HOUSTON, Tex., Nov. 24, 2020 – In anticipation of the company’s public rebrand at the end of 2020, TreeTown USA has been steadily building up its sales and marketing teams.
With the advent of COVID-19, the horticulture industry faced a number of challenging opportunities this year coupled with an increase in demand for both landscape and edible plants from consumers who are spending more time at home. Despite these challenges, TreeTown USA has been able to supply its customers with a unique selection of plants, trees, and shrubs to meet this demand while solidifying its sales and marketing teams across the country and preparing for the rebrand.
TreeTown USA’s customers include independent garden centers, national home improvement retailers, landscaper contractors and re-wholesalers. “One of our core strengths is maintaining a diverse customer channel strategy,” states David Kirby, Executive Vice President of TreeTown USA. “This year, we have been strategically building our sales coverage close to home and in key markets across the country so that our current customers are supported as we expand into new regions.”
Additions to the independent garden center retail team include Mark Hargreaves (Inside Sales Manager, Northwest Region); John Barczak (Kansas City, Missouri, Southern Illinois, Western Kentucky and Western Tennessee); Johnine Casdorph (Central California, South Bay Area California); Sean Kelley (British Columbia, Western Washington); Gina LaRue (Northern New Jersey, New York City and Long Island); Amy Thiessen (Minnesota, Illinois, Iowa, Wisconsin); and Caitlin Thomas (Arizona and Southern Nevada).
John Gorosave joined the national retail team as Key Account Manager for Walmart in the southwest and Melanie Hardy expanded her role to support regional multi-store retailers in the southeast. Melanie has years of experience in this segment and also serves as a member of the marketing team, using her expertise to build customer specific retail programs.
The landscape sales team welcomed James Onstott and Brad Kittinger, both managing territories in the Orange County and Los Angeles, California regions.
TreeTown USA has also been organizing its marketing department to facilitate the upcoming rebrand, introduce new plants and programs, and support its growing sales team.
Leigh Schaffer, who began her career with Village Nurseries in 2013, was promoted to Marketing Manager in September. “One of our primary goals for 2020 and 2021 is to maintain the personal touch that the company’s known for while leveraging our digital resources to promote our plants and keep our customers, employees, and communities safe,” Schaffer states.
“This year has afforded us the opportunity to make a strong start at optimizing our digital strategy and expanding our outreach to new and existing customers across the country.”
Nicholas Staddon, a longtime consultant and Plantsman for TreeTown USA, has joined the team full-time as Company Spokesperson, leading public relations efforts. Schaffer and Staddon join Suzie Wiest, Regional Marketing Representative; Emily Saperstein, Marketing Coordinator; and Melanie Hardy, Sales Representative. The department has also aligned with the product development and sales teams to bring new plants and branded programs to the market.
TreeTown USA’s efforts to build and strengthen the sales and marketing departments will ensure their ability to maintain a diverse customer channel strategy, introduce new plants and brands, and maintain meaningful connections with its customers in 2021 and beyond.
About TreeTown USA
TreeTown USA, founded in 2001, is a privately-owned business headquartered in Houston, Texas, with 14 farms totaling over 6,700 production acres across Texas, Florida, Oregon, and California. With its recent acquisition of a West Coast Division, including Village Nurseries and Hines Growers, the company now has a coast-to-coast footprint for its broad mix of high-quality plants that includes over 5,000 unique selections. The company plans to rebrand in 2020. To learn more about TreeTown USA, visit www.treetownusa.com.
Contact:
Leigh Schaffer
Marketing Manager, TreeTown USA
lschaffer@villagenurseries.com
714-715-0726
