Omaha Steaks
Encyclopedia
Omaha Steaks is a direct marketer of meat, food seasonings, cookbooks and pet food in the USA. Founded in 1917 as a single butcher shop in Omaha, Nebraska
, Omaha Steaks is a fifth-generation, privately held
family business
, that is now one of America’s largest marketers of beef. Omaha Steaks also owns an affiliate company, World Port Seafood.
. The company also operates retail stores, which carry the same products as offered through mail order. The company uses a variety of marketing techniques, including mail order, telesales, telemarketing, retail sales and Internet-based sales.
Besides its retail stores, food-service operation, catalogs and direct mail, Omaha Steaks also includes business-to-business gifts and incentives, special markets and a website.
Omaha Steaks is the 25th largest employer in the city of Omaha The company hires 2,500 seasonal employees, which more than double the company's permanent work force of about 1,800.
Omaha Steaks is the largest small parcel direct shipper of gourmet foods in the US. Its 400-item product line generates revenue of about $450 million in annual sales – a total of about 4 million packages a year.
Bruce Simon is President and Chief Operating Officer of Omaha Steaks. Todd Simon, responsible for the development and implementation of the company’s marketing programs and employee training initiatives, serves as senior vice president.
took a train west in search of a place to settle. They chose Omaha because it reminded them of the farmland they had left behind in Riga
, Latvia. Experienced butchers, they worked for nearly 20 years for other people.
Omaha Steaks was founded in 1917 as a cattle carcass operation at 17th and Douglas Streets and was operated by family founders J.J. and B.A. Simon.
The Simonses bought an old carpentry store, Table Supply Co., as the site for their meat-cutting business. In an effort to save money, B.A. moved the two letters "Co" to the right, inserted the word "Meat" and called their new company Table Supply Meat Co.
By 1924, the business moved to a larger building at 1211 Howard St., in the heart of the Old Market (Omaha, Nebraska), from which J.J. and B.A. began selling cuts of meat to local supermarkets and national chain grocery stores, as well as to hotel restaurants and institutional customers.
B.A.’s son, Lester Simon, is credited with introducing Omaha Steaks across the US, when he brokered a deal with the Union Pacific Railroad
to begin serving Omaha Steaks in the dining cars of their transcontinental trains in the 1940s.
Lester Simon hand-selected the meat for the U.P. passenger trains that traveled between Omaha and Los Angeles, San Francisco and Seattle. Train passengers who ordered Omaha Steaks in Union Pacific’s dining cars prompted the company to launch its first mail order ventures – magazine ads and direct mail flyers – in 1952.
Lester Simon also began shifting Table Supply's focus from a butcher operation to the marketing of fine cuts of meat.
In 1952, the first mail order operation was launched to serve distant customers. The meat was shipped in wax-lined cartons filled with dry ice
. It was not until the early 1960s that insulated shipping containers made of polystyrene
and vacuum packaging, became available.
In 1961, Nebraska Governor Frank B. Morrison
sent steaks from Table Supply to President John F. Kennedy
and all of the governors in the United States. In that same year, Table Supply was honored to be involved in the Culinary Olympics held in Frankfurt, Germany, at which the United States
team won the Grand Gold Prize with a dish that featured aged prime ribs of beef provided by Table Supply, thereby earning an international reputation for the Omaha company.
In 1966, when the company moved into its southwest Omaha headquarters at 4400 S. 96th St., the Simon family changed the name from Table Supply Meat Co. to Omaha Steaks International. The company plant remains at that site. The corporate offices are now at 10909 John Galt Blvd.
In the 1970s, Omaha Steaks added inbound and outbound call centers and a mail order industry-first toll-free customer service line. An automated order entry system was installed in 1987.
Omaha Steaks opened its first retail store in Omaha in 1976 when buying a product from the company was limited to eating at certain restaurants that offered their products, or ordering meats from its mail-order catalog.
