Hello, Friend!
“Early’s Honey Stand” is sort of an unlikely name for a mail order smoked food business. But back in the 20’s, my dad was a bee keeper. He sold honey in mason jars at a little stand on a private road, right at a toll gate. Buggy, horseback riders and occasional cars and trucks all had to pay a 15c toll.
Well, the road was improved, traffic increased, and we added smoked hams, bacon and other hill country foods tourists liked. Then, like out of a movie, the big Interstate came through and they put it about three miles away! You can imagine what a boon to business that turned out to be.
So we started sending penny postcards to some of our customers. And that’s how our mail order business came to be.
We’re still somewhat old fashioned in a few ways. We believe you ought to get $1.00 value for every $1.00 you spend with us. And we still hang onto the old fashioned pride in what we sell and how we serve you.
Early’s is a family business. Always will be, I guess. We don’t aim to become “big Business.” When you do, you lose the personal touch we like so well. And you just can’t find a shortcut to smoking meats. It’s got to be slow and easy. Nothing puts real hill country flavor into ham or bacon or sausage other than a long, slow spell in a smokehouse soaking up hickory smoke.
Sometimes during the busy season you’re apt to find the whole family up pretty late. We still operate on the slogan:
“THE HOURS ARE ‘TILL THE BUSINESS AIN’T”
That’s because we want your order to go out as quick as possible. It’ s darn seldom one takes more than 24hours.
Well, this letter should give you some idea of the kind of folks we are. Why don’t you sit down with our catalog and figure out what kinds of hill country foods you’d like to sample? Whether it’s thick, sweet slab bacon to fry up with some nice, fresh eggs – or a ham to make a grand meal or – or some of that we-dare-Wisconsin-to-match-it Tennessee chedder . . . you’ll like it! And we’ll take real good care of your order- promise!
~  Erskine Early (1968)