Wilhelm Huber
From The Waterloo Way Wiki
Wilhelm Huber (born 1933 in former Yugoslavia, now Croatia) is the co-founder and President and CEO of Piller’s, a Canadian company that is one of North America’s largest producers of sausages and delicatessen meats .
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The Path to Success
In 1954, Wilhelm and his family immigrated to Canada from Austria following the devastation of World War II in which his family lost everything. He arrived at 21 years of age with his only belongings being a single suitcase of personal items. After being laid off from a couple of jobs, Wilhelm Huber recognized an opportunity to bring European style sausages and meats to the underserved Canadian market .
In 1957, both Wilhelm and his partner George Piller invested $500 each into opening a small butcher shop in the town of Rummelhardt, now part of Waterloo . Wilhelm used family recipes and traditional European meat processing methods to gain a competitive advantage. It was quickly apparent that locals had a taste for the store’s quality European meats often with customers lining up outside of the store. After just 3 months of business, both men decided to move to a larger location to accommodate demand, purchasing a 32 acre piece of land on Wismer Street in Waterloo which to this day remains the company’s headquarters .
In 1959, George Piller left the partnership and Wilhelm used this opportunity to bring his two brothers Heinrich and Edward into the partnership. A strategic change was also made and Piller’s began concentrating on the wholesale market, distributing to local grocery stores and markets . Using quality traditional European recipes coupled with modern technologies Piller’s has been able to grow into a company that now employs over 600 employees and has 5 plants throughout Ontario .
Piller’s recently celebrated their 50th anniversary in business in June of 2007 .
Leadership and Vision
Wilhelm Huber truly leads by example, as a hard worker who is passionate and motivated about the business. Pillers’ employees have rallied behind his leadership skills to achieve an impressive 50 years of steady revenue growth. He is considered by many in the company to have exceptional technical skills and attention to detail, constantly analyzing sales reports and financial performanceImage:Example.jpg.
Wilhelm is the first to admit that he never envisioned the company being as succesful as it is today when he started out back in 1957. Rather, it was his hope the butcher shop would help get his family back on their feet and provide them with a decent life . However, after witnessing overwhelming success in the early years Wilhelm has constantly set the bar high, often setting sales growth initiatives in excess of 10% then working hard to achieve these goals. In 50 years Pilller’s has never experienced a sales decline, and Wilhelm is confident that this trend will continue for another 50 years .
Wilhelm abides by the theory that people are the key to success and thus he makes sure to get to know his employees one on one, letting them know when they are doing well or when something needs to improve. His involvement with hiring helped to ensure quality employees, up until the company got too large and was left to HR professionals. Wilhelm has also been successful in incorporating his family throughout the business without much conflict. He is extremely proud that over 3 generations of his family are now working within the company and hopes this tradition continues. However, he recognizes that being a family business, a leader and decision maker is needed to set the path for the company and does not hesitate to fulfill that role .
His leadership shines on a daily basis by his constant analysis of the numbers, his personable attitude with the employees his ability to make key strategic decisions and his goal setting for the future.
Innovation and Achievement
When starting the business Wilhelm Huber travelled throughout Europe looking for the highest quality recipes for his meats . This strategy continues today as Piller’s and Wilhelm himself regularly travel to Europe looking for new recipes to include in their product line. Piller’s also makes sure to enter many international food competitions in order to compare their existing products to the highest standard, earning them 44 international awards for product quality and superior taste .
Whilhelm also ensures he re-invests all profit back into the business, only taking out the bare minimum amount of money needed. He made sure to always search for the smartest investments for the company’s growth. Many of these investments were for new technologies because Wilhelm believes that the business strategy for the company should rely highly on cost effectiveness and constant improvements in productivity and quality . [edit] Community Involvement and Contribution
Wilhelm Huber is an executive member of the German-Canadian Business and Professional Association of Kitchener-Waterloo (GCBPA) . He also helped found the Waterloo Centre for German Studies at the University of Waterloo, donating $50,000 and is currently a member of the steering committee . The Huber family recently donated $500,000 to the Grand River Hospital in June of 2007 to help fund the redevelopment of the Hospital’s Intensive Care Unit (ICU) . The Company also has ties to various fundraisers and sponsors youth sports within the community. Wilhelm is a strong believer in giving back to the community saying that “when you live here, work here, and the community shows their support the way they have, it is your duty to give back” .
Growth and Development Strategy
Wilhelm notes that the company’s strategy has had to change several times over it’s lifetime to accommodate the changing external environment. Tightening government regulations on the food industry has forced Piller’s to invest highly in quality control measures. Another more recent example of Piller’s strategic adaptation is contributed to the strengthening Canadian dollar which has created some issues with the American export market. To combat this Piller’s operates their entire U.S. business using American bank accounts and currency, only exchanging this money at the end of the year to balance the accounts .
Sources Cited
"Piller's a Proud Heritage." Piller's Sausages & Delicatessans Ltd. June 2007 <http://www.pillers.com/pillers-heritage.php>.
Huber Sr., Wilhelm. Personal interview. 28 June 2007.
"Willy Huber Jr." Waterloo Public Library - Waterloo 150. Waterloo Public Library. June 2007 <http://www.wpl.ca/site/waterloo_150/waterloo_150_huber_willy.asp>.
"Piller Sausages-a Family's Journey: Building One of North America's Largest Producers of Sausages and Deli Meats." Marketwire. 1 June 2007. June 2007 <http://www.ccnmatthews.com/news/releases/show.jsp?action=showRelease&actionFor=655392&searchText=false&showText=all>.
"Willy Huber Jr." Waterloo Public Library - Waterloo 150. Waterloo Public Library. June 2007 <http://www.wpl.ca/site/waterloo_150/waterloo_150_huber_willy.asp>.
"Piller’s Facilities." Piller's Sausages & Delicatessans Ltd. June 2007 <http://www.pillers.com/pillers-facilities.php>.
"Willy Huber Jr." Waterloo Public Library - Waterloo 150. Waterloo Public Library. June 2007 <http://www.wpl.ca/site/waterloo_150/waterloo_150_huber_willy.asp>.
Huber Sr., Wilhelm. Personal interview. 28 June 2007.
"Piller's Award Winning Recipes." Piller's Sausages & Delicatessans Ltd. June 2007 <http://www.pillers.com/pillers-recipes.php>.
Huber Sr., Wilhelm. Personal interview. 28 June 2007.
"German-Canadian Business and Professional Association of Kitchener-Waterloo." German-Canadian Business and Professional Association of Kitchener-Waterloo. June 2007 <http://www.german-canadian-business.ca/en/index.php>.
"Briefs, News, Media and Events." 18 Nov. 2003. University of Waterloo. June 2007 <http://newsrelease.uwaterloo.ca/news.php?id=3008>.
"The Huber Family, Founders of Piller’s." Grand River Hospital Foundation. 4 June 2007. June 2007 <http://www.grhf.org/donor-details.asp?newsID=336>.
Huber Sr., Wilhelm. Personal interview. 28 June 2007. IBID
