I ka manawa i haʻi aku ai ʻo Scott Danner, ka luna hoʻokele nui no Kansas City, ʻo Liberty Fruit Co., i ka mea nona a me Luna Nui ʻo Arnold Caviar e pono ʻo ia e hoʻonui i ka hale ʻoki hou o ka hui ma 3,000 kapuaʻi square, ua pane ʻo Caviar, "E hoʻololi. Inā makemake mākou i 3,000 (puaʻahāhā), e hana mākou i 7,000."
ʻO ka hoʻohui ʻana iā Carol's Cuts, ka mahele hou o Liberty, ua hoʻopau ʻia i ka makahiki 2007, e lawe ana i ka hana holoʻokoʻa i 12,000 kapuaʻi square. Ua hoʻomaka ʻia ka māhele, i kapa ʻia no ka wahine a Arnold Caviar, i ka makahiki 2001 me kahi ʻāpana 500-square-foot, a i loko o ʻekolu mau makahiki ua hoʻonui ʻia ka nui. Ua pani ʻia nā hana ʻoki hou ʻē aʻe ma Kansas City, a ua ʻike ʻo Carol's Cuts i kahi niche mākeke ulu.
"ʻAʻohe mea hana ʻē aʻe ma ia wahi," wahi a Danner.
Hua ʻO Liberty
Ua hana ʻo Liberty i ka ʻoihana ma ke kūlanakauhale ʻo Kansas ma mua o 40 mau makahiki. Hoʻokumu ʻia e ka makua kāne o Arnold Caviar, ʻo ke kolu o ka hanauna o Caviars ke alakaʻi nei i ka ʻoihana, ʻoiai ʻo Arnold - nāna i hoʻokele i ka ʻoihana mai ka makahiki 1985 - ke komo mau nei i nā hoʻoholo ʻoihana, wahi a Danner. ʻO ka hui he mea hoʻouna, packer a me ka mea hana o nā huaʻai a me nā mea kanu hou a ʻokiʻoki hou.
Ma ke ʻano he ʻāpana o Produce Alliance, hāʻawi ʻo Liberty i kahi ʻāina ʻelima ma kahi radius 400-mile o Kansas City: Iowa, Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska a me Oklahoma. Ma kahi o 45 pākēneka o nā huahana i kūʻai ʻia i nā mea kūʻai lawelawe meaʻai, 30 pākēneka i kūʻai nui ʻia a ʻo ke koena 25 pākēneka he huahana kūʻai. ʻO kēlā ʻokoʻa kahi ʻāpana o ka mea i kōkua iā Liberty e ʻike i ka ulu ʻana o 20 pakeneka i kēlā me kēia makahiki no nā makahiki ʻelima i hala.
"Inā lohi kekahi ʻāpana, ʻohi kekahi," wahi a Danner.
Ua uhi ʻia ka hale Liberty ma mua o 120,000 kapuaʻi square, me nā hale hoʻoluʻu hou a me ka ʻō ʻana. He ʻumikūmākahi mau wahi i mālama ʻia i ka wela e kōkua i ka mālama ʻana i ka hou no nā huahana like ʻole, a hiki i nā ʻauwaʻa o ka hui o 50 mau kaʻa a me nā kaʻa kaʻa ke hoʻouna i 24 mau hola i ka lā. Hoʻopili ʻia nā kaʻa e ka ʻenehana Global Positioning Satellite, kahi e hiki ai iā Liberty ke ʻike pololei i kahi o ka huahana a hana i kahi hana ʻoi aku ka maikaʻi o ka hoʻouna ʻana a me nā hoʻouna.
Ma waho aʻe o ka ʻoihana hoʻouna moku a me Carol's Cuts i ʻoki ʻoki hou ʻia, hana ʻo Liberty i nā ʻōmato paʻa hou ma lalo o ka brand Mary's Pride - i kapa ʻia ma hope o ka makuahine o Arnold Caviar. Kūʻai ʻia nā tōmato Mary's Pride ma ke kūʻai aku e like me ka salakeke ʻulaʻula a me nā tōmato roma. Hele kekahi o nā tōmato e hoʻopili hou a ʻo nā mea ʻē aʻe i nā mea hana, no ka mea hiki iā Liberty ke hana maʻalahi ma mua o ka hiki i nā mea hana ke hana iā lākou iho.
