A loaf of 'National' bread
Published:Wednesday | October 20, 2010 | 12:00 AM
Deika Morrison, Guest Writer
For many, the Continental Baking Company is affectionately called 'National'.
Although the parent company is National Continental Corporation, and National is one of its six brands, it is not quite clear where the name National came from.
However, through its operating philosophies and strategies, the company makes it clear that it is driven by nation-building and the national interest.
National will tell you that it is committed. This commitment manifests itself in a number of ways.
It is commitment to growth and the long-term that has led to significant capital investment in the face of considerable risks.
In the last 15 years, approximately J$1.5 billion in capital has been invested at the Half-Way Tree plant alone.
As Managing Director Gary 'Butch' Hendrickson explains: the company doesn't ask 'what if'.
Instead, they ask what potential products can be created in light of expectations for the future - 5-10 years down the road. In this current recessionary environment, what is National's response? Another J$70 million will be invested by the end of the year.
It is commitment to customers that has made National emphasise consistent quality, clear and accurate labelling and product innovation.
Before Jamaica became independent, the Hendrickson family gave us sliced bread in 1952, followed by biscuits in the late 1950s and snack foods in the 1960s.
While there is strong local and overseas competition in biscuits, and even more so in snack foods from Trinidad, Brazil, Panama, Columbia, Turkey and soon the Dominican Republic, National dominates in bread. The classic hardough remains a favourite, here and overseas.
Not content to rest on its laurels, National took note of the global trends and has increased bran and grain content from five per cent in 1986 to 78 per cent today for the sliced breads.
The latest addition to the National family is the Healthy Start line. Available in five varieties, these are proprietary formulations that are not only unique, they are richer than the American brands that inspired them - and cheaper too. Jamaicans have embraced this line that took time and great effort to create.
Why? Mr Hendrickson says that it is because they are quality products delivered at a good price. If you have ever considered yourself lucky to get oven-warm bread at the store, rest assured that it is a deliberate strategy on the part of National for just-in-time delivery - just for you.
If you ask Hendrickson what makes National successful, he will quickly tell you without hesitation - the staff.
He describes them as "committed", "flexible" and "loyal". They are so in tune with what bread, bun and biscuits mean to families that after the last hurricane, the staff made deliveries to Bull Bay despite the fact that there was no bridge at Yallahs. How? On their own initiative, they drove all the way around from Kingston through St Mary!
"The difference between manufacturing and sales/distribution for me is 400 jobs. If National only did sales and distribution, employment would be approximately 300," he says.
"Because National is a manufacturer, we hire approximately 700 people, 400 in manufacturing alone."
In the last few years, the National family expanded to a total of 1,000 people. Where are the other 300? In Mandeville, manufacturing round buns, hamburger and hot dog rolls, and distributing those products and products from its Half-Way Tree facilities islandwide.
These are good, steady non-seasonal jobs, Hendrickson notes.
Furthermore, capital investments have brought job opportunities for higher skill levels as the complex machinery requires a minimum of a first degree.
But, in as much as it is possible, National uses technology to enhance skills, rather than replace people.
The human touch is what determines quality. In the recent economic downturn, National has not laid off one person. The extent of their adjustments have been reduced work hours for some.
To understand how committed National is to its staff and job preservation, National freely admits that although it does not dominate in snack foods, the line employs 46 people and provides products for vendors to make livelihoods and right now, that's good enough reason to keep the line going.
By and large, the company is growing not just locally, but internationally through exports to the United Kingdom (UK) and the United States as well.
Easter bun was the very first product exported to the UK back in the early 1990s.
The increased export potential is there, and to help realise that potential, the company operates its own distribution company in the UK so it can deliver the 'National' way. And what way is that? "Service, service, service," Hendrickson insists.
So we may never know where the name National came from, but we do know that the founders, management and staff take very seriously their responsibility to create and deliver quality products to the customers wherever they are.
Manufacturing in Kingston and Mandeville, distributing nationally and internationally, the company's interest and the national interest are aligned.
One last thought on the name - National started out as 'Paramount' in St Elizabeth, the bread basket of Jamaica.
According to the Oxford Dictionary, paramount means "more important than anything else".
Given the company's emphasis on job preservation, job creation, growth, the long-term view and, of course, providing for the customers' needs, some would call that serendipity.
Deika Morrison is managing director of Mdk Advisory & Consulting Limited. She is compiling a catalogue of Jamaican-made products and support services.jamaicacatalogue.com
National Facts
Capex: J$1.5 billion in the last 15 years. Another J$70 million by the end of the year.
Manufacturing facilities: Half-Way Tree, Kingston and Mandeville, Manchester.
Employment: Half-Way Tree - 300 sales/distribution, 400 manufacturing.
Brands: Healthy Start, Holsum, Homade, HTB, National, Yummy
Healthy Start Line: Multi-Grain Bread, Low Fat Honey Wheat Bread, 100% Whole Wheat Plus Omega 3 Bread, Raisin, Oats and Cinnamon Bread, Wheat Bran and Oat Crackers with Omega 3,
Products: Breads, biscuits, snack foods.