A Crowning Achievement

Rick (00:04):

It takes a bit of a blend of art and science to get baking just right, and having extra eyes, ears, and hands can make a big difference along the way. That’s where A. B. Maury North America comes into play. We are the team behind industrial and artists and bakers that help optimize success. We’ll discuss more on this episode of The Oven Light. So let’s get going. Flip the switch. Welcome back everybody. Can you believe it? This is going to be our final episode of 2023. For now, let’s flip the switch. The switch is on. Welcome back to The Oven Light. So today we’ve got a really respected personality in the industrial baking business here in the US. This guest, let’s see if you can guess who she is, was once a realtor, a longtime owner operator in McDonald’s in Effingham, Illinois. Double bonus if you know where Effingham, Illinois is.

(01:05):

A board member of the Federal Reserve in Nashville, the founder of Tennessee Bun back in 1996, which has been rebranded a couple times to the bakery companies in 2015, then onto Crown Bakeries just a couple years ago. She is a graduate of the University of Arkansas. I didn’t know that. Go pig Sui serves on the board of trustees for Belmont University in Nashville. Let’s welcome the CEO of Crown Bakeries. Cordy Harrington, welcome to the show.

Cordia (01:36):

Hey, Rick. Thank you for having me and happy holidays, everybody.

Rick (01:40):

Happy holidays. We’re taping this during the holidays and we’re so excited to have you here. And you know what? Let’s just jump right into it. As you know from our program, we try to discuss the ins and outs of bakery and a little bit of lifestyle. So let’s jump into your background. Some people may or may not know, but maybe from your college days, how in the heck did you go from real estate to McDonald’s to now such a prominent baking business here in the US?

Cordia (02:10):

Oh, Rick, it was all by the grace of God, for sure. I had a real estate business in Russellville, Arkansas. And one of my customers were Gary and Madeline Foyerhunt, who were the McDonald’s owner operators. And sitting in a hot tub out by the lake one day, they said, “You work really hard. You ought to think about buying a McDonald’s.” Well, that led to learning about and purchasing my first McDonald’s in Effingham, building two more. And I was the only woman operator in the region at that point. And as a joke, the men in my co-op advertising group put me on the fun committee. You get it? Pack your backside if you get it.

Rick (02:51):

I got it.

Cordia (02:53):

Yeah. And they thought that was hilarious, but I would go to meetings in Kansas City and different places around and learn about flower prices in Russia and sesame seeds in Guatemala. And I would visit these bakeries and see incredibly talented people in the plants just operating. I was in awe. And I would come back to these co-op meetings to give my bun report and they would just go, “Okay, enough, enough. No more, no more.” Because I just wouldn’t shut up about it. I fell in love with the baking industry. And when I learned that McDonald’s wanted to add diversity to their supply chain and they were going to do it in the form of a bakery, I just knew that was for me. As a single mom, I love the idea of being able to hire and pay well to my associates that would work in the bakery.

(03:51):

And I’m coming from an environment in the restaurant industry, Rick, where I had 215 and 16 year olds running my multimillion dollar business.

Rick (04:02):

Well, let me ask you this. Coming from the real estate world, paying attention to the little details and those buying little points are so important. Do you think that kind of helped as you started getting into this business and seeing the little nuances that make things go, whether you’re making buns or whether you’re making a big griddle

Cordia (04:19):

Sandwich?That’s a great point. I think that when I became an owner-operator, the training I got about detail, cleanliness, the amazing training we got to learn how to make everything in the restaurant pristine and healthy and safe, I believe that was even a better fit. And then of course, understanding the dynamics of how the product had to operate in the restaurants gave me a competitive advantage when becoming a baker.

Rick (04:54):

All right, Corey, we’re going to lighten the mood. I’m going to go a little out of order here. We’re going to throw a couple of hot pan questions. Are you ready? So we’re there just kind of rapid fire. So first one, breakfast, we’re talking biscuit, maybe a bagel or a donut. Do you have a favorite breakfast item?

Cordia (05:11):

Absolutely. English muffin.

Rick (05:14):

All right. Going off the board, I like it. All right. Let’s go deeper. What do you put on top of that thing?

Cordia (05:19):

A lot of butter.

Rick (05:23):

I tell you what, your fan favorite already. I can tell you that. All right. Next question. Favorite item on the McDonald’s menu? I’m sure you still go, right?

