Nolan and I made sausage last night.  All pork, cajun, brat and regular.  We came across 2 new tips!!! I was so excited!  Nolan, my little smarty, said “OOOO, better call Hill!”  Anyway, when putting the hog casings on the tube Nolan was cranking down the piston and the air was filling the hog casings so I could pull them onto the tube very quickly.  Granted I needed to push the air out but that was better than struggling sliding the casings on a little at a time.  The other thing we found out was when we were finished and he was cranking the piston up I accidently had the end of the tube covered and the sausage was sucked right back out of the tube making for easy clean up and the meat that I usually have to throw away was able to be made into a burger.  I also tried the bread through the grinder to push the remaining meat out and that worked really well.  Besides the clean up and a cut thumb, sausage making was successful! 

Last night we had sausage for dinner and as Nolan was finished with his cajun dog he remarked “Man, that was good!” 

Makes you feel good!

Until next time,

Ty

Can you believe it is 2010? It doesn’t seem that long ago we were making ready for the new millennium AND now a decade is gone. How time does fly. Happy New Year to you all! I must say it has been the best season yet for my group of CSR’s and me. Things went much smoother this year. I have a great group of people helping me. We had the busy, stressful days and we are now on the down side.
It is time to start getting ready for 2010 season! We need new ideas for products. New ideas for our web site and for the blog! Do you have an idea? Is there something you wish we would carry? Is there something you wish we would talk about or explain? Is there a video we could shoot so you could see it in motion? Let us know. We want your input.
Is there anything else on your mind? How did your sausage making go this time around? Did you try the new products trehalose or citric acid? How about your hunt? If you want to share, we want to hear it.
I want to thank all of you for emailing and giving suggestions and praise. We love hearing from you. We are here to help and want your next grind or sausage making to be the best…Let us know how we can help.

LEM Original Packaging

Larry Metz Instructing Proper Technique

If you’ve had any interaction with Larry over the years please share them with us .  Maybe at a Hunting show, store demo or even a phone call.  We’d love to hear what you have to say about the man his  family calls “Butcher” 

LEM was the brainchild of hunting and processing expert, Larry E. Metz (That’s Right… LEM). The idea started in 1996 with the simple idea of helping people convert their game to delicious sausage and jerky, Larry drew on his experience as a meat cutter with one of the largest food service company’s in the United States. A career he loved and stuck with for 30 plus years. During this time, his skill level was developed, honed and perfected. As a result Larry is known as an expert processor by hunters and store customers alike.

Along with his career, Larry was an avid hunter. He had a zest for the outdoors and his knowledge of wild game was extensive.  He has hunted all over the Mid-West, Texas and Mexico harvesting deer, turkey, elk, and wild boar.

As a dedicated outdoorsman Larry processed his own game. And, after years of processing deer for himself and many a customer, Larry developed a boneless method.  It broke new ground yielding a variety of table meats that were tender, had excellent taste and were custom cut to customers’ liking.  Having so many clients requesting his processing service, the light bulb went on…show hunters just how easy it can be to do it yourself.

In 1991, Larry produced a 98 minute video, “Deer Processing From Field to Table”. It became LEM’s very first product (www.lemproducts.com/product/1/87).  Larry then had the major task of getting his video into the hands of interested hunters everywhere.  This would take all of his time and attention.   

He took a leap of faith and wrote his letter of resignation to his longtime boss, thanking him for the career he loved. It would be the first of two important letters to his boss.  Now he was operating without a net.  He hit the open road attending consumer hunting shows in Michigan, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Illinois, Wisconsin, Ohio, Alabama, West Virginia, and Texas. He conducted seminars on deer processing at each of these venues reaching thousands of people curious about proper game care and processing.

The popularity of the video continued to grow, but Larry’s customers wanted more.  Equipment, supplies, seasonings, casings..where could they go to find all of this in one place?  Larry leaped into action sourcing products from all over the world.  

