Case Study

Stew Leonard’s began as a small, family-owned dairy store in 1969.

Since that time, it has grown to become the World’s Largest Dairy Store with more than 2,000 employees in four locations in Connecticut and New York. The company is known as the “Disneyland of Dairy” for its high-quality, fresh dairy products and farmer’s market-style grocery experience.

Only providing fresh and top-of-the-line products is the number one priority for Stew Leonard’s. That means that all of their products must come in and out of the distribution center as quickly as possible to meet freshness standards. With a constant race against the clock, the company required an efficient and durable materials handling solution with minimal downtime to keep their products moving in the right direction.

Stew Leonard’s chose the Hyster® H50CT and E35XN units to solve their materials handling needs and haven’t looked back. Since using Hyster® trucks in their distribution center, the company has seen minimal downtime and increased productivity due to how easy the trucks are to service. Besides Hyster’s durability and reliability, the company has appreciated a great relationship with their local Hyster® dealer.

“We did our due diligence and looked at the data out there, talked to some of our peers—and in addition to reliability, one of the things that really differentiated Hyster from everyone else was their dedication to customer service,” said Bruce Kennedy, director of loss prevention at Stew Leonard’s. “Stew Leonard’s is a customer service-oriented operation, so we expect that from our vendors as well.”

Using Hyster trucks has increased the speed of their transportation of goods to and from the distribution center, allowing Stew Leonard’s to keep their freshness standards high. The company values Hyster’s commitment to great customer service from their local dealer and appreciates having found a truck that works as hard as their team.