Cordia (05:32):

Like five times a week, the regular cheeseburger. I eat it at least five times a week. I love it.

Rick (05:40):

Don’t you have to do the double cheeseburger meal where you get two cheeseburgers, fries, and a drink? I mean, come on.

Cordia (05:46):

No, I’m too cheap for that. I have to get one sandwich.

Rick (05:49):

Okay. All right. All right. I’m trying to use the value menu. You know what I mean? But

Cordia (05:54):

I always

Rick (05:54):

Have. So Cordia, we’re talking holidays here, right? Do you have a favorite memory? I’ve got some things growing up with my grandmother, a Swedish side of the family. We had Swedish rye bread, which was almost a precursor to King’s Hawaiian. It was a very sweet limp of rye bread, not heavy on the rye, a little darker, a little sweeter. That was one of mine. Do you have some memories of that growing up, baking, anything like that?

Cordia (06:25):

My Aunt Lorraine did a lot of baking and I have great memories from her baking, but my grandmother, whom I’m named after, Cordia, she made haystacks and you put butterscotch together with semi-sweet chocolate with cashew nuts, with chow may noodles, and you mic them all up. And my gosh, you just crave them. They’re so delicious.

Rick (06:47):

When’s the last time you had them?

Cordia (06:50):

About 30 minutes ago I had one.

Rick (06:53):

All right. I didn’t mean to implicate you on that, but-

Cordia (06:56):

I confess. It was my breakfast.

Rick (07:00):

That’s awesome. All right. Let’s jump back into it. Let’s talk crown bakeries a little bit. So you guys do a wide range of products. If you hop on your website, you can see everything from biscuits to croissants to bread and rules. How has it really changed? And it’s been almost 30 years since Tennessee Bun came to life. So what have you seen in those three decades?

Cordia (07:22):

I have seen an industry that is warm and welcoming and inclusive, just get better and better and better. I’ve seen equipment and technology become more refined. When I built Tennessee Bun Company in 96, we did a thousand buns a minute, and there was only one other plant in the world doing that at the time. Most were doing about 500 a minute. And today you can easily do 2000 a minute, which says a lot about our suppliers. I’ve learned a lot about how different the equipment needs to be, whether you’re doing an English muffin griddle or a bun line or even the lines that we run for croissants. They’re also very different and so technologically advanced. It’s just amazing. I still am in when I walk through the plants.

Rick (08:21):

That’s awesome. So going to your English muffin craze, you enjoy those. I will tell you, I’m looking ahead, like consumer always looking for the next bits thing, right? We had the cronut and so on and so forth, or the brookie, the brownie cookie option. Our team here a couple years ago was pulling in some things from the UK and Australia, and they did crumpets, which it’s different than an English muffin, but I tell you what, it’s darn good. Have you ever had one of those or are there things on the horizon that you look for and you’re like, “Boy, this could be

Cordia (08:53):

Big.” Yeah, I’ve had a crumpet. They’re a little soggy for me, not my thing, but I have had one and I’m always looking for the next best thing and love to travel, love to try different bread products when I do so.

Rick (09:08):

Do you see anything on the horizon, any kind of trends that you’re looking at and you’re like, “Hey, we need to be cognizant of this, whether it’s for health or whether it’s flavor or crunch or texture.”

Cordia (09:19):

Something that I’ve personally been working on a lot is where can we get a tasty, gluten-free something because there are a number of family members that I have that have to eat gluten-free for their health. And I just taste what’s out on the market today and it tastes like cardboard to me. So I’m on the lookout for a really good gluten-free bread product.

Rick (09:46):

Well, in an earlier episode, we had a friend of our friend of the family and a friend of the A. B. Maui family, a guy named Alan Hunter. He was one of the first MTV VJs back in the 80s, but he and his wife, Elizabeth, they try to follow a gluten-free regimen due to some allergies and that sort of thing. So it is certainly an opportunity, right? If somebody can really nail it right, there’s good days ahead for them.

Cordia (10:12):

Yeah, absolutely. All

Rick (10:14):

Right. So Cordia, let’s flip the table a little bit here. So it sounds like you’re an Arkansas person and you’ve got this really deep connection now in Tennessee. You live in Franklin, which is what, outside of Nashville. So how did that all work? You went to Arkansas and you landed in Tennessee.

