If you ask Manda Fine Meats CEO Bobby Yarborough, the secret to success isn’t all that complicated. It boils down to a simple concept.
Focus.
Yarborough is the first to say the company his grandfather and great-uncles—Vincent, John and Bennie Manda—started in 1947 is conservative. That laser-like attention to quality, safety and consistency has enabled the local outfit to garner substantial regional success.
“They would get up every morning and work until late,” Yarborough says. “They lived the business, and it grew out of their goodwill. They believed that if you keep your head down, you’ll find yourself in a good position.”
The philosophy has worked. Today, Baton Rouge-based Manda consistently beats national competitor Hillshire Farms 2-to-1 in category sales rankings in the Gulf South. The company produces 12 million pounds of smoked sausage a year—or 4,445 miles worth—enough to stretch from Baton Rouge to Anchorage, Alaska. The company also produces 9 million pounds in deli meats each year and totals $43.5 million in annual sales.
“We have resisted the temptation to spread our name onto other products,” Yarborough says. “We want to be known for what we’ve always been known for. We want to remember who took us to the dance.”
Manda’s products are defined by their full flavor, a characteristic expected by Louisiana consumers, and one that’s helping the company gain traction among a growing number of 18- to 25-year-olds, Yarborough says. While the company’s deli meats are a substantial revenue generator, Manda is best known by its line of sausages, produced at an expanded facility at the founding site on Sorrel Avenue in north Baton Rouge.
Fresh pork arrives daily from processors, and it’s ground and blended with Manda’s signature seasoning formula. It’s smoked for a day, then sealed and stamped with the company’s steadfast logo, an image that has never been altered—only recently enlarged and enhanced. Then, it’s shipped to retailers. The company’s facilities in Amite and Baker each produce deli products.
Yarborough has served as Manda’s CEO since 1997, but like his grandfather, he leads jointly with his brothers. Tommy Yarborough is the company’s president, and Steve Yarborough is the executive vice president of sales and marketing. The partners confer constantly about everything from daily operations to strategy. Unlike some partners in family businesses, Tommy Yarborough says, the three get along well, agree on philosophy and serve in positions well suited to their natural talents.
“Bobby is the front man, and he has helped us stay ahead of the game,” Tommy Yarborough says.
Bobby Yarborough’s career at Manda began as a teenager, but he was never pushed by his grandfather to get into the business, he says. He worked part time in the warehouse, but he also flipped hamburgers and worked in a local grocery store.
“He wanted us to come work with him, but he never forced it. We have done that with this generation coming up, too. You have to do what you love,” he says.
After college, Yarborough began full time at Manda in the credit department and over the years took on more responsibilities.
He cut his teeth as a company leader during an influential period. In 1989, Manda made a major transition with the establishment of a USDA-approved production facility, which allowed the company to place its products in stores outside the Louisiana. After Chef Paul Prudhomme’s culinary style gained national exposure, Manda began testing and creating lines of Cajun-flavored ham and turkey, a garlicky, New Orleans-style roast beef and classic corned beef that would, like its sausage, stand out against the predictable taste profiles of most national producers.
Under Yarborough’s leadership, Manda saw huge increases in deli sales to large retailers from 2000-05.
Yarborough’s tenure has not been without challenges. The retail landscape changed significantly as more large supermarkets began consolidating. While there were still the same potential numbers of consumers, he says, fewer retailers meant fewer shelves on which to situate products.
Still, sales have been steady.
“It’s a matter of staying on top of what we do,” he says. “We’re maintaining good returns, even in the slowdown. More and more people are eating at home.”
Manda’s products are available in 25 states, but Yarborough says not a week goes by without an e-mail from a consumer outside the company’s reach who asks where to find them or how to order them.
“What’s frustrating is when consumers say, ‘I love your product. Where’s the state nearest to me where it’s available?’ We hear that all the time,” he says.
But the company’s won’t rush to change its current mode. Selling direct to retailers, not consumers, is what it’s set up for. As for expansion, Yarborough wants to double down on quality and service than invest the exorbitant funds required to penetrate new markets.
In addition to his ability to set a clear agenda, Yarborough is known for being an approachable leader and an all-around nice guy.
“Whenever he comes into contact with someone, no matter who it is, he’s sincerely interested in them,” says Yarborough’s son Josh, who is Manda’s director of food safety and quality.
Yarborough’s executive assistant, Pat Minor, agrees. “He is absolutely wonderful to work for and to work with,” she says. “He handles a lot of things at one time—very diplomatically and very well.”
Yarborough also is credited for building Manda’s reputation in corporate philanthropy and volunteer service. He and Minor have served on numerous boards, including Family Road, Boys and Girls Club and YMCA. Manda has supported the Academic Distinction Fund and Baton Rouge General Foundation, and the company has provided free or discounted products to local charities.
Minor adds that Yarborough has helped set a corporate culture in which employees are highly valued. Thirty-seven members out of the company’s 220 have worked at Manda for a decade or more.
“We all feel like we are part of the family,” Minor says. “Our longevity at the company speaks volumes about how good we feel about being here.”
Businessperson of the Year: Bobby Yarborough
Position: CEO, Manda Fine Meats
Age: 55
Accomplishments: Overseen expansion of market presence to 25 states with $43.5 million in annual sales. Credited for building the company’s reputation in corporate philanthropy; the company has provided free or discounted products to local charities. Served as chair of the Greater Baton Rouge Boys and Girls Club and the Academic Distinction Fund. Recipient of Boys & Girls Club of Greater Baton Rouge’s Jeremiah Millbank award for his overwhelming generosity to the club. Also a member of the Capital Area YMCA and Family Road.
Click here to return to the 2009 Business Awards and Hall of Fame.
