A handful of new employees will begin working at the new plant later this year, and George says he hopes to employ 60 there three years from now. He envisions Joy Cone becoming the No. 1 cone producer within three years, a dream George savors after working most of his life in the cone business. George was just 10 years old when he joined a handful of employees in his father's cone plant, founded in 1918. By the time he was 13, he was running the few remaining machines. A series of setbacks years before took a devastating toll on the once-booming company.
Some kids grow up wanting to be firemen.
Some kids grow up wanting to be pro-football players. Following his graduation from Harvard University, he went to work, intent on improving and expanding the family business. Slowly, the business grew. The plant, situated along a two-lane road in Hermitage, underwent a series of expansions. The smell of sweet batter fills the air near the plant where 300 people work 24 hours a day, seven days a week, except for holidays.