"Hoʻopakele mākou i nā ukana he nui a hiki ke hāʻawi i nā huahana hou," wahi a Danner.
Nā ʻoki a Carol
I ka hoʻomaka ʻana o Carol's Cuts, aia ia ma hope o ka hale o Liberty, i mālama ʻia e nā limahana ʻewalu e lawelawe ana i nā mea kūʻai lawelawe meaʻai. I loko o hoʻokahi makahiki, ua ʻoi aku ka nui o ka māhele i kona ākea a ua hoʻoponopono hou ʻia kahi mea kanu kū hoʻokahi, 5,000 kapuaʻi kapuaʻi ma ka ʻāina ʻo Liberty. I nā makahiki ʻehā ma hope mai, ua pālua ʻia ka ʻaoʻao hou o ka ʻoihana, i alakaʻi i ka hoʻohui 7,000-square-foot.
"ʻAʻole mākou i hele, holo mākou," wahi a Danner.
Ua hala ka hana hou ʻoki ʻia mai ka hana ʻana ma lalo o 40,000 paona o ka huahana i hoʻokahi makahiki a ʻoi aku ma mua o 160,000 paona. Me ka nui o nā wahi, he lumi ka hui e hoʻonui hou aʻe, a ʻōlelo ʻo Danner hiki iā ia ke ʻike i ka ulu ʻana o Carol's Cuts ʻelua a ʻekolu mau manawa i kēia manawa.
"E ʻōlelo ʻo Arnold 'ua ʻoi aku mākou, ua ʻoi aku mākou,' akā ʻaʻole ʻoe e hoʻonui a hiki i kou holo ʻana i ʻekolu hoʻololi ma kēlā me kēia laina," wahi a Danner.
Ke holo nei ʻo Carol's Cuts i nā laina he 10 no ka hoʻololi ʻana i hoʻokahi ahiahi e holo ana mai ka hola 3 pm a hiki i ka hola 10 pm Ma ka hola 11 pm, holo ka hui i kāna mau aniani ma o nā mea hana i mea ka hapa nui o ka mea kanu a hiki i ka poʻe hoʻomaʻemaʻe ke hoʻomaʻemaʻe ma hope o nā aniani ma mua o ka lā aʻe. hoʻomaka ka hoʻololi o ka lā.
ʻOi aku ma mua o 230 mau huahana e hele i nā laina hana hou o ka hui, me ka nui o nā mīkini i hoʻohui hou ʻia i ka wā o ka hoʻonui. Hiki ke hana i kēlā me kēia ʻano hana, ma muli o ka makemake o ka mea kūʻai aku. Ua mālama ka mea hana hou i ka manawa nui, me nā kaʻina hana e like me ka ʻili ʻuala i hoʻopau ʻia he 20 mau manawa wikiwiki.
"Ua maopopo iaʻu ʻaʻole hiki iā ʻoe ke loaʻa nā mīkini he nui loa," wahi a Danner.
ʻO ka ʻike a me ka hoʻokele waiwai o Liberty e kōkua i ka mea kanu ʻoki hou e hoʻohua i nā huaʻai a me nā mea kanu ʻoi aku ka maikaʻi. Hoʻomaha ʻia ka huahana maka mai ka hōʻea ʻana ma o ka hana ʻana, a nānā ʻia ka mahana ma ka waiho ʻana a hiki i ka hāʻawi ʻia ʻana i nā mea kūʻai. Loaʻa i ka pūʻolo o ka huahana kahi lā "hoʻoponopono ʻia", no laila ʻike nā mea kūʻai aku he mea hou kā lākou huahana.
ʻO ka hoʻohui ʻana i kahi laina ʻoki hou i manaʻo ʻia e ʻoi aku ka makaʻala i ka palekana meaʻai. Loaʻa iā Carol's Cuts nā kaʻina HACCP a me nā limahana hōʻoia maikaʻi manawa piha e nānā a kākau i nā kaʻina hana - a Danner i ʻōlelo ai he mea pono no ka mea hana i kēia mau lā.
