The Press Enterprise

The Press Enterprise
Monday June 21, 1999
Entrepreneur of the Year Winners

Retail Distribution
Ken Smith
Southwest Traders, Inc.
Temecula, CA

Southwest Traders, Inc. was founded by Ken Smith in 1977 in Leucadia, distributing fresh juice, smoothies and health food items to health food centers in Southern Orange and San Diego counties.

Today, Southwest Traders' one-stop shop features the largest yogurt, ice cream, juice and smoothie inventory in the world.

The company has developed its own private label, Rainbow's End, which includes premium-quality juice concentrates, smoothie nutrients, soft serve yogurt mixes, hard-pack yogurt and sherbets, fruit, toppings, cone mixes and other items.

The company operates out of a state-of-the-art warehouse and office facility strategically located in Temecula. Its new facility is 67,000 square feet and includes dry storage, low temperature freezer, and medium temperature cooler.

Southwest Traders serves California, Nevada and Arizona directly through its modern fleet, and helps its national and international customers arrange their own transportation.
Recently, the company changed its slogan to "Your Distribution Solution" to emphasize its various areas of distribution expertise. Southwest Traders will continue to look for new niche markets in which it can be the distribution solution.

The future of Southwest Traders is its people, who will steer the company through its forthcoming challenges while continuing their relentless pursuit of reaching the next level.