Love’s: Still Flying High
An Island tradition since 1851, Love’s Bakery continues to make and deliver Hawaii’s freshest breads. Watching companies deal with the economic downturn is like watching the reality TV show Survivor. Facing challenges at every turn, one wonders what strategies will be employed to outwit, out-play and outlast destructive forces, and who will be voted out at the shareholder “tribal council.” It’s a game of adaptation. Some businesses are fleet-footed and make it. Others, for various reasons, don’t meet the endurance test: The Big Five, Liberty House, Aloha Airlines, Hawaii Superferry
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Watching companies deal with the economic downturn is like watching the reality TV show Survivor. Facing challenges at every turn, one wonders what strategies will be employed to outwit, out-play and outlast destructive forces, and who will be voted out at the shareholder “tribal council.”
It’s a game of adaptation. Some businesses are fleet-footed and make it. Others, for various reasons, don’t meet the endurance test: The Big Five, Liberty House, Aloha Airlines, Hawaii Superferry - our state has its share of corporate casualties.
So when a local company like Love’s Bakery demonstrates its ability to survive and continue to serve the community for 157 years, it’s noteworthy. It’s a shining light in the cloud of gloom-and-doom headlines.
The company has a rich past and hopeful outlook for the future that should be digested by local consumers who built its brand.
Love’s also is at a turning point in its history that could be crucial for its survival.
After 27 years of foreign ownership, Love’s Bakery returned to local ownership last year. Founded in 1851 by Robert Love, it was a family-owned business for about a century before being sold to Continental Baking Co. (makers of Wonder Bread) in 1968 and then to First Baking Co. of Japan in 1981.
Today’s local executive team is comprised of Mike Walters, president-CEO; Byron Chong, vice president and director of sales and marketing; Alan Yamada, director of administration; and Jean Hagi, director of human resources.
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All four were front-and-center at a recent press event to unveil a “Hawaii Fresh Express” cargo jet. It launches an exclusive alliance with Aloha Air Cargo to fly Love’s bakery products daily from Honolulu to Kauai, Maui and the Big Island.
So why should we care? As consumers, we are spoiled by the fact that fresh bread can always be found on the store shelves. We don’t know how it got there, who stayed up all night to bake it, or what miracle of transport got the stuff there. Since “small keed” time, that bread in the red gingham wrapper has always been there for us.
Now with a greatly expanded product line, there are more varieties of freshly baked bread, buns and cakes on the shelves or served to us at restaurants.
The fact that Love’s has rarely interrupted that daily sustenance to our lives is indicative of the commitment and responsibility it feels toward this community.
Also not to be overlooked is that Love’s Bakery, with its 90,000-square-foot facility at 911 Middle St., is one of Hawaii’s only remaining large manufacturers. When box-producer Weyerhaeuser and snack-maker Frito Lay closed their plants here, hundreds of jobs were lost.
Consolidations and logistical paradigm shifts have changed Hawaii’s commerce landscape. Most of our packaged goods are imported from the Mainland and Asia. Once you put bread, milk and other perishables in that category, you realize how Hawaii’s isolation affects its sustainability.
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But, hey, we’re not here to wallow in self-pity.
Rather, let us mark the milestones of Love’s Bakery, a local mass producer that has staying power. And we want the recipe.
Walters says, “We have enjoyed tremendous local support and brand loyalty in the Islands, demonstrated by the dominant market share of Love’s, Roman Meal and Milton’s brands. Love’s produces more than half a million pounds of baked products each week for distribution across the Islands. Without our products, most bread in local grocery stores would consist of frozen bread.”
Supervised by operations head J.P. Shannon, Love’s is the only large commercial “high speed” bread bakery in the Islands. The plant operates ‘round the clock daily, producing 144 bread varieties, 113 roll varieties and 114 cake varieties. Top three segments for their products are retail trade (grocery), restaurants and the military.
Product lines are Love’s, Roman Meal and Milton’s. Cake lines are Love’s, Hostess, Little Debbies, Svenhard’s Pastries, Weight Watchers, Mrs. Freshleys and Bon Appetit.
While white and wheat breads are basic to the line, marketer Chong notes that consumer buying patterns are changing. Varietals, such as Hawaii Hearth and Roman Meal, are selling well.
“It’s surprising, especially in this economy, that people do spend money to get a quality loaf of bread,” he says. “This is where we’ve seen our biggest unit growth.”
Walters adds, “Many factors influence product mix, but one component is definitely the economy. Consumers only have so much disposable income to buy staples such as bread and milk. They look for alternatives or change the mix from a higher-price to lower-price product.”
Customer count at Love’s nine thrift stores is up significantly. Cumulative sales to date are up 55 percent, according to Walters.
Gross annual sales for the company are $50.4 million, according to Hawaii Business‘Top 250 ranking in 2007.
Shelf life is a driving force in the battle of breads. Pledged to always deliver
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