United Dairy Farmers' image as a small neighborhood dairy company is getting harder and harder to sell.

        From its ice-cream plant in Norwood, UDF puts products into more than 200 stores. It also sells Homemade Brand products in 13 states.

Mo Opichka of Madeira monitors cartons of Homemade Brand Premium Natural Vanilla Bean Ice Cream at the United Dairy Farmers plant in Norwood, where all UDF ice cream is made. (Glenn Hartong photo) | ZOOM |

        And a new expansion will put even more UDF products into places such as Cinergy Field and the Cincinnati Zoo, hoping for the “impulse buys” that retailers treasure.

        “There's a whole world out there that we've never even played in,” said Jim May, vice president of the wholesale group at UDF.

        For one of Greater Cincinnati's most treasured names, this is its breakout year to become a regional powerhouse in gasoline and convenience-store sales.

        First started by the family of Cincinnati Reds owner Carl Lindner in 1940, the chain is adding about a dozen stores a year.

        It hopes to tap into two national trends: more sales to customers looking for convenience, and the popularity of single-item ice cream products.

        “Consumers are looking for frozen desserts that are quick to eat and portable,” read a recent issue of the trade publication Convenience Store Decisions. “. . . That would seem to bode well for convenience-store retailers that aggressively merchandise ice cream and other frozen treats.”

The 200-store United Dairy Farmers corporation began at this small ice-cream store in Norwood, opened by the family of Carl Lindner in 1940. This is now the site of UDF corporate headquarters and manufacturing plant. (UDF photo) | ZOOM |

        According to the publication, more than 95 percent of households buy frozen desserts, but only about 7 percent of convenience-store customers buy ice cream, leaving huge room for growth.

        For example, sales of ice-cream sandwiches and ice-cream bars are both up substantially this year. UDF is getting into that game this summer with its new “Homemade Classic” ice-cream bar.

        United Dairy Farmers is owned and operated by the family of Robert Lindner, Carl Lindner's brother. Officials would not reveal any sales or market-share numbers.

        But the wholesale unit has grown by 25 percent in the last several years and should be able to get double-digit growth through the single-serve sales, Mr. May said. In another example, it is marketing a 6-ounce cup of ice cream under the name “Homemade Juniors.”

        That growth took UDF and Homemade into six new states last year — North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Georgia, Virginia and Florida — and could lead to an even broader geographic spread.

        UDF still makes all of its ice cream in Norwood and distributes much of it from an Erlanger facility. There still is capacity to increase production in Norwood, Mr. May said.

        The wholesale expansion is only one part of a two-pronged expansion strategy at UDF. The company is adding about one new or remodeled location per month, and the deal last year to flag more than half of those stores with the Mobil brand has paid off handsomely, said Frank Cogliano, senior vice president of retail stores.

        While it's too soon to see concrete results from the Mobil project, the new signs have produced “tremendous customer acceptance,” he said.

        “We just thought it was a natural product to give people,” Mr. Cogliano said.

        UDF just opened a new store at Queen City and Boudinot on Cincinnati's west side and a similar unit on the riverfront in Bellevue.

        Mr. Cogliano said there still is room for plenty of stores in Greater Cincinnati.

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