Omaha Steaks underwent another expansion phase in the 1980s and 1990s, consolidating administration and marketing in two new buildings. In 1985 the company ventured beyond Nebraska, opening a retail store in Houston. Omaha Steaks now has more than 85 retail stores in 29 states.
Another area where Omaha Steaks focused on growing was its corporate sales unit, which it began beefing up in the mid-1990s. Omaha Steaks created a separate corporate catalog that was intended to serve the corporate buyers who were already customers. The effort soon began to pay off for Omaha Steaks. In just two years, the company was able to grow its corporate sales by 50 percent.
in 1990, and launched Omahasteaks.com in 1995. The website is the company’s fastest growing business segment. The company became part of the Microsoft Network in 1998. In 2011, Omaha Steaks launched a mobile website for Web-enabled mobile deviceshttp://www.mobilecommercedaily.com/2011/04/05/omaha-steaks-debuts-mobile-site-to-drive-sales-among-wider-audience, Mobile Commerce Daily. Omaha Steaks debuts mobile site to drive sales among wider audience - Mobile Commerce Daily - Web site development, by Dan Butcher, April 5, 2011. and in 2011 launched the Steak Time applications for iPhone
and iPad
featuring and tips. Steak Time for iPad features informational "Steak 101" section complete with how-to videos, tips, and recipes.
NFL Rookie of the Year (2010) Ndamukong Suh
, a defensive tackle with the Detroit Lions
, was named as a spokesman of tailgating for the official sponsor of tailgating, Omaha Steaks, in 2010.
," the "CBS Early Show," "Oprah," "The View," "The Ellen DeGeneres Show
," "The Dr. Phil Show," "The Rachel Ray Show" and "Live with Regis and Kelly
."
Name- drops of the brand are found in films such as "DodgeBall: A True Underdog Story
" and "Up in the Air
."
," an NBC
reality series starring Donald Trump
. Promoted as "Crazy Good," the fourth season of the show featured a cast of celebrities who battled it out for their favorite charities and ultimately compete to become the next Celebrity Apprentice. The episode garnered more than 8.09 million total viewers.
, who had been a consultant for many years. . Another, "Beef For All Seasons," was published the following year.
They also teamed for "Let's Grill" (2000) and "Meat" (2001). In 2000, "Omaha Steaks Good Life Cookbook" was released. The "Great Gathering Guide & Cookbook" was released in 2006. It offers basic cooking instructions for The company's products. In 2008, Time Inc. Home Entertainment published "Omaha Steaks : The Great American Grilling Book."
and Kansas City Steak Company
.
Omaha, Nebraska
Omaha is the largest city in the state of Nebraska, United States, and is the county seat of Douglas County. It is located in the Midwestern United States on the Missouri River, about 20 miles north of the mouth of the Platte River...
, Omaha Steaks is a fifth-generation, privately held
Privately held company
A privately held company or close corporation is a business company owned either by non-governmental organizations or by a relatively small number of shareholders or company members which does not offer or trade its company stock to the general public on the stock market exchanges, but rather the...
family business
Family business
A family business is a business in which one or more members of one or more families have a significant ownership interest and significant commitments toward the business’ overall well-being....
, that is now one of America’s largest marketers of beef. Omaha Steaks also owns an affiliate company, World Port Seafood.
Operations
Omaha Steaks are shipped directly to customers packed in insulated coolers chilled with iceIce
Ice is water frozen into the solid state. Usually ice is the phase known as ice Ih, which is the most abundant of the varying solid phases on the Earth's surface. It can appear transparent or opaque bluish-white color, depending on the presence of impurities or air inclusions...
. The company also operates retail stores, which carry the same products as offered through mail order. The company uses a variety of marketing techniques, including mail order, telesales, telemarketing, retail sales and Internet-based sales.
Besides its retail stores, food-service operation, catalogs and direct mail, Omaha Steaks also includes business-to-business gifts and incentives, special markets and a website.