Cordia (10:33):

Well, it’s hilarious because so many people that I knew from college live in Tennessee, which is great. So it’s a big small town. You really know a lot of people. And that’s what I loved about Arkansas. You really could get to know so many different people and run into them all the time. It’s a small state and Nashville’s a city, but it’s really just a big small town.

Rick (10:59):

Yeah. I’ve heard that as well. So you and I share one thing. We are both SEC people. I went to the University of Florida. You’re a razorback. Tell me about the time at Arkansas, and I believe you’ve got an honorary degree from them as well, right?

Cordia (11:16):

Yes. When they gave me that honorary doctorate, I was really happy to know that they never looked back at my grade point average upon graduation. Otherwise, why not forgotten that?

Rick (11:26):

Do I have to call you Dr. Cordy like the rest of the show now?

Cordia (11:31):

Absolutely.

Rick (11:32):

Okay, Doc. All right, Doc. I love it. I think it’s great. So hey, I was listening to another recent podcast. We’re good friends with Charlotte actually from the folks at Sauceland since sliced bread. And there was a quote in there that you had that you talked about the baking industry that we all enjoy is a little bit of a hidden gem. Why do you believe that or what do you really mean by that?

Cordia (11:55):

Well, I really do believe that, and it’s because of the people. I can tell you some of my very best friends are some of my biggest competitors, but we don’t talk shop. It’s an unusual industry in that I guess it’s so capital intensive that if somebody’s got a plant that goes down, it doesn’t matter how big a competitor you are, you’re going to reach out, offer product, and help them get over the hump, knowing that just around the corner, you could be in the same boat. So it is a community and yes, it’s competitive, but it’s in such a friendly, competitive way that it’s really special. And I am very grateful to be a part of

Rick (12:46):

It. Well, that’s a good segue to talk about the American Bakers Association. So you chair this really important trade group. Why was it important for you to kind of get involved and kind of help the steering process for ABA?

Cordia (13:00):

Well, it was an honor to be asked to be on the board. And again, what I really like about my job, what I really like about the baking business is the people that are in it. And so to sit among 25 other CEOs a couple of times a year and brainstorm and share best practices and talk about the issues that we all face. Most recently, we had a huge issue when the federal government decided to get involved in the FDA’s business and call sesame feeds and allergen. Well, that’s a problem that affects every baker, every plant in the US. And so we were able to put the best minds in the industry together with what’s going to be our approach to try to solve, not solve this, but deal with this. And so getting involved in the ABA has been a privilege and I’ve really enjoyed working with the likes of Brad Alexander, who was the chief operating officer of Flowers.

(14:03):

And now I deal with Riles McMillan, the CEO of Flowers and Tony at Bimbo and some of the biggest bakeries in the world. And I think being around people that are running successfully 40 or 50 or 60 bakeries, it gives me hope. We’re up to nine plants now, but it just makes me see that the sky’s the limit.

Rick (14:29):

That’s awesome. And shout out to … We’ve got plenty of shared friends at Flowers and BBU as well. So let’s talk about Eric Dell. He was just on the program the last month or two. New onboard, Eric Dell.

Cordia (14:43):

What’d you think about him?

Rick (14:45):

Oh, I was going to ask you, right? I got almost a year under his belt now as president and CEO. We had a great discussion. I don’t know. The guy has to have more frequent flyer miles than anybody I know. I don’t know how he rests because I see more posts of him visiting bakeries and customers. He’s unbelievable. So what do you think? We talked a lot about the snack and convenience side because he came from the vending side of the business. So how do you think that affects ABA here moving forward?

Cordia (15:15):

Well, Eric Dell is an absolute … How do you say it? Home run, superstar, mega professional. He is one of my favorite people I’ve ever had the privilege to work with. We interviewed or we had 67 candidates for this position. Really and truly every one of them were qualified, but Eric Dell’s energy and passion and personal integrity and character just shined above all the others. And we had a meeting yesterday of the executive committee of the ABA where we did a very thorough performance review. And honestly, every category was exceptional. And we gave him our highest compliments and just passion for … We’re just completely behind him. We believe he’s a servant leader that’s really giving the people that work for him a chance to come along and be their best self. And he takes seriously getting to know the members and the suppliers and being the industry as a whole to understand the dynamics so that he can best serve us.