Larry and his family worked from the basement of their home getting the business off the ground.  To help with badly needed space Larry converted a residential home into his warehouse,  processing orders then packing and shipping them to customers across the country. With the constant flow of delivery trucks picking up and dropping off the FBI were called in to investigate the “suspicious activity”.  While agents did have a few questions for Larry they soon realized Venison Sausage did not present a clear or imminent threat to anyone. They quickly moved on to more important priorities… or so we hope.  Soon LEM outgrew the residential neighborhood and moved to a commercial warehouse facility with forklifts, racks and all the trimmings.  Things were really starting to click.  

IN 2000Larry sat down to write a follow-up letter to his former boss… just a little update to let him know he had surpassed one million dollars in sales!  Boy how things had changed in a few short years.   Larry and the LEM team continued to develop an expansive line of equipment, supplies and seasonings to meet the varied needs and tastes of game hunters everywhere.  This was his passion.  Many of the products were created exclusively for LEM with Larry’s experience and know how guiding every design decision.  They proudly display the company logo . 

We’ve come a long way in a few short years with over 900 different products and an experienced staff that knows their stuff.  Believe it or not you will find the LEM brand in more than 600 retail stores in 37 states and Canada.  Larry’s has since moved on from the day-to-day operations of the business.  Crappie fishing and big bucks take up most of his time these days.  But the culture and the philosophy upon which he built the company has not changed.  Most everyone you talk to here has been part of the LEM Family for years.  And while we’ve had a growth spurt we’re still a small company of 20 people working hard to deliver great service and exceptional products.  It is Larry’s legacy and we try to live it every day. 

Hill Kohnen

LEM Products

Last year we made a huge change from a smaller, ‘Reader’s Digest’ size to a full-size catalog with new, spectacular photography. The response was overwhelmingly favorable to that change.

Now, this year, you will still see the same size catalog, but we added more new photography, we worked hard on making the catalog easier to read, and we added three new sections. We added the ‘The LEM GARAGE’ section (where work becomes play), the ‘LEM SOLUTIONS’ section (a lot of products that are handy and well, provide solutions), and the largest new section, ‘LEM’s Garden Harvest Selection’ (the best products for harvesting, canning, and food prep).
So keep an eye out for us in your mailbox!

We’re excited and we know you will be when you get the opportunity to flip through the new catalog. Thanks to you, we continue to work hard to provide you the best products that you need combined with the best shopping experience you deserve…That is The LEM Difference!

Jon E. Gates, Director of Merchandising and Marketing

Good people beget good customers.  This was reinforced to me earlier this week.  A new customer service representative passed by my office on her way home.  She said good night and I did the same.  She must have gone another ten feet when she came back to my office and knocked on the door.

“Hill”, she said, “I just have to tell you…… LEM has the nicest, most friendly customers anywhere in the world”.  She paused for a moment and then said, “I really mean it; I like everyone I’ve talked to”. 

It was such an honest and meaningful thing for her to say… and she’s right! 

I am thankful she reminded me just how incredibly lucky we are to have customers like each of you.  You are different; more sincere in your words, more committed in your beliefs and more interested getting the job done right the first time.  You make us a better company every day.    

As I said we are very fortunate to have a great group of people.  So I thought it might be nice for some of you to put a face with a name.  I took out my trusty video camera and got to work.  Unfortunately two folks were out when I took this video but I’ll try to work them in another time.  Take a Look.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aHm3kSOvKP0

Hope everyone has a chance to enjoy a beautiful fall season.

Hill Kohnen

Owner, LEM Products

I was forwarded this clip.  Thought it was cute and had to share. 

Enjoy!

Ty

For those of you who missed it, LEM held a “NAME THAT BUMPER STICKER” contest.  The most creative entry wins a $50 merchandise credit.  We had a lot of fun with this and I have to tell ya the responses were overwhelming.  Who knew you people had such a talent for witty, creative, and often mildly offensive tag lines for Window Stickers.  Let just say… you had us rolling in the aisles here at the Harrison HQ!

Concurrent with the Blog contest was our own employee contest.  Tonia True leads our incredibly productive wholesale fulfillment operation.  Today she is also the winner of our employee contest with the tag line “GRIND IT TILL YOUR GEARS WEAR DOWN”. Not bad huh? Congrats Tonia!