"ʻAʻole ia ʻaʻole mākou i hana i nā mea kūpono - ʻo ia ka palapala," wahi āna.
He 20 mau puke palapala no nā palapala hōʻoia like ʻole a me ka nānā ʻana i kēia manawa, a hiki i nā limahana hōʻoia maikaʻi i hoʻomaʻamaʻa ʻia ke pale i kahi kuhi hewa a i ʻole nā helu i hala i kahi nānā.
"E hoʻolilo iā mākou i ʻoihana ʻoi aku ka maikaʻi," wahi a Danner. "ʻAʻole hiki ke lilo ke kumukūʻai i nā mea āpau."
Ka ulu a me ke kākoʻo
ʻO ka pahuhopu o ka Liberty Fruit Co. - a me kāna mau mahele ʻo Mary's Pride a me Carol's Cuts - he hale kūʻai hoʻokahi no nā mea kūʻai aku. No ke kōkua ʻana i ka hoʻokō ʻana i kēlā pahuhopu, ua lilo ʻo Liberty i lālā o ka Produce Alliance ma 2001. ʻO Produce Alliance kahi hui hoʻokele kūikawā i ka ʻimi ʻana a me ka hāʻawi ʻana i nā huahana no nā mea kūʻai lawelawe meaʻai. ʻAʻole komo ka ʻoihana i nā ʻoki hou, akā ua kōkua ka ʻenehana Produce Alliance i kōkua iā Liberty e nānā a nānā pono i kāna huahana.
"ʻO kā mākou IT ke ala ma mua o ka hoʻokūkū," wahi a Danner.
Akā ʻo ka ulu ʻana i kahi ʻoihana hiki ke komo i ka nui o ke kumukūʻai, no laila makemake ʻo Arnold lāua ʻo Allen Caviar e makaʻala i ke ʻano o ke kālā. A hiki i ka hoʻonui ʻia ʻana o ka Carol's Cuts, ʻaʻohe aie ʻo Liberty, a ʻo nā hōʻaiʻē a lākou i lawe ai no ka hoʻohui ʻana he manawa pōkole a no ka huina haʻahaʻa haʻahaʻa.
Ua kūʻokoʻa mau ka ʻohana Caviar, me ka manaʻo e hoʻolilo wale ka ʻoihana i ke kālā i loaʻa iā ia ma mua o ka hōʻaiʻē kālā, wahi a Danner. ʻO ia noʻonoʻo e kōkua i ka poʻe e hoʻoholo naʻauao, no ka mea, pono e kau ʻia nā mea a pau ma ka pepa a ʻo kēlā me kēia kālā i hoʻolilo ʻia e puka pololei mai ka waihona kālā.
Ke nānā nei ka ʻoihana e ulu hou aʻe, ʻaʻole ʻike ʻo Danner i kēlā loli. Pono e hōʻaiʻē nā mea kūkaʻi nui e like me nā mīkini a i ʻole nā hale, akā e hoʻomau ʻia lākou e hoʻohana liʻiliʻi e mālama iā Liberty me ka ʻole o ka aie.
Kokua mai
No nā makahiki ʻewalu i hala iho nei, ua hoʻonohonoho a kākoʻo ʻo Liberty Fruit Co. i kahi hoʻokūkū kolepa no ka loaʻa kālā no ka Children's Mercy Hospital and Clinic ma Kansas City. He hana koʻikoʻi koʻikoʻi ka ʻohi kālā no Arnold.
I nā makahiki i hala iho nei, ua lele ka poʻe kolepa mai nā kahakai ʻelua e komo a ua laina laina nā mea kākoʻo, me nā inoa nui e like me Dole Fresh Vegetable, Gills Onions a me River Ranch Fresh Foods. ʻO ka hoʻokūkū o ka makahiki i hala ua hoʻonui ʻia ma mua o $100,000 no ka haukapila, e uhaʻi ana i nā moʻolelo mua a me nā manaʻolana o nā mea hoʻonohonoho. Loaʻa ka manaʻolana nui o ka hui no ka hoʻokūkū 2008, e mālama ʻia ana i ka lā 22 Kepakemapa ma ka Tiffany Springs Golf Club ma Kansas City, Mo.