Foodservice operators and the equipment and supply dealers that support them depend on an innovative range of equipment to satisfy their dining patrons. Their goal with today’s labor and energy cost challenges is improving efficiency, reliability, and profits.
Simultaneously, those creating the vision for the nation’s foodservice manufacturers understand that a crucial piece of the puzzle is to prioritize employees’ satisfaction and professional growth.
Wisconsin based Hatco Corporation has found its recipe for success by responding to both the needs of its customer and employee bases.
The industry leading foodservice equipment manufacturer is headquartered in Milwaukee, WI, with a state-of-the-art manufacturing facility in Sturgeon Bay, WI.
Earlier this year, the company’s reigns were passed to Lorne Deacon. With the recent conclusion of the National Restaurant Association Show in Chicago and the bi-annual NAFEM Show set for first quarter ‘25 in Atlanta, Total Food Service thought it would be an interesting time to garner insight from a key E&S leader.
Hatco’s President and CEO, described the early organization “as a family-based company founded on innovative products and a serious focus on building best-in-class equipment, like dishware sanitization and food warming products, along with being great partners to our customers.”
“Over the decades, we’ve created a fun culture that promotes not taking ourselves too seriously while ensuring all our employee-owners feel empowered to make the best decision for our business and customers,” Deacon continued. “We like to say that Hatco is comprised of ‘People who Serve, Products that Solve.’”
At the core of this tagline is Hatco’s ESOP, spearheaded by Hatco’s former President and CEO David Rolston. Hatco employees take pride – and literal stock – in the provision of top-tier equipment and service to foodservice operators.
The ESOP contract began in 2007, when Hatco employees assumed 100% beneficial ownership of the company.
Understanding the company’s employee-owned structure offers more nuanced insight into its enduring success, beginning with its establishment in 1950. Through its Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP), the leadership team at Hatco Corporation responds to both demands.
The result is an equally customer- and employee-driven enterprise: one that champions innovation in foodservice equipment and customer service, as well as its perspective on employee growth and involvement in Hatco’s long-term initiatives
Rolston’s ESOP evangelism continues to shape Deacon’s vision for Hatco. “My role is to drive Hatco’s vision from a growth perspective, fostering and communicating on the bedrock already created around the ESOP,” he shared. “To that end, our three most recent acquisitions are employee-owners.”
Those acquisitions include ADM, acquired in 2021, and Food Warming Equipment Company, Inc. (FWE) and American Range, both acquired in 2022.
Hatco acquired Ovention, Inc., in 2013. In addition to these divisions, Hatco partners with Minnow, which streamlines food delivery and pickup via contact-free Pickup Pods.
Collectively, these collaborations secure Hatco’s reputation as a leader in foodservice manufacturing, remarkably committed to its employee-owners, domestic manufacturing, and “Knock-Your-Socks-Off” (KYSO) customer service.
These commitments are fueled by a growth mindset, which Deacon applies to Hatco’s acquisition integration and all other key initiatives.
“What ignites the human spirit is when the leaders of our organizations offer us a reason to grow,” Deacon quipped, paraphrasing a Simon Sinek quote. “In my time in foodservice and prior career in banking and finance, I’ve been offered the opportunity to grow many times. I believe that opportunity exists for all our employee-owners, especially today.”
Deacon started in the foodservice industry as a regional manager with Star Holdings, a Middleby Company, and grew from there. Today, he acknowledges his good fortune of “working at companies who invest in developing their people.”
“The constant in all my roles leading up to Hatco was an unwavering focus on people: the customers and the employees,” Deacon reflected.
To honor this people-centered focus and support the growth of an ESOP like Hatco, trust is essential.
“Trust makes everyone’s job easier,” Deacon asserted. “We trust and empower our divisions – FWE, ADM, American Range and Ovention – to operate autonomously and make the best decisions for their customers.”
He continued: “When we take on the risk of acquisition, for example, or dedicate more dollars to developing a new product for a new market, we have more shared trust and move quicker towards the desired result.”
When asked where Hatco is moving, Deacon reported on the company’s crystal ball with enthusiasm and a characteristic focus on employees, KYSO, and quality-engineered equipment.
“We are dedicated to enhancing our core competencies in holding and warming solutions, considering both visual appeal and practical usability,” he shared.
“We also recognize the critical role of labor in kitchen operations, and plan to address this challenge by introducing practical automation solutions to streamline processes and significantly reduce costs.”
These projections are supported by the company’s diverse product mix, coupled with “support consultants, responsive technical support, and accurate information like delivery times and technical features of the products,” Deacon outlined, as well as “some of the most advanced automation technology at our Sturgeon Bay facility.”
Hatco’s growth persists into the realm of sustainability and environmental responsibility, evidenced by its ECOization program.
“ECOization means that we do all we can to manufacture our products and provide our services using the least amount of energy possible and producing the least amount of waste possible,” Deacon summarized.
Under Deacon’s leadership, Hatco has recommitted to investing in the environment, employees, and customer satisfaction.
These indicators of growth encapsulate Deacon’s management style and Hatco’s ethos as a steadfast leader in the industry: one that reframes challenges as opportunities to better support customers and the employees who serve them.
Learn more at Hatco’s website.