(16:33):

And I’m thrilled to death to have Eric leading as our president and CEO of AVA.

Rick (16:39):

Well, congrats on the nice pick. All right. So we’re going to switch over to some more hot pan questions. You ready? You anxious? Okay. No sweaty hands. You ready to go? All right, here we go. This is going to maybe put a wedge right in it, but let’s throw it at you. Tennessee Titans or Nashville Predators?

Cordia (16:57):

Easy Titans.

Rick (17:00):

Really? So you’re professional football?

Cordia (17:03):

Yes. I love professional football. I love the Jacksonville Jaguars. I love football. It’s fun.

Rick (17:12):

I love it too. All right. Good pick. All right. And I like music. I like sports and all that. We’ve talked a little sports. All right. Maybe share your first or your favorite concert or maybe like what is your favorite album or cassette or CD or 8-track tape, whatever it is of all time.

Cordia (17:34):

Okay. I’m going to answer it several ways. First of all, favorite concert, Andrea Buchhelly in Italy start. Oh my gosh. So special. Favorite CB has to be Amy Grant, Michael W. Smith’s Christmas. I grew up listening to those and now they’re friends. So I love those.

Rick (17:57):

Fantastic. That’s outstanding. Well, you can’t go wrong with any of them, I believe is … Yeah, Bochelli. I mean, you’re just stunning. Okay. So let’s go back to Crown Bakeries. We’re going to talk a little bit more about your reach because as an organization, you guys go beyond just kind of the contiguous 48 states now, right? Don’t you go? You go a little south.

Cordia (18:17):

We had been in the Caribbean for about 20 years and serve all the islands in the Caribbean. And then for a missionary project, I built a bakery in Guatemala that has about 300 employees.

Rick (18:30):

Oh

Cordia (18:30):

My goodness. Yeah.

Rick (18:32):

Well, tell me more about that. That’s an interesting Guatemala. How in the heck did that even start? How did you even get to that point?

Cordia (18:40):

Well, I’ve always wanted to have an international bakery. And I have a fondness for hiring immigrants, obviously legal immigrants, because they had that sparkle in their eye and they really just want a chance to work hard for their family. And knowing that passion, a gentleman approached me that owns the McDonald’s in four countries in South America, and we got to know one another. He said, “I really, really, he owns distribution center for his restaurants. I really want to build a bakery.” I said, “Well, I’d be happy to help you build a bakery. I’ll be glad to be your partner, but it can’t be a profit center for me. It’s got to be a mission.” So it took about a year and a half to build and launch and now we’re in year five, 300 employees and we make everything from bonds to sweet products, different than we serve here in the US.

(19:38):

And it’s been a blessing because many of those folks that have a job there, it’s the best and it would benefit than they ever dreamed to have. So it’s really been a joy. Well,

Rick (19:51):

I was going to ask you about Guatemala. Is there a certain product there that’s more popular that people are not aware of here in the US?

Cordia (19:58):

Yeah. It’s a sweet product that looks like bread, but it’s a little denser than our bread. And I can’t remember what the name of it is. I’m not crazy about it. It doesn’t have enough sugar in it for me, but they love it and buy it in stores and they have it in the little Mac Cafes in the McDonald restaurants as

Rick (20:20):

Well. All right. So staying with this a little bit of an international theme, you’re going to think I’m stalking you, but I didn’t. But I check link in and try to find out about our subjects. So you studied abroad in Japan. So tell me about that experience because it probably gave you a different eye on the world and what people are looking for and striving for.

Cordia (20:41):

Yeah. Have you ever been there?

Rick (20:43):

I’ve been, I’ve flown through Japan, but I worked on the business in China when I was at Anheuser-Busch. So I’ve seen a little bit of that area.

Cordia (20:51):

Okay, great. Well, when I was in college, I was doing volunteer work in the student affairs office and the dean there said, “Usually if you’re going to grab…” I was the first in my family to go to college. Oh, that’s

Rick (21:04):

Awesome. Congrats.

