Fond memories of the Irwin A&P and a business opportunity influenced an investor's decision to buy Uncle Charley's Sausage in Parks Township, said the investor-turned-chief executive officer.
“My father was a meat cutter at the A&P and then at Shop 'n Save,” said CEO and President Len Caric.
Uncle Charley's is a premium pork sausage company established in 1988 by Charles Armitage of Apollo. Caric and another investor bought the Armstrong County company in 2014.
“We built on the quality established by Armitage,” Caric said.
Known for his knowledge of spices and seasonings, Armitage was meticulous about keeping his sausage recipe the same, believed in fresh ingredients and worked on developing brand recognition. Uncle Charley's eventually climbed to the No. 2 spot in the regional sausage market behind a national brand.
Today, Uncle Charley's is distributed to about 700 markets and other stores. Its product line includes grillers, kielbasa, bratwurst, meatballs, select mixes and breakfast sausages. The company posted $13 million in revenue last year, Caric said.
Tapping into a consumer hunger for refrigerator-to-table foods, the company in November added a ready-to-serve line including hot Italian sausage with peppers, bratwurst with sauerkraut and kielbasa with sauerkraut. The new products are available through retail, grocery, deli and food service outlets.
All parts of the diverse line share one thing in common, Caric said: “It's fresh.”
“The emphasis is on fresh, 100 percent pure pork,” he said.
For example, hogs harvested Tuesday at select farms in Ohio are processed Wednesday at Uncle Charley's and delivered to supermarket shelves that afternoon, Caric said.
The production line works Monday through Friday.
The entire Uncle Charley's operation is at the Parks Bend Industrial Park and employs 49, including the CEO.
It's a team effort.
One accountant drives a delivery truck when needed, and some of the production crew also delivers the expanding product line that has been called a “premium brand and a leading brand in our market,” Caric said.
According to the company, Giant Eagle, Aldi, Golden Dawn, Shop 'n Save, Sprankle's, Walmart and Sam's Club are among the stores selling the Uncle Charley's product line.
Giant Eagle spokesman Richard Roberts said it's a natural for the chain to sell Uncle Charley's.
“As two companies with roots in southwestern Pennsylvania and a shared focus on fresh, high-quality foods, Giant Eagle and Uncle Charley's have partnered to make Uncle Charley's products available to our Pittsburgh area customers for many years,” he said.
“More recently, we introduced a variety of Uncle Charley's products to select stores in northeast Ohio and continue to monitor customer response in that region,” Roberts said.
Uncle Charley's is distributed in western and west central Pennsylvania, eastern Ohio — including the Cleveland metropolitan area — and parts of upstate New York, West Virginia, Maryland, Virginia and Kentucky.
Chuck Biedka is a Tribune-Review staff writer. Reach him at 724-226-4711, cbiedka@tribweb.com or via Twitter @ChuckBiedka.
