Foodpreneur

Foodpreneur:

Case Fischer

About the Foodpreneur: 

My name is Case Fischer.  I have been in the food business since I started working for Mark Wieser when I was in high school selling peaches in his roadside fruit stand, Das Peach Haus. I am married and have 3 children. We live in Fredericksburg, Texas (population approx. 7500) which is a small German community in Central Texas. I was born and raised here.

About the Fischer & Wieser Specialty Foods Biz: 

We manufacture over 100 different flavor profiles of gourmet specialty foods using the highest quality ingredients. Our two core lines are Fischer & Wieser (jams, jellies, preserves and cooking sauces) and Mom’s (premium spaghetti sauces).  Everything we make is done in our own processing facility with a “hot-fill” process.

Founded: 

Our business started in 1969 when Mark Wieser opened a permanent road side fruit stand to sell the peaches that his family grew in their own orchards.

Number of Employees: 

Under 100

Clients: 

Central Market, Whole Foods, A Southern Season, Costco, Amazon.com, HEB, Sam's, Publix 

Marketing Strategies:

Catalog, Email marketing, Regional and National magazine advertising, Trade Shows, Demos, Road shows, Broker Networks

Fun Food Story: 

The challenge here is picking just one, but here goes… On a national holiday a few years ago, my partners Mark Wieser (Chairman of the Board) and Jenny Wieser (Chief Operating Officer) just happened to be in the office. Some customers knocked on the front door, and since Mark has never turned away a customer, he invited them in. They had traveled to Fredericksburg for a vacation, and one of their top goals was to see where their favorite Original Roasted Raspberry Chipotle Sauce was made. We just happened to be producing that day and Mark asked Jenny to take them on a tour of the facility – which we don’t normally do as you will see why. As they were standing in the kitchen, a great bubble of Original Roasted Raspberry Chipotle Sauce burst out of one of the kettles. The lady was covered in the sauce! Jenny was mortified, and was prepared to offer her profuse apologies when the woman exclaimed, “Honey, look! I’m covered in Original Roasted Raspberry Chipotle Sauce – isn’t it great?” It’s good to know that people love our product that much!

Case knew Fischer & Wieser Specialty Foods was a hit when: 

With input from some “foodie” friends I developed The Original Roasted Raspberry Chipotle Sauce. My friends who were giving input immediately placed orders. One wanted it on the menu at his restaurant, and one ordered 50 cases to sell in his gourmet grocery store. The product also won the Outstanding New Bestseller award conferred by the National Association of the Specialty Food Trade. The judges started calling to place orders before I even knew we were a winner. That’s when I knew that we were on to a product that the entire nation could embrace.

 In the News:

WNBC- Channel 7 - San Diego (Television),  WOAI - Channel 4 - San Antonio (Television); San Antonio Express News, Austin American Statesman,  The New York Times, Lexington Herald-Leader, Country Business, Fancy Food, Texas Monthly, Natural Health, Chile Pepper, Real Simple, The Rosengarten Report, Gourmet Magazine, Southern Living, Taste of the South, Internet Blogs such as Frank Murphy.com, www.hemispheresmagazine.com, chowhound.com.

Why is Case in the Food Business? 

Working at Das Peach Haus in the summers was a great foundation. We always had fresh peaches out for people to sample as well as the jams and jellies. Getting to see the reaction of customers as they came in and tasted the fresh fruit that was grown right out back or buying the jellies that were cooked with that same fruit in our own kitchens was a real eye-opener. We were immediately able to create a relationship with people through good food. That process of seeing something grown in the orchard and then taking it and making it into a fantastic product that people will embrace is what got me hooked on the food business.

 Words from the Wise:

The food manufacturing business is not for the faint of heart! There have been many ups and downs in our business through the years, and challenges continue to arise. Mark and I always have one litmus test that we consider before we make a monumental decision for our business. We ask ourselves – what is the worst thing that can happen if we make the wrong decision? We usually determine that the worst thing that could happen would be that we would have to start over, and somehow that helps us put things into perspective and we push forward with the next best thing. Anyone in this business has to be able to handle taking risks.

Final Thoughts from Case: 

I would just like to say that the reason our business has survived is because of the relationships that we have with our customers and our suppliers. We have loyal customers who continue to purchase our products, and we have good partnerships with our suppliers who will go to bat for us during difficult times. These long-standing relationships have made it possible for us to weather the many storms that can come a small company’s way, and we are grateful for them and to the Lord who continues to sustain us.

Contacting Fischer & Wieser Specialty Foods: 

 Fischer & Wieser Specialty Foods, Inc.
411 S. Lincoln
Fredericksburg, TX  78624
Website:  Fischer & Wieser Specialty Foods, Inc.