I was all set to pick one winner but there are simply too many good ones to chose from.  So the game has changed and now there are THREE WINNERS.  Click on the images at the top of the page to view the winning entries.  Congratulations to the following

• Shawn Bishop of Lower Salem, Ohio
• Shayne Friehauf of Fort Collins, Colorado (home of my Alma Mater CSU… Go Rams!)
• Ira Salamon of Delray Beach, Florida

Each of you is the winner of a $50 merchandise credit with LEM products. 

Thanks again to the 200 people that participated with the hundreds of suggestions.  The window stickers are heading to the printers as we speak and should be available in a few weeks.  Make sure to pick one up when you visit www.lemproducts.com and turn your vehicle into a sausage machine!

Until the next time..  Hope you can get outdoors and have some fun!

Hill Kohnen

Owner, LEM Products

Due to packaging and shipping problems one of our long-time, best-selling products, the Stainless Steel Processing Table had been reduced to an item that we only offered to customers that were willing to come to LEM and buy it. Since then it was always purchased by local customers. Until now…

Enter the Dalbkermeyer Family. Richard, Jenny, and their sons Logan and Tyler (pictured above) decided that Dubuque, Iowa was local enough to make the trek to Harrison, Ohio, home of LEM. The Dalbkermeyer Family left on an early Friday morning and traveled 467.85 miles to get to LEM before we closed for the weekend. Luckily it was a safe trip and the family arrived in time for an excited staff at LEM to fall all over themselves helping the Dalbkermeyer Family with their purchase.

Hill Kohnen, owner of LEM, along with other employees had the pleasure to chat and get to know this wonderful family. After talking about our favorite subject, game processing for awhile and snapping their picture in front of the LEM sign, we discovered the Dalbkermeyer Family planned on camping for the weekend. The LEM employees jumped to action and found a suitable campground for the weekend and bid them farewell and a “drive safe”.

Once the Dalbkermeyer Family returned home we received a call that they had a great time at the campground and they arrived home safely!

We want to take this moment to personally thank the Dalbkermeyer Family for their loyalty and dedication to LEM. You are welcome back anytime!

Jon Gates, Director of Merchandising and Marketing

NEVER GIVE UP QUALITY FOR PRICE
THERE IS NO SUBSTITUTE FOR USING A QUALITY TOOL
“LEM” SAVE IT FOR YOUR GRANDKIDS TO USE
Gary Weathers

LEM, its really neat, what we can do with your meat.
Greg Jackson
LEM Products
Loves
Every part of
Meats

Once a LEM User
Always A LEM User

Don’t Pound the Meat
Grind it with Lem
Jamie Cox

Let’s Eat Meat
Michael Leland

let’s enjoy meat
Tom Packer

SIZE, IT’S HOW YOU GRIND IT
Kyle Sager

LEM: STUFF YOUR SAUSAGE
LEM: STUFF YOUR BRATWURST
LEM: JERKY IS NOT MADE BY JERKS
LEM: THE SMOKER KING
LEM: BETTER THAN YOUR MAMA’S
LEM: HABIT FORMING SMOKER
LEM: THE HUNTERS IDEALIST
LEM: COUNTRY BOY’S GORMET
LEM: SAUSAGE THREE TIMES DAILY
LEM: RATTLESNAKES PROCESSED
LEM: THE LEADER IN SMOKED MEATS
LEM: ITS ALABOUT LOVING YOUR MEAT
Roger Jarrell

With LEM you can make your sausage bigger
Chris Reilly

Who makes the Best Meat Processing Equipment?…..LEM……NO BALONY!!!!!!!
Where’s the Beef? Call us when you find it…LEM….The Leader in Meat Processing
Tom Loborec

LEM…’cause my wife LOVES my SAUSAGE.
LEM…Stuff it until it’s full!
John Kemker

LEM…. Whats in your Sausage?
LEM……Making it easy to Stuff your Sausage with Ease
Rudy Hartfiel

Thanks for your help!

Hill Kohnen

Owner