April 03, 2018 07:02 AM Eastern Daylight Time
HOUSTON–(BUSINESS WIRE)–TreeTown USA has announced several senior management appointments as it consolidates its new West Coast operations highlighted by the promotion of Terri Cook to the new position as corporate vice president of human resources and the addition of industry veterans Bud Summers and Tom Foley to its West Coast Division’s Village Nurseries team.
Reporting directly to Jonathan Saperstein, TreeTown USA CEO, Cook will oversee the now nationwide company’s human resources and safety departments and will be directly responsible for more than 1,500 employees, effective immediately. Previously, Cook was Village Nurseries’ vice president of human resources and risk management.
“The consolidation of TreeTown USA’s human resources department will allow for better utilization of our resources to serve our internal customers which, of course, are our employees,” Saperstein explained. “Terri has been with Village Nurseries for nearly 35 years, which has given her a wealth of knowledge in employment matters, safety, as well as our industry. Her experience and expertise are invaluable and she will remain actively involved in the various industry and trade organizations we participate in.”
Summers assumes the post of division vice president of Southern California operations, replacing Mike Babineau who transitions to the newly created role as director of horticulture. He reports to David House, Village Nurseries president, and is responsible for approximately 700 acres of production facilities in Southern California while providing the day-to-day leadership and management required to effectively grow the organization and ensure financial strength and operating efficiency.
Most recently, Summers was vice president of operations for Color Spot’s western region and before that held several senior management positions at Hines Growers and Hines Horticulture for more than 25 years, among other posts. He holds a Ph.D. in Horticulture from the University of Maryland.
As director of new plants and production scheduling, Foley will direct the West Coast’s inventory planning and will oversee the nationwide new product program, which is being developed to trial new plants in a wide variety of climates. TreeTown USA now leads the industry with six trialing areas in Northern and Southern California, East Texas, South Texas, and North and South Florida.
Foley has over 25 years of experience in the horticultural industry including management experience for Hines, Ball Ornamental and, most recently, EuroAmerican. He is a graduate of North Carolina State University with a Horticultural Science degree.
In the new position, Foley will report to Mark Marriott, Village Nurseries vice president, relating to new plant program development and to Babineau for inventory and production planning for the West Coast Division.
As the new director of horticulture, Babineau will improve inventory planning and crop timing as well as oversee and drive horticultural best management practices across West Coast operations.
House commented, “Both these industry veterans bring a tremendous wealth of knowledge and experience, and will certainly add value and help strengthen our operations on the West Coast.”
“We are very excited to add Tom Foley to the management team for our new plant introductions program,” noted Marriott. “The development of new plant introductions has been a key focus for Village Nurseries for the last 10 years and with his extensive knowledge he will lead this program to the next level and expand the program into the TreeTown USA Southeastern Division of the company.”
About TreeTown USA and Village Nurseries
TreeTown USA, founded in 2001, is a privately-owned business headquartered in Houston, Texas, with 16 growing facilities totaling over 4,000 production acres across Texas, Florida and, through its West Coast Division, Village Nurseries, in California. The combined company is known for its broad mix of high-quality plant material that includes over 1,000 unique plant selections and variations. The company has forged partnerships with respected growers and breeders such as Monrovia, Anthony Tesselaar International and Sunset Western Gardens Collection. To learn more about TreeTown USA and Village Nurseries, visit the company’s websites at http://www.treetownusa.com and https://www.villagenurseries.com.
Contacts
Daly-Swartz PR for TreeTown USA and Village Nurseries
Jeffrey Swartz, 949-470-0075
jeffreyswartz@dsprel.com