Cordia (21:07):

Thank you. You’re going to need to practice your interviews. So we scooted me down the hall and I practiced an interview and it was for an exchange student in Japan. Well, I got picked and when I got on that plane to go to Japan, I was I think 19 years old and it was my very first airplane ride. So it was needless to say a bit of a shock when I got there, but I fell in love with the family that I live with and have stayed in close touch. I’ve had them come to Franklin several times. And I go back and see them every three or four years. Okay. Family in Takatsuki. And I had the privilege of studying with 32 other international students at Kansai Guideai University. And of course, after that, I wanted to see the rest of the world.

Rick (22:00):

That’s incredible. I mean, what an opportunity for a 19 year old to kind of get immersed in new things. I think that’s great. All right. So talking about immersion, hey, we’re during the holiday season, what are your typical holiday plans like? Do you get a chance to unplug a little bit before 2024 wakes us up quickly and we kind of got our attention shifted to the new year?

Cordia (22:25):

Well, I hope you get to as well, but it’s all about family. Tom and I have five kids and 11 grandkids. We do the every other year thing, Rick. Thanksgiving last year, this year’s Christmas because they go to their … We have to share them with those stinking in- laws. So we have them on the same rotation that they’re all here for Christmas this year.

Rick (22:52):

I understand that. My wife and I, we host Thanksgiving. I think we had 22 and we’ll be hosting … We’ve hosted Christmas Eve and I think we’ll have about 15 or so. So yeah, it’s exciting to kind of be there and to have the base and to have family. It’s really important, as you say. How about this? Let’s finish on something really … Is there any sort of like a bit of advice or maybe something you’ve heard or learned from somebody else that you could share with us? And it doesn’t have to be baking specific, but is there something or maybe a mantra that you live by that you’re like, “Boy, this is my words of

Cordia (23:27):

Wisdom.” Well, my passion is three things and I try to live it in my daily life and also in my business life. It’s create opportunities. Is there a way that I can help create opportunities for those people I meet, whether it’s a student in high school or whether it’s my best friend, create opportunities, make a difference every day with doing something, making a difference. That’s the second thing. Create opportunities, make a difference, and impact lives. And those are the three things that we strive to do at the bakery. It says nothing about making bonds or making money, but I believe that in life, if we create opportunities, make a difference and impact lives, we’ll be successful beyond our wildest dreams.

Rick (24:20):

Boy, those are sage words of wisdom. And Cordia, just kind of keeping on that theme a little bit, we recently had our annual sales meeting and we had a couple folks come in and speak to our team at our sales summit. And one is a friend of mine from my Oat NASCAR days, a guy named Marty Smith from ESPN. He’s covered everything from the Kentucky Derby to the Heisman presentation, but he’s got a new book and I’m just going to plug him because I think there’s an opportunity here. He’s got one called Sideline CEO, Leadership Principles from Championship Coaches. And it’s got a nice forward from Tim Tebow. So if you’re into that, that’s a good one because there’s some messages that align with making a difference. And then we also had, this is a good one too, because if you remember the movie, The Rookie from Disney and it starred Dennis Quad is a mid thirties high school baseball coach who makes a deal with his team.

(25:11):

If they win districts, he’ll go try out for the pros. Well, let alone this guy named Jimmy Morris, who’s a real baseball player, was throwing 98 miles an hour as a 35-year-old guy, tries out for the Tampa Bay Rays and makes an entrance into Major League Baseball for parts of two seasons. So we had him and he’s got a nice new book. It’s called Dream Maker: Surround Yourself with the Best to Be Your Best, but they have some great messages that go along with what you just said, creating opportunities, making a difference and impacting lives. So I tell you what, Cordia, we’ve been so pleased to have you on the program. Any final parting thoughts?

Cordia (25:48):

No, just God bless you. And again, I encourage anybody that’s thinking about the baking industry that jump in. You’ll never look back. It’ll be the best decision to ever make.

Rick (26:00):

Well, I tell you what, Cordy, thanks for joining us. And if you do have any kind of follow-up questions, if you’re listening out there, if you’re going for a run or taking a walk or driving to or from work and you’re listening to the award-winning The Oven Light, send us an email, the ovenlight@abaury.com. If you’ve got a question for Cordy or you have a question for me, we might send you some swag if you send us a note. But for now, boy, that’s it for 2023. The switch is now off. The oven light is off and we look forward to seeing you in 2024. We hope you’ve enjoyed this episode of The Oven Light. Until next time when we discuss more about the wonderful world of baking technology, trends and more, the switch is officially off. Goodbye for now. See you next time.