Progress industry
“ been It’s just a
great success story.”
Mrs. Gerry’s produces a number of different, salad, coleslaw and potato products, among others. Colleen Harrison/albert lea tribune
Mrs. Gerry’s Kitchen to expand for a seventh time, nearly doubling space By Cathy Hay
news@albertleatribune.com
The recipe for success at Mrs. Gerry’s in Albert Lea calls for three key ingredients: a strong belief in God, quality products and first-rate employees. The local food manufacturer, known for its potato salad and mashed potatoes, is expanding for the seventh time since moving to the Northaire Industrial Park in 1978. The present expansion adds 93,600 square feet to its building on Y.H. Hanson Road. It will help the company increase its capacity to produce hot side dishes like mashed potatoes and macaroni and cheese, said Chad Vogt, vice president and director of purchasing. This expansion could also help in development of new products. Vogt expects this expansion to create 20 jobs over three years, bringing the total number of employees to 190. Site preparation started in 2014 and the expansion should be finished by September 2015. This recent expansion follows a 37,000-squarefoot addition in 2012 that allowed the company to double its potato-processing capacity and increase its cold and dry storage capabilities. The business has grown from its initial building of 1,100 square feet in 1973 to its current 121,500 square feet. After this addition, its square footage will total about 215,100 square feet. Mrs. Gerry’s will then have space at its current site to add about 36,000 square feet. Otherwise, it will be out of room. Vogt, the son of founders Gerry and Jerry Vogt, attributes the company’s success to God: “We are a family that strongly believes that the Lord’s hand is on this company.” In previous interviews with the Tribune, he explained how it all started: In 1973, Jerry Vogt was selling salads on his Schweigert meat route to complement the meat products. The lady who made those salads was going to retire, so he asked his wife, Gerry, “Would you make salads for me? And you have until tomorrow to give me answer.” So they went to bed that night. They both prayed about it, and when they woke up in the morning they felt a peace that they should start something — that they should start making salads. They started in the kitchen of their home. Their first employees were Gerry’s parents, Al and Betty Siemer, making potato salad from Betty’s recipe. That first year they sold 70,000 pounds of salads.
1,100
Chad Vogt has worked at Mrs. Gerry’s Kitchen for 28 years, and has been CEO for one year.
DOOR DOOR by
This is the door at 507 W. Front St. to Almco Worldwide.
Size in feet of the building that Mrs. Gerry’s Kitchen started in during 1973.
Many of the Mrs. Gerry’s products are available in area grocery stores. They quickly outgrew the kitchen, bought a 7,000-square-foot building on Seventh Street and a few years later moved to the industrial park. Quality has been the company’s focus since the beginning, from the ingredients to the final products. “Gerry always said if she can’t serve it to her family, then she doesn’t want it served to anybody’s family,” Vogt said. The company also believes in being fair in employment, and Vogt said the employee team is second to none. Creating jobs is one commitment the company has to Albert Lea. Mrs. Gerry’s did consider a location out of state at one time, but their history here was the dominant factor. “It came down to Gerry and Jerry’s belief in this community and what we built in this community. At the end of the day, it was the strong ties we felt in Albert Lea,” Vogt said. From his grandmother’s potato salad recipe, the company has grown to produce 130 products, including a variety of salads, dips, desserts, entrees and mashed potatoes to retail and food service customers in 17 states. It started mashed potatoes in 2005 and the readyto-eat potatoes are its top-seller. For 38 years Mrs. Gerry’s original potato salad was the No. 1 product for the company, but in 2012 that was surpassed by the sales of mashed potatoes. Reflecting on the company’s growth, Vogt said, “It’s phenomenal. What a success story she’s had, and all the glory to God because he has had his hand on this business from the beginning. It’s just been a great success story for this community, and we hope it continues for many years to come.”
170
Employees at Mrs. Gerry’s with the upcoming expansion expected to add 20 jobs over three years.
121,500
Square feet of space at the Mrs. Gerry’s facility in the Northaire Industrial Park before the expansion.
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