read article - La Caja China

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HowLaCajaChinagotcooking
UPSdeliversa tried-and-trueCaribbeanroasterto retailersand barbecueenthusiasts.
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It was Christmas1985when Roberto
Guerra'sfather first mentionedthe
long,woodenbox he remembered
from
his childhoodin Cuba.The younger
Guerrawas cookinga pig on a makeshift barbecue,but was complaining
aboutthe time and hassleinvolved.His
father told him how the old contraption, mysteriouslycalled la caja china
(theChinesebox),could dramatically
cut roastingtimes.Intrigued,Guerra
askedhis fatherto build one.A few
yearslater,La CajaChina, the company,was born in SouthFlorida.
La Caia China'sinitial market
was the sizableCuban-American
population in the Miami area, but
has sincegrown to include barbecue
and roasting enthusiastsaround the
country.Of the 8,000 roastingboxes
sold last year via the Internet and by
telephone,more than 90 percentwent
to buyersoutsidethe area.The box
has also becomethe toast of many
food writers and celebritychefs.
One 2004 feature about the apparatus in The Neu York Times helped
triple salesand increasetraffic to the
company'swebsitetenfold.
Making the company'smost popular
modelrequirescutting and joining large
piecesof plywood to form the box,
and then scoring,bendingand spot
welding aluminum sheetingto form a
lining.Other metalpartssuchasthe
charcoaltray and grid and the drip tray
are producedin the company'sfactory
in Medley,Fla. The rest- the racks,
handlesand hooksthat line the box inside- are outsourced.SaysGuerra, "It's
very important for me to know when
I'm going to get my suppliesin, because
one day makesa hugedifference."
A key to the company'ssuccess
has
beenits relationshipwith UPS.Since
day one,La CajaChina hasusedUPS
Ground. The company'smost popular
product, which can cook a 70-pound
pig in about four hours, shipsin two
largeboxes,eachweighingmore than
50 pounds.LaCaja China'saccounting
systemis integratedwith UPSWorldShip@
9.0, so the companycan easily
keeptrack of billing and deliverystatus.
Guerrasays:"'Without UPSand our
website,there'sno way we would have
beenableto grow the way we have."
"Publix was very happyI was using
UPSr"Guerrasays.
Guerra expectsannual revenuesto
swellfrom $2 million in2006 to
$5 million in 2009 - which leavesonly
the enigmaticname of the company's
flagshipproduct to ponder.Guerra believesit may be from Chineseworkers
who cameto Cubain the 1850s,while
otherspoint out that in the Caribbean,
the adjective"Chinese"is often used
to describeanythingunusualor clever,
Either way, its appealis no mystery.$
about
integrating
E Findoutmore
WoddShipo
9.0atworldship.ups.com.
Goingwholehog
To help expandsalesto grocerychains
Iike Publix and Winn-Dixie, the company begantrials with UPSFreightsM
LTL last December.Guerrareports
that the trials have beena resounding
success,
with all deliveries
arriving
at the times requiredby the chains.
SPRING
2007 cotrlPeSS9
INTHIS
ISSUE
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