Omaha Steaks is the 25th largest employer in the city of Omaha The company hires 2,500 seasonal employees, which more than double the company's permanent work force of about 1,800.
Omaha Steaks is the largest small parcel direct shipper of gourmet foods in the US. Its 400-item product line generates revenue of about $450 million in annual sales – a total of about 4 million packages a year.
Bruce Simon is President and Chief Operating Officer of Omaha Steaks. Todd Simon, responsible for the development and implementation of the company’s marketing programs and employee training initiatives, serves as senior vice president.
History
The first two generations of the Simon family, J.J. Simon and his son, B.A., came to America to escape religious persecution. They arrived in 1898 and after passing through Ellis IslandEllis Island
Ellis Island in New York Harbor was the gateway for millions of immigrants to the United States. It was the nation's busiest immigrant inspection station from 1892 until 1954. The island was greatly expanded with landfill between 1892 and 1934. Before that, the much smaller original island was the...
took a train west in search of a place to settle. They chose Omaha because it reminded them of the farmland they had left behind in Riga
Riga
Riga is the capital and largest city of Latvia. With 702,891 inhabitants Riga is the largest city of the Baltic states, one of the largest cities in Northern Europe and home to more than one third of Latvia's population. The city is an important seaport and a major industrial, commercial,...
, Latvia. Experienced butchers, they worked for nearly 20 years for other people.
Omaha Steaks was founded in 1917 as a cattle carcass operation at 17th and Douglas Streets and was operated by family founders J.J. and B.A. Simon.
The Simonses bought an old carpentry store, Table Supply Co., as the site for their meat-cutting business. In an effort to save money, B.A. moved the two letters "Co" to the right, inserted the word "Meat" and called their new company Table Supply Meat Co.
By 1924, the business moved to a larger building at 1211 Howard St., in the heart of the Old Market (Omaha, Nebraska), from which J.J. and B.A. began selling cuts of meat to local supermarkets and national chain grocery stores, as well as to hotel restaurants and institutional customers.
B.A.’s son, Lester Simon, is credited with introducing Omaha Steaks across the US, when he brokered a deal with the Union Pacific Railroad
Union Pacific Railroad
The Union Pacific Railroad , headquartered in Omaha, Nebraska, is the largest railroad network in the United States. James R. Young is president, CEO and Chairman....
to begin serving Omaha Steaks in the dining cars of their transcontinental trains in the 1940s.
Lester Simon hand-selected the meat for the U.P. passenger trains that traveled between Omaha and Los Angeles, San Francisco and Seattle. Train passengers who ordered Omaha Steaks in Union Pacific’s dining cars prompted the company to launch its first mail order ventures – magazine ads and direct mail flyers – in 1952.
Lester Simon also began shifting Table Supply's focus from a butcher operation to the marketing of fine cuts of meat.
In 1952, the first mail order operation was launched to serve distant customers. The meat was shipped in wax-lined cartons filled with dry ice
Dry ice
Dry ice, sometimes referred to as "Cardice" or as "card ice" , is the solid form of carbon dioxide. It is used primarily as a cooling agent. Its advantages include lower temperature than that of water ice and not leaving any residue...
. It was not until the early 1960s that insulated shipping containers made of polystyrene
Polystyrene
Polystyrene ) also known as Thermocole, abbreviated following ISO Standard PS, is an aromatic polymer made from the monomer styrene, a liquid hydrocarbon that is manufactured from petroleum by the chemical industry...
and vacuum packaging, became available.
