meetings of
dairymen, ranchers, veterinarians and coop
personnel, to actually having customers
and needing to take that next step and go
directly to the farms."
Divine Intervention
Protocol Technologies' introduction into
the foreign market came in 1996, while
Horner was speaking at a dairy industry
seminar in Japan. A dairyman who also owned one of the largest warehousing and
trucking companies in Japan was attending
Horner's lecture and asked about distributing
Protocol Technologies products in
Japan, particularly a new direct-fed microbial
product. The two struck a deal, and it
marked the beginning of a partnership that
is still strong today. Horner's Japanese partner
handles all of the distribution |
Simplifying to Meet a
Growing Market
Protocol Technologies' current international
presence is evidence of how the
business has evolved. In 1986, Horner had
earned his Ph.D. in dairy nutrition from
Texas A&M University and returned to his
roots in North Texas to work for a local
feed mill. After four years with the mill,
he formed a nutrition consulting firm and
soon began Protocol Products as the product
development arm of that business.
With the help of Randy Harms, Horner's
partner and general manager, and other
talented staff, by 1994 the company grew
into Protocol Technologies, which included
the feed mill and the consulting firm.
However, Horner was unhappy with having
to |
bagged feed too, and
even operates a retail store at the plant site.
The company sells products in more than
20 states and is aggressive in the North
Texas dairy and livestock industries, where
two sales consultants serve customers in
the local market. Protocol Technologies
is also starting to make a name for itself
in the show-animal circles, and can boast
several major-show champions among its
customers.
"The local market is still our bread
and butter," Horner admits.
Recognizing that, his commitment
to customer service extends to his
local business. Throughout the
United States, Protocol Technologies
typically ships directly to
most customers, and a small
segment of the customer base is
served by approved dealers.
"We decided early on that
we wanted to succeed long
term and that establishing
direct relationships with
our customers was key," he
says. "This is one way that
the Japanese market has
helped us. They are very
strict, and we believe
if we can keep them
happy, we can probably
keep anybody in
the States happy."
As a charter member
and diplomate
of the American College of Animal Nutrition, and a certified
Professional Animal Scientist, Horner
stays on top of new trends and developments
in the industry. He is constantly
using his extensive experience as a nutritionist
by formulating custom rations for
area producers, but he also works hard at
product development.
"We are always looking at new products
and constantly trying to stay ahead of the
pack," Horner says.
Although Protocol Technologies offers a
wide range of products and has business
spanning two continents, Horner admits
that his company is still not as diverse as
he would like.
"We try to be diverse, not just a traditional
feed mill," he says. "We haven't been traditional
from the start and are even less so
now."
- Staff
It has been more than 10 years since
Protocol Technologies' animal health and
nutrition products were introduced to the
Japanese dairy industry.
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within
the country, which includes several dealers.
"I don't call it a coincidence; I call it divine
intervention," Horner says. "It's been
a good relationship, and it's been a very
good market."
The products, which include animal feeds,
custom vitamin and mineral pre-mixes,
protein supplements, show supplements,
calf products, all-natural animal health products and many others, are hauled by
truck to Dallas before being transported
by rail to Long Beach, Calif. From there,
the products are shipped to one of four
ports in Japan.
"Fifteen percent of our total sales are from
the Japanese market," says Horner.
As much as Horner likes this figure, he
says that Protocol Technologies has less
than 1 percent market penetration in Japan.
With huge potential in both the dairy
and beef industries, Horner says that his
company needs to concentrate on capturing
this market before expanding to other
foreign markets.
"I've been asked if we would expand into
other countries, like into more of the Pacific Rim," he says. "We have such a good infrastructure
in Japan and still such a small
portion of the market, that there is still so
much to gain by keeping focus there before
moving on. But there will be a day when we
look at some of these other places."
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outsource many phases of the business,
including some of the manufacturing.
He wanted to restructure the company
to bring more tasks in-house, and to more
closely control the product entering the
strict Japanese marketplace. To accomplish
this, he needed his own manufacturing
plant. In 2001, construction began on a
new production facility in Bridgeport, with
financing by Lone Star Land Bank.
"One of the primary reasons we built a
new production facility was to satisfy the
Japanese market, and to keep it growing,"
Horner says. "This is how we tailored the
plant. We have much more control over
everything -- ingredients, suppliers, purchasing,
blending, packaging, tech support
-- rather than relying on outside sources.
It really was just a simplification process."
The new manufacturing facility became
operational in October 2001. To finance
the project, Horner worked closely with
Don Poole, branch manager in Lone Star
Land Bank's Denton office, who he knew
from college.
"A good banker is important to any business,
especially a growing business,"
Horner says. "We couldn't have done this
without Lone Star Land Bank, and Don is
great to work with."
Strong Local Business
In addition to the growing Japanese market,
Protocol Technologies' domestic business is expanding. Although the company
began as primarily a bulk feed manufacturer,
it now markets
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