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West Valley City • The Utah Territory was 16 years away from becoming a state when John R. Winder began selling milk chilled in a deep, cold well.
On Monday, the venerable dairy celebrated its 130th anniversary, making Winder Farms one of Utah's oldest businesses.
Its success can be seen in the more than 30 trademarks used during the past 13 decades. Each new logo shows how the family has adapted to changing times and lifestyles.
Winder Farms began with horse-drawn wagons whose drivers pulled up at homes to scoop milk from tall cans into customers' kitchen pans. The company has found relevance in the 21st century by becoming the nation's fastest-growing online grocer, said Mike Winder, the sixth generation of the family helping run the business.
Although milk sales for the company are at an all-time high, dairy revenues have decreased from 90 percent of the business to 45 percent today. The difference comes from Winder Farms expanding its home-delivery service, bringing hundreds of products such as fruits, vegetables, prepared salads, ready-to-eat meals and seasonal foods to customers' doorsteps.
Kent Winder, 59, said the company's become a "farmers market on wheels," and also works to help the environment.
Winder offers returnable glass bottles, saving more than 3 million milk jugs per year from going to landfills. And if Winder Farms' customers reduce just one trip to the supermarket each week through home deliveries, 2 million road miles annually are eliminated, company officials said.
Each week, Winder Farms makes home deliveries to 23,000 Utah homes and to 7,000 in Las Vegas. Most of their products are organic or all natural, and the milk is free of artificial growth hormones.
The company employs more than 250 workers — including 100 hired during the past 12 months.
The Winders attribute their expansion to investments by Dolphin II and Peterson Partners, Utah-based venture capital firms that formed a partnership with the family six years ago. They not only provided cash but also took management positions in the company.
This year, Winder Farms was named to Mountain West Capital Network's "Utah 100" list as one of the fastest-growing businesses in the state. Winder Farms also was named among Inc. magazine's 5,000 fastest-growing companies in the country.
Winder Farms sells many products manufactured and grown in Utah. The company offers eggs from Tooele County, berry jam from Cache Valley, pancake mix made at Lehi Rollermills in Utah County, bread baked in Weber County, milk from cows in Summit and Wasatch Counties, and fresh apples from Santaquin.
With its expansion into the Nevada market, Winder Farms also has become a large distributor of Utah foods.
Dignitaries on hand for Monday's celebration praised the Winder family's service to the community. Mike Winder is West Valley City mayor and Jim Winder is Salt Lake County sheriff. Others through the generations have also served, dating to the company founder, who was on the Salt Lake City Council and was known as father of the Utah State Fair.
In 1931, operations moved from their original location at 2700 S. 300 East to their present site at 4400 W. 4100 South.
Facts about Winder Farms
94.3 million • deliveries made since 1880
1,092,000 • deliveries made by horse-drawn wagons
175,000 • types of dairy and groceries products delivered weekly
30,000 • customers in Utah and Las Vegas
Source: Winder Farms