Case Studies of Value Added Production and Marketing

Other, more narrowly defined concepts follow. These are taken directly from interviews of
Taylor and Haven:
(1) All agreements should be written and understood before entering into any joint ven
ture of a packing plant.
(2) Management responsibilities must be clearly designated and followed. Otherwise, in a
group setting too few do the work of too many.
(3) The packing plant should be the last thing built. Find and develop your market and
hire someone else to do the processing to start with. If your market is viable,
you’ll eventually reach the point as they did where you grow into a plant.
(4) Expansion into stores was absolutely critical. It allowed them direct access to their customers
and also allowed Goridto ’ s to capture the greatest share of the market value
through Carnicerias, direct sales and other value added sales.
(5) Putting Carnicerias in the stores was also a great success. It draws in customers and
improves product flow during the week when workers come in on break to buy lunch.
Most purchases prior to this were made on weekend sales.
(6) Haven emphasizes the old meat saying “sell it or smell it”. That is why they have
always sold the product before it is slaughtered. If sales are slow, Taylor will himself go
out and make sales. Other people such as their truck-drivers are also part of their sales
strategy. The holding farm also helps with this strategy by allowing them a place to
“store pigs”.
(7) There is a need to have plant dedicated management. It is the concept of creating
and maintaining profit centers.
(8) Taylor comments that attitude is everything. You must have the attitude that you will
succeed. He views himself as fortunate not having any preconceived notions about the
meat business. It has allowed him to creatively think about solutions to problems.
“The solution to every problem is sales!”
(9) Having the right people is critical. Both Taylor and Haven attribute much of their success
to people such as Carlos who manages their Los Angeles sales. They also operate
on commission structure for sales and anyone can make sales.
Future Plans
Where does Goridto ’ s see their future? Consistent with history, they are looking at their customer
base to expand first. They are considering entering other regional Hispanic markets.
They are considering franchising LaRanchera or similar stores, so that they have direct outlets
and can better capture the final customers value. In addition, they are working on several
processed product development ideas all geared toward the Hispanic market. They were
unwilling to disclose these products for obvious reasons. The goal is to identify the sales first
before investing in a second plant.
Summary
Goridto ’ s ultimately offers a case of capturing opportunities. Two key points are critical: (1)
within a rapidly changing swine industry, they have found a place to compete and remain viable
(2) they carefully incorporate their customers’ preferences and needs in creating and maintaining
their niche in the marketplace, even more importantly, customer demand drove their investment
at every stage.
-21-