History

Max H. Ries, a German immigrant who operated a textile firm, left Germany and intended to
develop another textile firm in Chicago. When he arrived, he believed he could make a greater
impact importing foods and sharing the flavors and ingredients of the world.

Unheard of Delicacies

Max founded Reese Finer
Foods along with its
signature “Reese” brand of
specialty products.
He began importing
delicacies such as Pâté de
Fois Gras, Kangaroo Steak,
Japanese Fried Butterflies,
Chocolate Covered South
American Ants, Canned
Hornets and Fried
Baby Bees.

Farming His Own

Max loved his imported
delicacies but he knew
there had to be more. He
pushed the envelope
once again and started
farming and packing
never before seen
products like baby corn,
mini watermelon and
martini peppers, right
on his farm!

Expanding Reese
Finer Foods

By the 1950s Reese Finer
Foods had seen so much
success that Max began
importing and
distributing other
companies’ products.
From his small shop at
Randolph St. in Chicago
he opened offices in Los
Angeles and Paris.

Making TV History

Reese Finer Foods’
president, Morris Kushner
appeared on the Groucho
Marx show to talk about
delicacies like Roasted
Caterpillars and
Chocolate Covered Ants.

Reese Finer Foods is sold to Pet, Inc. of St. Louis.
They started concentrating on more approachable
global products. Reese was the first specialty
brand to leave specialty shops and move
exclusively into supermarkets.

Pet, Inc. was sold resulting in the sale of Reese Finer
Foods and its allied brands such as DaVinci to a
consortium of specialty food distributors. While the
distributor group owned Reese Finer Foods, the
owners continued to sell Reese through a national
network of distributors, many of whom were not
members of the consortium.

Reese Finer Foods changes its name to World Finer
Foods (WFF). The name change reflected the
company’s expansion to marketing and selling third
party brands from Europe and around the world,
in addition to owned brands.

Growing Naturally

World Finer Foods, Inc.
acquires InterNatural
Foods, a company focused
on organic and non-GMO
specialty food products.

Strengthening Specialty
Portfolio

World Finer Foods, Inc.
acquires Liberty Richter,
expanding its
representation of 3rd party
brands and enhancing its
leadership position in
specialty foods.

World Finer Foods, Inc. acquires Bri-Al and its
premium owned and third party brand
distribution partnerships.

Reese Revolution

Reese updates their look and style with new product packaging and
a new website.
The company also creates a presence on social media for the first time.

That’s Refreshing

World Finer Foods
refreshes its look with a
new style for its master
brand, Liberty Richter
and American Marketing
Team divisions. It also
invests in capabilities for
alternate channel sales
including e-commerce, a
new store locator and
digital marketing.

Enhancing Capabilities

WFF launches a world class
Oracle ERP system with
trade management,
forecasting and demand
planning capabilities, as well
as adding many customers
and warehouses to its
integrated Electronic Data
Interchange platform In
that same year WFF
partners with IX-ONE for
third party verified image
and data capture of its
portfolio of products.

Right Place, Right Time

WFF launches its leading
edge, responsive-
designed website to help
its brands better engage
with U.S. consumers and
the trade.