Greetings Harbor Family and welcome to the start of our Centennial Year! For any company to celebrate 4th generational family ownership in of itself is a major accomplishment. Additionally, being a 100-year-old company with sales projected to be well over $1.5B, Harbor rises into a rare category of successful companies. For that we should all be very proud of our company as well as our individual accomplishments and the impact that each has contributed towards that growth, security, and success.
The very attributes that were essential for our founder, Carl V. Erikson, to seed this extraordinary company are the same characteristics that have allowed us to grow, and will guide us for generations to come. We are a company that rewards risk as we push boundaries and stretch what is possible. Harbor is entrepreneurial at its very core as we explore innovations and create new ways of being an industry leader. Our team members excel at being tenacious with a desire to exceed expectations. As a family we support each other and lean on our core values daily, being obsessed with putting people first, always! Collectively these qualities have formed the character of our company, give energy to carry out our purpose, and has provided the resilience that has allowed us to persevere through significant challenges throughout the company’s lifetime.
Harbor Wholesale has significantly expanded its market presence and investment in innovation in 2022 that will springboard our continued success this coming year. In January we purchased Skippers Seafood & Chowder, making the nostalgic brand one of the cornerstones within our Real Fresh Brands portfolio. The acquisition of Northwest Foodservice improved our density and market dominance in southwest Washington, growing our foodservice initiatives within retail locations. Lastly with the acquisition of MTC in Modesto, CA, Harbor Wholesale now has an expanded market presence through most of California and into Nevada.
These strategic growth initiatives from the prior year will give us a springboard to ignite our 100th year and further fulfill our mission of fortifying communities throughout the west coast! In the coming year, we will have many exciting opportunities alongside our new Harbor family members from MTC. Together we will be intentional about learning from each other and incorporating best practices and systems of the combined company throughout the whole organization, as One Harbor. We will leverage our size and scale to best serve all our customers, maximize our vendor relationships, and provide growth opportunities for our team members. In 2023, MTC will be rebranded as Harbor Wholesale and our Real Fresh Brands will grow significantly as we introduce our successful branded programs to our new team and customers in the region.
This year’s Roadmap is not a far diversion from the strategic plans of last year. The larger we get it becomes increasingly important to be masters of the basics and focused on maintaining a solid foundation for which our company can continue to grow upon. There is no end to what we can accomplish when we are all united, sharing the same purpose, empowering each other, and remaining obsessed with success for our customers and one another!
Best to you and thank you for all you do,
Rick Jensen
President, Harbor Wholesale