In 1961, Nebraska Governor Frank B. Morrison
Frank B. Morrison
Frank Brenner Morrison served as the 31st Governor of the U.S. state of Nebraska from 1961 to 1967, representing the Democratic Party. He also ran for United States Senate in 1958, 1966 and 1970 but lost all three elections. He lost to Roman L. Hruska in 1958 and 1970 while in 1966 he lost to Carl...
sent steaks from Table Supply to President John F. Kennedy
John F. Kennedy
John Fitzgerald "Jack" Kennedy , often referred to by his initials JFK, was the 35th President of the United States, serving from 1961 until his assassination in 1963....
and all of the governors in the United States. In that same year, Table Supply was honored to be involved in the Culinary Olympics held in Frankfurt, Germany, at which the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
team won the Grand Gold Prize with a dish that featured aged prime ribs of beef provided by Table Supply, thereby earning an international reputation for the Omaha company.
In 1966, when the company moved into its southwest Omaha headquarters at 4400 S. 96th St., the Simon family changed the name from Table Supply Meat Co. to Omaha Steaks International. The company plant remains at that site. The corporate offices are now at 10909 John Galt Blvd.
In the 1970s, Omaha Steaks added inbound and outbound call centers and a mail order industry-first toll-free customer service line. An automated order entry system was installed in 1987.
Omaha Steaks opened its first retail store in Omaha in 1976 when buying a product from the company was limited to eating at certain restaurants that offered their products, or ordering meats from its mail-order catalog.
Omaha Steaks underwent another expansion phase in the 1980s and 1990s, consolidating administration and marketing in two new buildings. In 1985 the company ventured beyond Nebraska, opening a retail store in Houston. Omaha Steaks now has more than 85 retail stores in 29 states.
Another area where Omaha Steaks focused on growing was its corporate sales unit, which it began beefing up in the mid-1990s. Omaha Steaks created a separate corporate catalog that was intended to serve the corporate buyers who were already customers. The effort soon began to pay off for Omaha Steaks. In just two years, the company was able to grow its corporate sales by 50 percent.
Electronic Marketing
Omaha Steaks entered electronic marketing in 1990. The company started offering steaks for sale on CompuServeCompuServe
CompuServe was the first major commercial online service in the United States. It dominated the field during the 1980s and remained a major player through the mid-1990s, when it was sidelined by the rise of services such as AOL with monthly subscriptions rather than hourly rates...
in 1990, and launched Omahasteaks.com in 1995. The website is the company’s fastest growing business segment. The company became part of the Microsoft Network in 1998. In 2011, Omaha Steaks launched a mobile website for Web-enabled mobile devices
IPhone
The iPhone is a line of Internet and multimedia-enabled smartphones marketed by Apple Inc. The first iPhone was unveiled by Steve Jobs, then CEO of Apple, on January 9, 2007, and released on June 29, 2007...
and iPad
IPad
The iPad is a line of tablet computers designed, developed and marketed by Apple Inc., primarily as a platform for audio-visual media including books, periodicals, movies, music, games, and web content. The iPad was introduced on January 27, 2010 by Apple's then-CEO Steve Jobs. Its size and...
featuring and tips. Steak Time for iPad features informational "Steak 101" section complete with how-to videos, tips, and recipes.
Tailgating Trademark
In 2010, Omaha Steaks was granted a trademark for the phrase "The Official Sponsor of Tailgating."NFL Rookie of the Year (2010) Ndamukong Suh
Ndamukong Suh
Ndamukong Suh is an American football defensive tackle for the Detroit Lions of the National Football League. He was drafted by the Lions 2nd overall in the 2010 NFL Draft. He played college football at Nebraska....
, a defensive tackle with the Detroit Lions
Detroit Lions
The Detroit Lions are a professional American football team based in Detroit, Michigan. They are members of the North Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League , and play their home games at Ford Field in Downtown Detroit.Originally based in Portsmouth, Ohio and...
, was named as a spokesman of tailgating for the official sponsor of tailgating, Omaha Steaks, in 2010.
Popular Culture
Celebrating its 94th birthday in 2011, Omaha Steaks has been recognized on "Good Morning AmericaGood Morning America
Good Morning America is an American morning news and talk show that is broadcast on the ABC television network; it debuted on November 3, 1975. The weekday program airs for two hours; a third hour aired between 2007 and 2008 exclusively on ABC News Now...
