SERVING CUSTOMERS SINCE 1897

In 1859 RB Schilling came to La Crosse, Wisconsin, from the Black Forest region of Germany and started a successful soap factory featuring the brand “Sweet Home” soap.   Old settlers remembered “Sweet Home” from those days when “the Saturday night tub bath was a ritual and mother scrubbed the laundry by hand.”  When RB passed in 1872, his brother Isador arrived to manage the business.

Isador eventually sold the soap factory in 1890 and purchased an interest in a meat packing plant.  He sold meat and sausage to the retail trade of La Crosse, during the gaslight era.  Isador also invested in several grocery stores, which developed into a wholesale flour and feed business.  A big seller was flour made in Galesville, Wisconsin, called “Valley Queen.”  The company also distributed Pure Gold and Pillsbury’s Best brands of flour. 

In 1897, with his two sons, Adolph and Gustave, Isador purchased a small stock of wrapping paper from a Minneapolis jobber and started Schilling Paper Company.  This was the start of a distribution business which grew with the increased use of paper for bags, towels, and containers.  Isador retired from active work in favor of his sons.

Adolph and Gustave Schilling served customers of Schilling Paper Company until their retirement.  The business then was sold to the third generation.  Adolph sold his interest to his nephew, Allan.  Gustave’s interest was purchased by his other two sons, Richard and Robert.

The three Schilling brothers were well prepared for the business.  All three started working at the paper company in their teens - sweeping the warehouse, making deliveries, unloading railroad cars, and filling orders.  This on-the-job training continued with the next two Schilling generations.

Ownership remained in the Schilling family, with Allan Jr. and John Schilling purchasing the business in 1973.  During their tenure, a great deal of expansion occurred, beginning with the 1975 purchase of Dieter Paper Supply in Rochester, Minnesota.  The company went on to make six other acquisitions by 1996, in addition to expanding to new markets via organic growth.  In 1997, Allan’s son Chip purchased an interest in the business and changed the name to Schilling Supply Company in 2004.

Today, Schilling Supply Company employs a team of passionate workers who care about building a trusted relationship and providing value to our customers.  The product mix has grown to include janitorial, paper, packaging supplies and equipment, as well as other facility and industrial supplies.  With a state of the art distribution center in La Crosse, Wisconsin, a fleet of trucks, and average fill rates over 98.5%, Schilling Supply Company remains an essential supplier to customers who seek effective supplies, fast delivery, and solutions that work.  Satisfying its customers remains the driving force of the company to this day.