Founded in 1912, company celebrates continued Montana ownership, heritage
EBS STAFF
Wilcoxson’s Inc. announced its ownership transition on Thursday, June 5, celebrating its continued Montana ownership in Billings native Neil Schultz, who acquired a majority stake from longtime President and CEO Matt Schaeffer.
A press release noted that Schaeffer first joined the company as a truck painter and delivery driver on the Yellowstone National Park route, and he will remain involved as a minority shareholder after more than 40 years of service to Wilcoxson’s.
“I’m old as dirt and stubborn, wasn’t gonna let Wilcoxson’s go out of state,” Schaeffer stated in the release. “It belongs here, always has. Neil’s a good kid. He’ll do fine.”
Schultz grew up in Billings, graduated from Billings West High School, and “has deep Montana roots and a passion for celebrating the state’s shared culture and heritage,” the release stated, adding that under his leadership, Wilcoxson’s will retain its core values and traditions with no plans to change its time-tested, hand-written recipes or production process.
“Montana is home, and Wilcoxson’s tastes like the best of childhood … We will continue to celebrate the people, land, and culture that makes our state so special,” Schultz stated in the release.
Schultz graduated from University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School of Business, where he met his wife, Kimberly, an attorney. They now live in Bozeman with two young sons.
Schultz has prior experience in food production and packaging, developed while training in industrial design and working for a food manufacturing startup, Juicero. He later co-founded Altrac, a successful agricultural company specializing in irrigation and frost protection automation used by Western growers, including in Montana’s Flathead Valley. Altrac was purchased by the Canadian AgTech company Semios in 2021, according to the release.
Schultz intends “to carefully bring Wilcoxson’s into the 21st century,” respecting its rich heritage while modernizing operations through thoughtful expansions in distribution and freezer capacity.
Schultz emphasized the positive partnership between he and Schaeffer in their goal to preserve the legacy of Wilcoxson’s, founded in 1912 with 113 years of proud distribution throughout Montana and Wyoming.
“Montana is Wilcoxson’s country and keeping Wilcoxson’s in Montana hands was important to both of us,” Schultz stated. “We’re keeping jobs here in Montana and excited about creating new opportunities for folks.”
