ISAAC’s father Willem and his grandfather Jan were both milkmen in Schouwen-Duiveland. It was a hand to mouth life, though being a milkman was a good thing, because at least you still had those butter, cheese and eggs to eat. Isaac van Westenbrugge saw no future for himself in Duivendijke, Zeeland. At 23, he emigrated to Michigan. There he found and married Neeltje Roest, who by that time was beginning to think that she would remain a spinster forever. She was ten years his senior.
Butter, cheese and eggs was all Isaac figured he knew something about. But instead of himself becoming a milkman in America, he made milkmen his customers. He borrowed three hundred bucks from his brother Peter and hung out his shingle: dairy wholesaler. This took off right away. First for Grand Rapids and suburbs, soon for a 60-mile radius around the city. Isaac van Westenbrugge was the area’s first businessman to buy a delivery van.
A RESOUNDING success story for a Zeeland kid who refused to become a milkman. But for an entrepreneur in America also the moment to reconsider one’s company’s name. Van Westenbrugge could be pronounced alright by most Michiganders, because of the countless locals of Dutch descent. But farther out, outside the state, it was a tongue twister.
Isaac tried Van Cheese. His oldest daughter Trudie married the youngest hire, Bennie Gordon. Isaac added his son-in-law’s name: Gordon-Van Cheese. But his trucks were by then transporting much more than just dairy, so it only added to the confusion. Moreover, Ben Gordon turned out to be a perfect asset for both the family and the business. Isaac and Neel had no boys, but now they did have a son-in-law with a heart for the company, and a last name that everyone could pronounce. It didn’t take him long to make the call.
Gordon Food Service.
IT IS today one of America’s three biggest food distributors, and one of the top privately held companies. It serves more than 100,000 customers, including many restaurants, hospitals, retirement homes and universities in both the US and Canada. Gordon also owns 175 stores and a smart network of distribution centers.
That’s what Isaac van Westenbrugge from Duivendijke brought with him from the Netherlands: a spoon-fed Dutch knowledge of infrastructure, logistics and distribution. It made Holland great, both long ago and still today. The emigrating milkman’s son simply stayed close to home and did what he knew he was good at. Butter, cheese and eggs, and how to distribute them. Today, Gordon’s customers can choose from 50,000 food products.
They’re still family-owned by Trudie’s grandkids.
* Zeeland’s Isaac tried it this way for a while in Grand Rapids: Gordon-Van Cheese, but that name didn’t work well. He had long since been selling much more than just butter, cheese and eggs.
