Succession plan puts West Mathison at the helm of Stemilt
Succession plan puts West Mathison at the helm of Stemilt
WENATCHEE, WA -- In a June 23 ceremony surrounded by family, friends, employees and colleagues, Tom Mathison, founder of apple packer-shipper Stemilt Growers Inc., here, announced that he will step down from the company presidency and hand the leadership reigns to his grandson, West Mathison.
West Mathison has served as Stemilt's executive vice president since 2003. He is the son of Jan and Kyle Mathison. Kyle is Tom Mathison's youngest son.
"This day basically formalizes what has been on the calendar for nearly three years," Tom Mathison said, referring to the company's established succession plan transferring the presidency to West Mathison. "This leadership role is going to a very capable young man who will lead Stemilt with strength and vision.
Tom Mathison was named chairman of Stemilt Growers. He will continue to play a role in the company. Stemilt is currently one of Washington's leading marketers and shippers of Washington apples, cherries, pears and stone fruits, but the company began as just a dream between Tom and three other stockholders. They established the company in 1964 with the vision of building a packing facility to handle Stemilt Hill fruit. They successfully constructed the packinghouse on the hill, along with cold storage facilities, to serve the growers there.
That first packinghouse still exists today, but in the late 1980s all Stemilt's original stockholders sold their interest in the company to the Mathison family. The company continued to grow, and now it includes four additional Washington facilities along with a cherry
packinghouse, Chinchiolo Stemilt, in Stockton, CA. One of Stemilt's Washington facilities, located at Chelan Falls, is the nation's largest all-organic tree fruit packinghouse. About 10 percent of the fruit Stemilt ships annually is organic. In addition, Stemilt is the world's largest sweet cherry shipper, sending between 2.5 million and 3 million boxes of Washington cherries, and 1 million boxes of California cherries to the market each year.
At the announcement, Tom Mathison reflected on the history of the company and the many contributions and sacrifices made by the original investors and employees. The event also marked his 79th birthday. West Mathison also spoke at the ceremony, accepting his title and emphasizing the many steps his grandfather took over the years that resulted in tremendous growth for Stemilt.
"There was a time when the fruit that was shipped by Stemilt Growers was strictly product from orchards on Stemilt Hill, he said. "Against the recommendations of many people, my grandfather decided to pack for growers who didn't grow fruit on the hill. He bought 10 acres at Olds Station and built a state-of-the-art facility there, he said, referring to Stemilt's largest packinghouse located in Wenatchee's Olds Station area that now serves hundreds of growers.
"My grandfather was continually looking ahead, saying, 'What should we do next,' always looking for the next opportunity, West Mathison continued. "In 2002, we teamed up with Douglas Fruit in Pasco [WA], and in January of 2003 we bought majority share of Chinchiolo Fruit. Recently, we've expanded our Chilean orchard operations.
"Change is a constant, and the people who succeed are those who change at a faster rate, he added. "Speed to market is one of the strongest competitive forces. But even though change is constant, the mission statement of return to the land and the core values of Stemilt will not change.
West Mathison, 28, has taken part in the Mathison fruit-growing operations since he was a child. He has worked in all facets of fruit production, packing and shipping, from managing harvest to managing warehouses to fruit sales.
He graduated in 2000 from the University of Puget Sound in Tacoma, WA, with a degree in international business. Following his graduation, he worked for Accenture, a global business and technology consulting company, as a change management consultant. He then interned for a national supermarket retail chain. He joined Stemilt as projects manager in 2002, and was promoted to executive vice president in January 2003.
West Mathison has served as Stemilt's executive vice president since 2003. He is the son of Jan and Kyle Mathison. Kyle is Tom Mathison's youngest son.
"This day basically formalizes what has been on the calendar for nearly three years," Tom Mathison said, referring to the company's established succession plan transferring the presidency to West Mathison. "This leadership role is going to a very capable young man who will lead Stemilt with strength and vision.
Tom Mathison was named chairman of Stemilt Growers. He will continue to play a role in the company. Stemilt is currently one of Washington's leading marketers and shippers of Washington apples, cherries, pears and stone fruits, but the company began as just a dream between Tom and three other stockholders. They established the company in 1964 with the vision of building a packing facility to handle Stemilt Hill fruit. They successfully constructed the packinghouse on the hill, along with cold storage facilities, to serve the growers there.
That first packinghouse still exists today, but in the late 1980s all Stemilt's original stockholders sold their interest in the company to the Mathison family. The company continued to grow, and now it includes four additional Washington facilities along with a cherry
packinghouse, Chinchiolo Stemilt, in Stockton, CA. One of Stemilt's Washington facilities, located at Chelan Falls, is the nation's largest all-organic tree fruit packinghouse. About 10 percent of the fruit Stemilt ships annually is organic. In addition, Stemilt is the world's largest sweet cherry shipper, sending between 2.5 million and 3 million boxes of Washington cherries, and 1 million boxes of California cherries to the market each year.
At the announcement, Tom Mathison reflected on the history of the company and the many contributions and sacrifices made by the original investors and employees. The event also marked his 79th birthday. West Mathison also spoke at the ceremony, accepting his title and emphasizing the many steps his grandfather took over the years that resulted in tremendous growth for Stemilt.
"There was a time when the fruit that was shipped by Stemilt Growers was strictly product from orchards on Stemilt Hill, he said. "Against the recommendations of many people, my grandfather decided to pack for growers who didn't grow fruit on the hill. He bought 10 acres at Olds Station and built a state-of-the-art facility there, he said, referring to Stemilt's largest packinghouse located in Wenatchee's Olds Station area that now serves hundreds of growers.
"My grandfather was continually looking ahead, saying, 'What should we do next,' always looking for the next opportunity, West Mathison continued. "In 2002, we teamed up with Douglas Fruit in Pasco [WA], and in January of 2003 we bought majority share of Chinchiolo Fruit. Recently, we've expanded our Chilean orchard operations.
"Change is a constant, and the people who succeed are those who change at a faster rate, he added. "Speed to market is one of the strongest competitive forces. But even though change is constant, the mission statement of return to the land and the core values of Stemilt will not change.
West Mathison, 28, has taken part in the Mathison fruit-growing operations since he was a child. He has worked in all facets of fruit production, packing and shipping, from managing harvest to managing warehouses to fruit sales.
He graduated in 2000 from the University of Puget Sound in Tacoma, WA, with a degree in international business. Following his graduation, he worked for Accenture, a global business and technology consulting company, as a change management consultant. He then interned for a national supermarket retail chain. He joined Stemilt as projects manager in 2002, and was promoted to executive vice president in January 2003.
