Re: Heronswood shuts down

I am greatly disappointed that Heronswood is now closed but, if you'll forgive me, I'm surprised that Hinkley is surprised.
 
Hinkley sold his company to make a profit and expected that Burpee wanted to do the same (over some time).
 
(As a side, I'm stunned that Burpee didn't "know" that Heronswood's core was selling PNW-appropriate plants to PNW gardeners.)
 
The essence of this story is not new.  It's been repeated hundreds of times in every type of business, including the hort industry.  Mom and poppers sell out to large companies and the company is either dismantled or is moved to another place; in either case, the original employees -- and the original owners -- lose out.
 
Mom and poppers have the heart and soul that it takes to make a company truly sustainable and beneficial to the community.  Big businesses rarely do.
 
That's my soapbox for today.
 
Joe
 

N Sterman <TalkingPoints@PlantSoup.Com> wrote:

Renowned Heronswood Nursery Closes
> its Gates
> After six years of Burpee ownership, business was flat, and
> Heronswood
> has never been profitable, Ball said. "You have to be able to make a
> profit if you're going to survive in business, especially with a
> seasonal business," he said.
>
> "It (Burpee) is an organization that looks at profit and I assume
> that's what it's all about," [Hinkley] said from his Indianola home, where
> employees gathered after the gates literally were shut.


Joe Seals
Santa Maria, California --
where the weather is always perfect
and my NEW garden will soon be blooming and full of birds and butterflies
Other Mailing lists | Author Index | Date Index | Subject Index | Thread Index