If you travel through North Carolina, the landscape changes drastically as you ping from city to city. Beautiful mountains, bustling cities, and tranquil farmlands that stretch towards the coasts. Within those small towns and cities talk spreads about destinations like Homeland Creamery, a dairy farm located in Julian, NC that specializes in milk and ice cream. They are a staple to the triad community and their products can be found in nearby ice cream parlors and other local co-ops.
When COVID-19 spread across the globe, businesses were forced to close. Homeland Creamery felt the effects and at one point they had to start dumping their milk. Like other agricultural businesses, food chain supplies are hit when businesses that sell those products are closed.
Homeland’s story of dumping milk went viral and the community response was amazing. People began waiting in long drive-thru lines to buy milk and ice cream directly from Homeland and kept them in business while their supply chain was shut down.
We recently got to speak to Paige Garland, Homeland’s Plant Manager, about the history of Homeland and how their business is now thriving despite the pandemic.
What’s the story of Homeland Creamery?
Paige: Our dairy began in the 1930s when my great grandfather, Roy Bowman, started selling “barnyard” milk from half a dozen Holstein cows. Fast forward to the 1970s when two of Roy’s grandson’s, Chris and David Bowman, graduated from North Carolina State University, with agriculture degrees and began their career in dairy farming along with their father, Dwight Bowman, and Uncle Russ Bowman.
Chris and David, along with their wives, Jayne and Terry Bowman officially started Homeland Creamery in 2001. They began vat pasteurizing and bottling milk from their 200 cow herd. Soon after they added premium ice cream and later butter. Recently the family decided to sell their milking herd to pursue missed opportunities for growth. Today they partner solely with Wright Farms in Franklinville, NC for the same fresh high-quality milk.
What challenges did COVID-19 bring to your business?
Paige: To help keep our employees safe and do our part to slow the spread of COVID we developed a drive-through only option to help our customers get what they need without having to get out of their vehicles. The summer is hard for us with regards to our fluid milk because people don’t use as much milk in the summer. We still have thousands of gallons each week to try to sell because the cow’s bodies produce whatever they are going to produce, whether we have a place to sell it or not.
It was amazing to see the community support for your business in the last few months. Can you share what happened and what it has been like? How has social media helped your business?
Paige: A local news reporter did a story on us about how we were having to dump thousands of pounds of skim milk because we weren’t able to sell it. An individual with a large following shared our story on social media on a Friday evening and the response was overwhelming. We opened that Saturday morning expecting to have a normal day. By 10 AM my father called me and asked if my husband and I could come help that we had a drive-through line backed all the way down the road.
That’s amazing! Did it continue?
Paige: The line never seemed to shorten, instead, it grew down the three roads coming into our creamery backing up all the way down a major highway nearby. I worked in the drive-through that day taking orders thanking people for their support and letting them know how much it meant to us. I was completely humbled by their reactions.
Some waited in line for hours (several up to 5 hours) yet still so gracious buying things I knew they hadn’t come for and thanking us for being there to help them. I get emotional thinking about it now. It’s a powerful testimony that prayer works and that there are a lot of good people in our state.
Technology played a part in driving customers to you. Over a year ago you moved your website to Zibster. We built a custom site for you. Can you please explain how that experience went for you and why you needed to update your website?
Paige: While I would consider myself basic when it comes to technology, I knew our website was out of date and in need of a serious upgrade, and I knew I would need a professional’s help. I was impressed with what I saw and read on Zibster’s website. I had a friend that used the Zibster and was pleased.
Your website is so unique, I feel like it captures your brand and a fun quality about your business. Is this something that is a part of your company's lifestyle?
Paige: I really enjoyed creating the website with my designer. Although I don’t completely understand coding and the ins and outs of making a website, they were able to take my vision and make it into something I was proud of and can update minor info as I need.
What part do you like most about Zibster?
Paige: Your customer service is second to none. I can be picky when it comes to customer service because it’s so important for our own business. There hasn’t been a single time that I’ve reached out with a need that hasn’t been met.
What recent changes to your business do you think will have a lasting impact? What do you think the future looks like for Homeland Creamery?
Paige: We now have a group of new followers which is amazing. We hope the public continues to see the impact they have on buying local. We still have extra milk to move each week that has its challenges. I would love to see our business outgrow our current farm and be a household name across the entire state.
Homeland Creamery’s passion for crafting delicious locally-made products to serve their community is an inspiration. Using digital tools to create marketing buzz to drive sales will help them through these difficult times and hopefully continue to grow and create new lasting customers. Having their story go viral plus having a beautiful website that shows off their personality and gives customer details is what Homeland needed to boost their business.
If you need assistance with creating a custom site, Zibster offers an all-in-one solution with a support team to help you with your business’s online presence. Learn more about our services and how we’re helping businesses or give us a call at 844.353.3412. We’ll be happy to help.
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