," the "CBS Early Show," "Oprah," "The View," "The Ellen DeGeneres Show
The Ellen DeGeneres Show
The Ellen DeGeneres Show, often shortened to Ellen, is an American television talk show hosted by comedian/actress Ellen DeGeneres. Debuting on September 8, 2003, it is produced by Telepictures and airs in syndication, including stations owned by NBC Universal. For its first five seasons, the show...
," "The Dr. Phil Show," "The Rachel Ray Show" and "Live with Regis and Kelly
Live with Regis and Kelly
Live! with Kelly is a syndicated American television morning talk show, hosted by Kelly Ripa. The show has aired since 1983 in New York City and 1988 nationwide. Tony Pigg has been the show's announcer since its inception...
."
Name- drops of the brand are found in films such as "DodgeBall: A True Underdog Story
Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story
DodgeBall: A True Underdog Story, commonly referred to as simply DodgeBall, is a 2004 American sports comedy film produced by 20th Century Fox and Red Hour Productions, written and directed by Rawson Marshall Thurber and starring Vince Vaughn, Ben Stiller, Christine Taylor, and Rip Torn...
" and "Up in the Air
Up in the Air (film)
Up in the Air is a 2009 American comedy-drama film directed by Jason Reitman and co-written by Reitman and Sheldon Turner. It is a film adaptation of the 2001 novel of the same name, written by Walter Kirn. The story is about a corporate downsizer Ryan Bingham and his travels...
."
'Celebrity Apprentice'
In 2011, Omaha Steaks was featured on "Celebrity ApprenticeThe Apprentice (U.S. season 11)
The Celebrity Apprentice 4 is the eleventh installment of the United States version of the reality television series, The Apprentice. On May 16, 2010, NBC announced that the show would be returning to its Celebrity Apprentice format after returning to its regular version for the tenth season of...
," an NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
reality series starring Donald Trump
Donald Trump
Donald John Trump, Sr. is an American business magnate, television personality and author. He is the chairman and president of The Trump Organization and the founder of Trump Entertainment Resorts. Trump's extravagant lifestyle, outspoken manner and role on the NBC reality show The Apprentice have...
. Promoted as "Crazy Good," the fourth season of the show featured a cast of celebrities who battled it out for their favorite charities and ultimately compete to become the next Celebrity Apprentice. The episode garnered more than 8.09 million total viewers.
Cookbooks
In 1997 Fred Simon published "The Steak Lover’s Companion," a cookbook co-authored with John Harrisson and Mark Kiffen. It adapted dishes from recipes developed by James BeardJames Beard
James Andrew Beard was an American chef and food writer. The central figure in the story of the establishment of a gourmet American food identity, Beard was an eccentric personality who brought French cooking to the American middle and upper classes in the 1950s...
, who had been a consultant for many years. . Another, "Beef For All Seasons," was published the following year.
They also teamed for "Let's Grill" (2000) and "Meat" (2001). In 2000, "Omaha Steaks Good Life Cookbook" was released. The "Great Gathering Guide & Cookbook" was released in 2006. It offers basic cooking instructions for The company's products. In 2008, Time Inc. Home Entertainment published "Omaha Steaks : The Great American Grilling Book."
Similar companies
Other companies in the US offering similar product ranges are Cargill Meat SolutionsCargill Meat Solutions
Cargill Meat Solutions is one of the numerous platforms of Cargill Incorporated. The corporate office is located in Wichita, Kansas. The meat products included in operation are pork, turkey, beef, further processing and case ready....
and Kansas City Steak Company
Kansas City Steak Company
Kansas City Steak Company is a family-run business based in Kansas City, Kansas, that manufactures and markets premium beef , poultry, seafood, and other foods for foodservice and home delivery.-History:...
.