Customers and Jerseys ‘Rule’ in this Business Model
Article republished courtesy Farmshine
“We met through showing and cow sales,” said Delton Good, who used to work for Bob Landis, a name that’s synonymous with top quality cattle and marketing.
At the time, neither Delton nor Bridgett were living the life they’d dreamed of: Life on a farm.
When the opportunity suddenly arrived for them to purchase a farm of their own, they decided almost instantly to “go for it.”
And as Delton observed: “We’re running like crazy now so that we don’t have to later.”
The young couple purchased their 12-acre farm and Jersey herd in February, 2020. Delton happily shared that the transfer was not complicated. The previous owners made it easy.
“The day I found that the former owners would sell, I approached them to discuss a possible purchase. We ended up purchasing everything, including the cows and store,” he said.
The latter required some training. Six months worth, in fact. “We worked together with the former owners to learn about retailing milk and maintaining a good customer base,” Delton shared.
“It was during Covid,” he went on, “and it brought in a massive amount of business. Some people purchased 10 to 20 gallons of raw milk at a time, arriving here at 7 a.m. It was just crazy. We were bottling milk morning and evening.”
The first three weeks were the worst, Delton stated. Memories of those days are still very vivid in his mind. “The cows had a hard time getting used to us and vice-versa,” he explained. “We milked at 3 a.m. and 3 p.m. In between I delivered fresh milk to stores.”
“Relief finally came when we got a routine established,” Bridgett added. Helping them these days in the processing room are two very part-time girls, bottling and packaging products. “Fluid milk is 99% of what we do, but cheese, cheese curds, yogurt and yogurt cheeses are also part of their offerings in a common storage shed that was converted into a tiny store. Business is good.
Meanwhile, a few kids from the very adjacent development have shown an interest in farm life and help to feed calves. They play with the calves, walk them around and want to show them. “The calves were a real draw,” Bridgett said happily. Two girls, ages 10 and 11, told her: “When we get big, we want to buy this farm!”
Two years ago, Delton and Bridgett invested in a robotic milking unit, which really helps to save a lot of time. “But I really miss the twice-daily milkings; I do love milking cows,” Bridgett said convincingly.
“Jerseys are a different breed,” Delton shared with a bit of a frown that turned into a smile. “We had to stick with the Jerseys that came with the farm because of our customer base,” he shared, admitting that he would have preferred Holsteins.
But when customers are happy and business is good, you stay with the program. “Our business has almost doubled since we took over, despite doing no advertising. It’s all by word of mouth,” Delton noted. And, yes, their customer base wants Jersey milk.
The 12 acres that they purchased in 2020 isn’t enough to support their 65-cow Jersey herd plus youngstock, so they rent an additional 55 acres nearby. They also double-crop triticale and corn silage. It’s all custom-done by phone,” Delton grinned.
As the couple contemplates their future, agri-tourism has come part of the conversations. “Tours educate people concluded Bridgett.
