marCH/aprIL 2011 profile 1

S T R A T E G I E S F O R I N D U S T R Y L E A D E R S M A R C H / A P R I L 2 0 1 1 2:7

Gather ’Round the TableC.W. Brown Foods continues a family legacy, dishing up homestyle Italian fare and leading the meat-products market. P. 72

Return of the American BakeryTRIBECA OVEN p. 50

Skating on SuccessRIEDELL S� TES p. 54

Digital Tourism: How to create an e� ective company website p. 56Pro� le®

PRO7_Cover.indd 1 11/11/10 3:12 PM

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CONTENTS features

check your e-tailLooking for a deal? Overstock.com's Patrick Byrne addresses the phenomenon of Internet retail and describes how he turned an idea into an empire. Also discussed: Overstock.com's other projects—Worldstock, online retail with a free-trade approach, and the Main Street Store, a platform for small businesses.

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56Digital tourismCreating an effective website can be a mat-ter of trial and error. Fortunately, Profile has a few tips that can make the process less about guesswork and more about generat-ing hits. Thad Martin of ONEsite, Inc. and Joseph Carrabis of NextStage Evolution offer tricks and analysis to help you intel-ligently market your website to your key consumers.

72a Family aFFair

Carrying on the Botto family business after their father's passing, the leaders of C.W. Brown Foods continue a

legacy of traditional meat products and quality Italian fare. From a meat-processing facility to a friendly restaurant to

a local store, the New Jersey family does their father proud. Cover Photo: McKay Imaging

Worldstock &The Main Street Store

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THE BOTTO FAMILY: Brothers (from left) Robert Jr., Enrico, Vincent, and Domenic surround their mother, Catherine, holding a photo of their late father and mentor, Robert.

Photo: McKay Imaging

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When the workday was over, Vincent Botto spent many afternoons sitting with his mentor and father, Robert,

discussing the challenges of running a business.

“I remember him telling me like it was yesterday that, ‘Going into business was not for lazy, weak-minded people” reflects Botto, current president of C.W. Brown Foods. “He always told me that his job was the hardest of anyone’s. My brothers—Robert Jr., Domenic, and Enrico—and I didn’t quite ap-preciate that until his job became our job. If our business was to succeed, we as a family needed to be committed to it.”

Although Vincent’s father passed away in 2007, his legacy continues to live on. “Dad was a visionary business man, and Mom is the heart of the family,” Botto says. “Despite the businesses, we are a fam-ily first.”

Leaving Philadelphia in 1964 to live in a three-room apartment behind their first market in

Swedesboro, New Jersey, Robert and Catherine built the business the Botto brothers own today. Facilities include an ultra-modern meat-processing factory in Mount Royal and a beautiful restaurant, along with the family’s Italian Specialty Market in Swedesboro. “We have our own responsibilities and talents in the business,” Botto explains. “No one stands above the other, and we work together as one unified organization.”

Along with its well-known Italian sausage and meat-balls, C.W. Brown’s product profile has expanded into case-ready, value-added and pre-cooked variet-ies of popular beef, pork, and veal items. “Our prod-ucts are also affordable to the consumer,” Botto says. “A family can buy a pack of our sausage or meatballs along with a pound of pasta, a jar of sauce, and a loaf of bread for under $10. In this economy, that’s what I call affordable.”

The Botto, Roberto, and C.W. Brown brand names are distributed in 21 states throughout the coun-try, in retail and club stores, and in many popular

Gather 'Round the Table

C.W. Brown Foods continues a father's legacy with homestyle Italian fare

by Tricia Despres

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TOur THE FAcILITIEs: C.W. Brown's Swedesboro, NJ, meat-processing facility (top). Inside, the packaging room (middle) consists of four different packing lines for case-ready products, while the manufacturing room (bottom) is where all grinding, seasoning, and stuffing takes place.

A family can buy a pack of our sausage or meat-balls along with a pound of pasta, a jar of sauce, and a loaf of bread for under $10. In this economy, that's what I call affordable.”—Vincent Botto, President

“

COMPANY TIMELINE1887 Cyrus Watson Brown officially opens C.W. Brown Foods1965 Robert Botto Senior purchases company and introduces Botto’s Italian Sausage1981 C.W. Brown begins using Modified Atmosphere Packaging (MAP)1997 Botto’s Italian Line Restaurant, Banquet Hall, and Market open2008 Botto’s launches its online store

casino resorts. “We knew C.W. Brown couldn’t survive as purely a regional company,” Botto explains. “We have always believed in the im-portance of our brand name representing the highest quality and keeping that identity as we diversified into other extensions of products. We didn’t want to be captured in a business model that could not have flexibility within it.”

