1998 Volume 121 No 1–4 - Phi Delta Theta Scroll Archive

take off the ties and dress comfortably^ Smucker says.
"My comfort zone doesn't fit that style."
It's been this way for fifty years for Paul H. Smucker,
Miami '39, the grandson of the founder of this famous
company and father of Richard and Timothy Smucker,
who serve as president and chairman respectively. Since
returning from Miami in 1939, Brother Smucker has
guided Smucker's with a constant focus and commitment
to the traditional values that
made this company successful.
He's still in the office by
8:30 each day and often
comes in on Saturdays to look
over computer printouts of
the weekly sales. This is semiretirement
for Smucker, who
admits to having few hobbies.
"I went fishing once, 35
years ago," he says with a soft
chuckle. "I did catch a trout."
"As you get older, you appreciate
every day you can
come to work," Smucker adds.
Tim and Richard Smucker
say their father continues to
take an active interest in production
and packaging at the
operation, and his years of
experience help keep the company
one step ahead of the
competition.
Smucker's only "break"
from running the jelly giant
was a two-year stint in the
Navy during World War II,
where he served as an officer
on a destroyer. He has a
signed copy of the famous
photograph of the Marines
Iwo Jima hanging behind his desk. Before and after his
Naval service, Smucker has been working on building
this local, family-owned business into the international
corporate player it is today. It was a feat he has accomplished
without abandoning the company's dedication to
quality.
The essence of success
So why is Smucker's so good
There are lots of trade secrets Smucker would rather
not divulge, but the basic concept is simple, he says.
"If you make preserves or jelly in a kettle, the vapors
It was the buffer
that really started
my education, no
doubt about it. I do
owe something to
Phi Delta Theta."
and flavors will boil out. We cook at low temperatures
and add flavor back to the product before we put it in the
jar."
Of course, there's more to making good jam and jelly
than that, but Smucker and his two sons smile sheepishly
if you press them any further.
"My grandfather told me, if you put quality in your
jars, that's what you'll sell," Smucker says. "We don't need
a consultant to tell us that."
When Paul Smucker was a
teen, two cooks on two giant
steam kettles at the plant could
pump out 35 jars a minute if they
were really hustling. Today, the
completely modern plant produces
450 jars a minute.
Last year, the company celebrated
its 100th anniversary.
Smucker's hosted a breakfast at
the local high school and 5,000
people (more than the population
of Orville) showed up, including
TV weatherman Willard Scott.
The company has produced 7.3
billion pounds of jelly and jam
since J.M. Smucker began producing
cider apple butter and
delivered it door to door in a
horse-drawn wagon. Today, tractor-trailer
rigs wind through
Orville taking Smucker's products
around the country, and
Smucker's has subsidiaries
around the globe.
Brother Smucker credits the
435 dedicated Orville-area employees
who have faithfully
worked here for generations.
Smucker's treats them well in return.
A recent issue of Fortune
ranked Smucker's as one of the country's 100 best companies
to work for. The article cited the "benevolent direction
of the founding Smucker family" as a feature of
working here. More than 40 percent have been at
Smucker's more than 10 years.
But, perhaps the true secret to Smucker's success isn't a
cooking formula or marketing strategy but rather a timehonored
way of dealing with everyone associated with
the company This "secret" can be found on a wooden
board at the company's headquarters:
"Be not deceived, God is not mocked: Whatsoever a
man soweth, that shall he also reap. - Galatians"
18 THE SCROLL WINTER 1998 http://www.phidelt-ghq.com