This month, Schwans shut down its home delivery service.

In 2018, the Schwan family sold an 80% stake in main part of the business (plants, warehouses, grocery store brands, food service operations etc) while also holding on to the delivery service, which the Korean buyers didn’t want anyway. The 80% netted the family almost $2 billion.

The buyers, a $14 billion Korean food company wanted into the US market as it has plenty of capital to reach the global reach it wants.

But the family delivery business couldn’t make it and is now gone. Over time, it played a decreasing role in the company as Schwans had expanded into many more areas of business.

I’m sure many people here remember them or used the service.

Never used them, but frequently saw them when I had to travel Eastern Kentucky for work during the early 2000s.

Teddy is back to spamming the board with threads. Waiting to hear how Putin would have saved ice cream delivery.

(11-30-2024 07:27 AM)chargeradio Wrote:  Never used them, but frequently saw them when I had to travel Eastern Kentucky for work during the early 2000s.

I was a customer off and on. Really enjoyed the convenience.

But tastes change. The generation of people who used them the most got older, kids moved out, they have less people to feed at home, and the business gradually lost profitability.

Seems like a highly mobile society was their enemy. Even people who used them didn’t necessarily start ordering again once they moved to a new area. They usually only came around every 2 weeks.

Red Baron, Tony’s, and Freschetta pizzas are all their brands. And Mrs Smith Pies. Once they started wholesaling to grocery stores with slightly different products, the importance of their home delivery faded, even when they were growing like crazy as a corporation. Annual sales were about $3 billion when they sold to the Koreans.

We used Schwans for a few years. i liked their low-carb ice cream and some of their meals. Once kids became less needy, could focus more on cooking what we wanted. However, no complaints about the service. Sad in a way, as I remember milk and ice cream deliveries as a kid, and remain nostalgic over such things.

Perhaps it's the country in me or my age, but I had never heard of Schwans until the past couple of years. My elderly neighbors had the truck come through and after researching it, it seems Walmart/Kroger delivery would quickly put them out of business. The prices were pretty steep.

(11-30-2024 10:16 PM)bobdizole Wrote:  Perhaps it's the country in me or my age, but I had never heard of Schwans until the past couple of years. My elderly neighbors had the truck come through and after researching it, it seems Walmart/Kroger delivery would quickly put them out of business. The prices were pretty steep.

Historically, it’s been more of a regional company centered around the upper Midwest and Great Lakes states. They did expand over the last few decades, but if you aren’t from the areas I named, it’s likely you wouldn’t have grown up with it.

And that was part of why I think they struggled lately, that the population has shifted away from those areas. Most of their latter day customers were lifelong customers I suspect.

They had very good sales and loyalty point rewards as well that helped a lot. Sometimes people try a product and really love it, and even though it costs more, they still keep buying it.

The only people I ever saw order from Schwans were 80+

(11-30-2024 07:50 AM)rath v2.0 Wrote:  Teddy is back to spamming the board with threads. Waiting to hear how Putin would have saved ice cream delivery.

It’s the pattern he (they) have been using for the whole time this poster showed up. Make a few friendly post that may catch a few eyes and comments. Makes them sound harmless. Then comes the Russian propaganda as if it’s a normal American posting the garbage. The America bashing comes next. With a liberal dose of “we”, “us” and “our”.

Russian troll. Simple as that.

i thought they just rebranded them trux to doordash?.....

(11-30-2024 11:12 PM)Was SoMs Eagle Wrote:  

(11-30-2024 07:50 AM)rath v2.0 Wrote:  Teddy is back to spamming the board with threads. Waiting to hear how Putin would have saved ice cream delivery.

It’s the pattern he (they) have been using for the whole time this poster showed up. Make a few friendly post that may catch a few eyes and comments. Makes them sound harmless. Then comes the Russian propaganda as if it’s a normal American posting the garbage. The America bashing comes next. With a liberal dose of “we”, “us” and “our”.

Russian troll. Simple as that.

some of us have the ability to sift thru his bs ... as opposed to the never ending muh russia bad and muh ukraine is only the prelude to 'Europe is on deck' ...