Winder brings goodness home

By Glen Warchol
The Salt Lake Tribune
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."
    glenwarchol@sltrib.com