Graeter's facts for kids
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Trade name
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Graeter's |
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| Private | |
| Industry | |
| Founded | 1870 in Cincinnati, Ohio, U.S. |
| Founders | Louis and Regina Graeter |
| Headquarters |
Cincinnati, Ohio
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U.S.
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Number of locations
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59 stores (2024) |
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Area served
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Midwestern United States |
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Key people
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| Products | |
| Owner | Graeter family |
Graeter's is a famous ice cream company from Cincinnati, Ohio. It started way back in 1870 with Louis C. Graeter. Today, Graeter's has many stores across the midwestern United States. They sell delicious ice cream, candy, and baked goods. You can also find their ice cream in thousands of grocery stores all over the country.
The company is well-known for its special "French pot" method. This way of making ice cream creates a much richer and denser treat. Many people, including celebrities like Oprah Winfrey, have said Graeter's ice cream is amazing!
Contents
History of Graeter's Ice Cream
How it all began
Graeter's was founded in 1870 by Louis Charles Graeter and his wife, Anna. Louis, whose family came from Germany, first sold his ice cream at a market in Cincinnati. Back then, ice cream was a new and exciting treat, and people quickly loved it.
The business soon opened its own shop on Sycamore Street. By 1883, they had three workers and two wagons delivering ice cream. Louis Graeter later left the business for a while, but his brother, Fred, helped keep it going. Louis returned around 1900 and married Regina Berger. Together, they started making and selling ice cream from their home in the Walnut Hills neighborhood of Cincinnati. This is when they started using the special "French pot" method.
Growing the family business
In 1919, Louis Charles Graeter passed away. His wife, Regina, took over the business and continued to raise their two sons, Wilmer and Paul. Regina worked hard to make the business bigger. She expanded the main shop and opened new locations in other parts of Cincinnati. By 1929, Graeter's had several shops.
To keep up with all the ice cream they were making, the company opened a special production plant in 1937. Even during tough times like the Great Depression and World War II, Graeter's kept going. After the war, as more people moved to the suburbs, Graeter's opened new stores in those areas too.
New challenges and changes
After World War II, many new ways of making ice cream appeared. Companies could now make ice cream much faster. Graeter's faced competition from other local ice cream shops and big national chains that sold soft serve ice cream.
During this time, Graeter's also started a bakery, offering pies, cakes, and other yummy treats. They stopped selling toys and other small items to focus more on their delicious ice cream, baked goods, and chocolates.
The next generations
Regina Graeter passed away in 1955. Her son, Wilmer, took over the business and brought in his sons, Dick, Lou, and Jon, to help. His younger sister, Kathy, also became very involved.
In the 1970s, Graeter's started selling its ice cream in pints that people could take home. They also made a big deal with Kroger supermarkets in 1987. This allowed Graeter's ice cream to be sold in many more stores, helping it become known across the country. Today, you can find Graeter's ice cream in grocery stores in many states!
By 1989, the company was making a lot of ice cream and earning good money. The fourth generation of the Graeter family, including Bob, Chip, and Rich Graeter, joined the business. They worked to make the company even stronger. They expanded their production plant and started shipping ice cream pints all over the United States using dry ice.
In the early 2000s, the fourth generation fully took charge. They updated the company's look, improved marketing, and greatly increased how much ice cream they could make. This helped them grow their business even more. In 2009, Graeter's built a brand new, larger plant to make even more ice cream. This allowed them to send their ice cream to supermarkets in new cities like Denver, Houston, and Atlanta.
By 2017, Graeter's ice cream was in about 6,000 grocery stores. The company also started working with other local businesses, like Braxton Brewing Co., to create special drinks based on their ice cream flavors. In 2018, Graeter's brought all its retail stores under family management, making sure the family continues to run the whole company.
Graeter's Products
The "French pot process"
Graeter's is famous for its unique "French pot process." This method makes ice cream that is very dense and creamy. Here's how it works:
- First, a special mixture of cream, sugar, and eggs is prepared.
- This mixture is poured into a cylindrical metal bowl, called a "French pot."
- The pot spins inside a larger wooden bowl filled with ice and salt. This makes the mixture freeze against the sides of the pot.
- A blade scrapes the frozen cream off the sides as it spins.
- This process is done in small batches, about 2.5 gallons at a time.
- After 15-20 minutes, any larger ingredients like chocolate chips or cookie dough are mixed in.
- Finally, the ice cream is hand-scooped into pint containers.
Because of this method, Graeter's ice cream has much less air mixed in (only 20-25%) compared to other ice creams (which can have 50% air). This is why a pint of Graeter's ice cream weighs about one pound, almost twice as much as other brands!
Ice cream flavors
When Graeter's first started, they only offered vanilla and chocolate. Over time, they added seasonal flavors like strawberry, lemon, and peach. Now, they have many flavors available all year. Some of their original flavors include black cherry, coffee, and butter pecan.
Graeter's uses high-quality ingredients and has kept its original recipe of cream, sugar, and eggs. They even use natural ingredients like beet juice for color and get dairy from hormone-free cows.
Instead of adding regular chocolate chips, Graeter's has a special way of adding melted chocolate mixed with a little bit of vegetable oil. This creates unique chocolate chunks of different sizes in their ice cream. This idea came from a young Wilmer Graeter, who accidentally poured chocolate into a pot of ice cream!
Their most popular flavor is Black Raspberry Chip. This flavor, created by Dick Graeter, combines black raspberry ice cream with those special chocolate chunks. It makes up about 20% of all their sales! Graeter's also offers seasonal flavors throughout the year, like peppermint or eggnog during the holidays.
Candy and baked goods
From the very beginning, Louis Graeter also sold chocolates. Today, Graeter's still makes delicious chocolates and candies at their plant. They are known for their "opera creams," a type of cream-filled chocolate candy popular in Cincinnati. For holidays like Easter, they offer special treats like chocolate bunnies and "birds nests" made from chocolate and coconut.
In 1957, Graeter's started a bakery. They made pies and cakes, and later added other baked goods like coffee cakes, donuts, cookies, and cupcakes. They also make popular ice cream cakes and ice cream sandwiches.
Other items sold
In the early days, Graeter's stores also sold other items like toys and ceramics. This helped them earn money during the winter when ice cream sales were slower. However, after Regina Graeter passed away, the family decided to focus only on their main products: ice cream, baked goods, and chocolates.
Graeter's Ice Cream Shops
The first Graeter's shop on McMillan Street stayed open until 1972. After Regina Graeter took over in 1919, she began to expand. By 1929, there were six locations.
In the 1980s, Graeter's started allowing other people to open stores as "franchisees." This helped them open new locations in places like Northern Kentucky, Columbus, and Louisville. By 2010, Graeter's had 45 locations. The company later bought back many of these franchised stores, so now almost all of their over 50 retail locations are managed directly by the Graeter family. In 2018, a new Graeter's location even opened inside the famous Cincinnati Union Terminal.
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Graeter's also expanded its presence online. They became very active on social media platforms like Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. They use social media to connect with their fans and share news about new flavors. This helps them reach more people and grow their business even further.
