Family is big in Arkansas, and it stands to reason that family businesses are, as well.
Generational businesses are the backbone of business in the Natural State, and while we don’t claim to have a comprehensive list of every family operation out there, we nevertheless can shine a spotlight on some of the state’s prominent family-run stores, companies and firms.
Arkansas Money & Politics is proud to once again recognize generational businesses in Arkansas.
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Those seeking a taste of Arkansas history nearly 100 years in the making need look no further than Petit Jean Meats in Morrilton, a fourth-generation family-owned business that began in 1928.
“For a family business to survive four generations is something we are very proud of,” said Edward Ruff, president.
In 1922, Felix Schlosser immigrated to Little Rock from Germany. He worked at a meat packing plant before moving to Conway and then Morrilton, where he lived near his widowed cousin, Mary Ruff.
There, he partnered with Ellis Bentley to open a small retail meat market and bought out Bentley after two years. The business then caught fire, and Schlosser reopened in 1928 as Morrilton Meat Market and Sausage Factory.
Mary Ruff’s sons, Edward and Lonnie, began working at the business at a young age and watched the business add a wholesale line, become Morrilton Packing Co. and begin using the Petit Jean Meats brand name. In 1943, the business remodeled its plant and closed its retail market.
The business weathered the Great Depression and received a government contract to butcher starving cattle from drought-stricken states to the west. Challenges continued when most working-age men went to war during World War II, and in 1946, a fire destroyed the company’s facilities. The company reopened that year.
The company stopped slaughtering cattle and selling dressed beef to focus on its pork products in 1968. Schlosser died the same year, and the brothers managed the company until Lonnie died in 1979. That year, the business experienced another fire.
Edward’s son, David, became plant manager in 1984. Two years later, he oversaw the construction of a new 48,000-square-foot plant, which allowed the business to add sliced and vacuum-packed lunch meats and other products in consumer-size packages to its offerings.
Edward died in 1990, and David became president. He led the company until his death in 2018. His son, Edward Ruff, the current president, said that although he has two children, he wants them to pursue whatever makes them happy, rather than feeling obligated to continue the family business.
He added that small businesses play a large role in communities.
“In small communities that are comprised mostly of family businesses, most business owners know each other,” he said. “Their children go to school together and are involved in extracurricular activities together. They support each other. When family business is lost, a part of that community is lost with it.”
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