They sold me 50 lbs: King Arthur Sir Lancelot Hi-Gluten Flour
I couldn't see myself paying a small fortune for shipping high-gluten flour to my home, so I went hunting for a better deal.
I went to the King Arthur web site, found their commerical distributor for Denver, Colorado (Dawn Foods), called them up, asked if I could buy a bag, they said yes, I went, I HAVE: 50 lbs!
The biggest hurdle for me was squelching the "A commercial distributor will never sell to little ole me. I'm a nobody. They don't deal in 50 lbs., they deal in 5000 lbs. They won't sell to me."
How much did I pay? $26.70
Yup, about 77% OFF the retail price on their website (and that doesn't include shipping), so probably 95% OFF.
I bet you can do the same thing in your area, especially if you have one of King Arthur's distributors nearby.
Hope this helps you find some for cheap, but I certainly won't be able to help you use 50 lbs.
That said, anyone in Denver need some?
Links:
I called Atlanta, Ga area Dawn foods and was told they only sold to businesses(ie, need business license).
Guess it depends on the local franchise how they operate.
There are a couple of other options for GA, just not sure how close they are to Atlanta.
Dawn Food Products, Atlanta, GA, 800-752-1196
Sutherland's Foodservice , Forest Park, GA, 404-366-8550
Sysco Atlanta, College Park, GA, 800-366-4454
Also, a business license can be fairly inexpensive and sometimes as easy as going to a local city office or county clerk, etc.
Contacted Sutherland before also. Seemed to carry only KA AP.
Tried Sysco also. Surprisingly, no one answered on some sort of automated system.
All of this was a couple months back. Decided I didn't need bulk KA that bad. Pursued other options.
Thanks.
Here in Kansas a Retailer's Sales Tax License (Business License) is easy to get and didn't cost too much. The only drawback is that you have to file taxes, even if you are just telling them you earned nothing so you pay nothing. But having that license number can be a door opener to distributers.
Here's where you can find King Arthur's professional distributors for your area:
http://www.kingarthurflour.com/professional/distributors.html
Here's where you can find King Arthur's professional distributors for your area:
http://www.kingarthurflour.com/professional/distributors.html
I recently went to a KA professional distributor in Buffalo, NY (I live in southwestern Ontario) and bought 50 pounds of KA AP flour for $12.10 and 50 pounds of KA bread flour for $12.50. The high-gluten flour price was $15.65.
Considering that I pay +/- $10.00 for 10 pounds of Robin Hood flour in Ontario, it was well worth the trip.
Name/address of distributor in Buffalo? :)
Twin Bakery Supply, Buffalo, NY , 716-855-2408
That's the KA distributor listed on KA's website for Buffalo.
No idea is that's carluke's source.
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http://www.kingarthurflour.com/professional/distributors.html
Yes, Twin Bakery Supply is where I went. I dealt with Buddy who was very accommodating and, when he heard I was driving from Canada, made sure he had what I wanted so that I wouldn't waste a trip. He did warn me that the price changes with the market, so it might not always be the same price.
I think I am okay for a while; I came home with 200 pounds of flour!
How did you get it across the bridge? Did you have to pay duty on it?
No, Nothing.
I was asked how much I had spent ($49.00), how long I had been away (2 hours), and if I had crossed to buy a specific thing (yes). That was all.
Consider yourself lucky that you were able to get the flour! I also contacted Dawn Foods here in Michigan (Troy) and they said they wouldn't sell to me. I also tried Sysco in Grand Rapids who told me basically the same thing, I had to be a company.
My way around all this was to team my order of 5 bags with my local American Legion post which I'm a member of. Yes, the SL flour iswonderful to use. I cut it with about 30% of the KA bread flour and get just the right amount of spring.
My next order for the SL flour will also include several bags of the KA Special which I understand is the bread flour, but put up in commercial size (50 lb) bags.
Try this and I bet you'll get some flour: Just walk in with cash and place an order.
They'll have a will call window and you can do your business there.
And hold this in reserve if you get a snippy human,
"So basically what you're telling me is that, when I return home and email Ron Jones, the chairman of this and every other Dawn foods on the planet, and tell him that JANE DOE FROM DAWN FOODS IN TROY, MICHIGAN refused to sell flour to a future business owner, that he'll agree with your policy? Is that what you're telling me? And what do you think he might have to say to your boss' boss' boss about this policy?
And when I email King Arthur Flour (Dawn Foods being the sole distributor in Troy, Michigan) and tell them that JANE DOE FROM DAWN FOODS IN TROY, MICHIGAN refused to sell to me, the owner of a future bakery, what do you think they'll have to say about your exclusive contract with them, hmmmmm?"
Better yet, just bring me with you. I scare the pants off them.
Here in Maine, I was able to buy 50 pounds of Sir Lancelot, too, by contacting Dawn Foods and being referred to their distributor. Really nice people. $18.70 with no sales tax.