The company also aspires to remain sustainable with eco-friendly packaging using biodegradable and recyclable materials. In addition, its Swedes-boro property features solar panels on the rooftop. “To reduce costs at C.W. Brown, we addressed various parts of our operation,” Botto says. “Our manufacturing and packaging rooms have ex-panded in area and equipment to increase our per-hour productivity by 30 percent. In shipping, we partnered up with some of our customers [to use]

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Passion just bleeds off my shoulders. I love what I do and where we are going. I'm very happy to play a part in building our businesses for the next generation of Bottos to come.” —Vincent Botto, President

“

WHERE TO FIND C.W. BROWN FOODS' PRODUCTSAvailable in the following states:

AZ, CA, CT, DE, FL, GA, MA, MD, ME, NC, NH, NJ, NM, NV, NY, OH, PA, RI, SC, VA, VT

their transportation departments for backhauling. By also remov-ing excess packaging, we have been able to offer a more aggressive marketing program to our customers.”

Having a restaurant and retail store also enables C.W. Brown to develop new products for testing before presenting them to buy-ers in food service and retail. Because of this feature, C.W. Brown has expanded into the retail supermarket deli in both salad bars and hot-foods sections with the Botto’s Italian Line Express Meals. In 2010, C.W. Brown introduced its own line of smoked Italian sausage, along with its online retail store, which continues to grow rapidly and show potential. The restaurant and market also now feature a line of olive oil, sauces, and pastas. But even with this expansion, everything stays focused on family.

“In fact, our mother Catherine still comes to work at the store early everyday and stays late in the evening, dining and mingling with

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family and friends in the restaurant,” Botto says. “She is just adored by everyone who has met her.”

Botto says the future will bring many new areas to expand into and many new and exciting products to the C.W. Brown line for people to enjoy, and this is what inspires him to go to work each and every day. “I can’t wait to get to work every day,” Botto says. “Passion just bleeds off my shoulders. I love what I do and where we are going. I’m very happy to play a part in building our businesses for the next generation of Bottos to come. We never want our businesses to get too big too fast and lose con-trol. But in following in Dad’s footsteps, building a solid foundation will create a bright future for years to come.” [P]

a message from a.c. legg inc.Congratulations to the Botto family on your contin-ued success. A.C. Legg has enjoyed a long relationship with C.W. Brown Foods. Thank you for allowing us to contribute in a small way throughout the years.

a message from quality casing co.Quality Casing Co. has been serving the meat indus-

try since 1979 and is proud of our relationship with C.W. Brown Foods, who we continue to supply with only the finest line of natural hog casings, as we have since 2005. Quality Casing Co. recognizes our cus-tomers as our most important asset. We seek to form relationships we can build upon for the future, and C.W. Brown Foods is clearly one of those relationships.

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a message from mid-atlantic packaging, inc.Mid-Atlantic Packaging, Inc. has been incorpo-rated since 1961, specializing in technical sales, design, manufacturing, and testing of corrugated shipping containers and point-of-purchase dis-plays. We strive to continuously improve our processes with a focus on cost reduction and envi-

ronmental sustainability without compromising quality. We commit to deliver ing products and services that meet and/or exceed our customers’ expectations and recognize our suppliers, custom-ers, and employees are partners in our success as we “strive for excellence” in all we do.

a message from burris logisticsFor over 30 years, the Botto family has been com-mitted to offering the finest line of high-quality Italian food products. Burris Logistics is honored to call founder Robert Botto and C.W. Brown a valued friend and partner. Bob’s passion for the business and commitment to quality is not lost with his passing. Bob instilled these values in his children who operate the family business with the same passion today. Bob would accept nothing less.

a message from lyons companiesLyons Companies has been providing risk-manage-ment services, commercial insurance, and employ-ee-benefits consulting to businesses throughout the mid-Atlantic region for over 25 years. We work best with organizations like C.W. Brown Foods, where integrity, accountability, and relationships matter.

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