Sara
Lee
Maker of consumer
products from food to household goods.
Headquarters:
3500 Lacey Rd.
Downers Grove, IL 60515
Employees: 33,000
Interim CEO: Marcel Smits
Stock Symbol: SLE
Website:
http://www.saralee.com
Career
Site
Sara Lee Corporation is a global consumer
products company specializing in the food, beverage, and household
and body care businesses.
Sara Lee is known for smoked meats, frozen desserts and hot dogs. Brands include Ball Park, Douwe Egberts, Hillshire Farm, Jimmy Dean, Kiwi, Sanex, Senseo
and its namesake, Sara Lee.
The company's main business groups
are:
* North American Retail
* North American Foodservice
* International Beverage
* International Bakery
* International Household and Body Care
Sara Lee has operations in 58 countries
and markets branded products in nearly 200 nations.
In fiscal 2010, the company reported net sales of $10.8 billion and net income of $527 million.
In November, the company sold its North American Fresh Bakery business to Grupo Bimbo for $959 million.
History
1939 Nathan
Cummings acquires C.D. Kenny Company, a small wholesale distributor
of sugar, coffee and tea in Baltimore, with net sales of $24
million.
1942 Sprague,
Warner & Company is purchased. Corporation moves its headquarters
to Chicago and changes its name to Sprague Warner-Kenny Corporation.
1946 Common
shares of the company are admitted to trading on the New York
Stock Exchange and the stock splits three-for-one.
1954 The
stockholders vote to change the corporation's name to Consolidated
Foods Corporation to emphasize its diversified role in food processing,
packaging and distribution. The name was selected to identify
with more than one segment of the food industry.
1956 Consolidated
Foods Corporation acquires Kitchens of Sara Lee and enters the
retail food business by acquiring 34 Piggly Wiggly supermarkets.
1957 Kitchens
of Sara Lee introduced its first chocolate brownie to enhance
its line of quality cakes.
1979 Consolidated
Foods Corporation acquires Hanes, manufacturer/marketer of women's
hosiery, foundation garments and swimwear, men's and boys' underwear
and cosmetics (brands include L'eggs, Bali, Hanes, L'erin); Superior
Tea and Coffee Company, nationwide distributor of coffee, tea
and related products for the foodservice industry; and Gallo
Salame, Inc., manufacturer of Italian dry sausage products.
1984 Jimmy
Dean Meats, manufacturer of various meat, food and leather products,
and Nicholas Kiwi Limited, Australian-based manufacturer and
marketer of personal, household, shoe and car care products and
home medicines, are acquired.
1985 Consolidated
Foods changes its name to Sara Lee Corporation to reflect the
consumer marketing orientation of the company and the high-quality,
well-known branded products marketed around the world.
2006 Sara Lee spun off its apparel division HanesBrands into a separately traded company.
Benefits
Some of the benefits provided by the company
include:
- Medical/Rx
- Dental
- 401(k)
- Flexible Spending Accounts
- Long-Term Care
- Vision
Updated November 9, 2010
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