Stark Bro's Acquires Miller Nurseries

2013: Stark Bro's Nurseries & Orchards Co. of Louisiana, MO acquires J.E. Miller Nurseries of Canandaigua, NY. Pictured: John Miller (CEO Miller Nurseries).

Stark Bro's Acquires J.E. Miller Nurseries

Louisiana, Missouri — October 21, 2013 — Stark Bro's Nurseries & Orchards Co., one of the country's oldest and largest retail and commercial growers of fruit and nut trees, announced today it has acquired J.E. Miller Nurseries, another privately-held nursery/grower located in Canandaigua, NY.

By incorporating Miller's resources and 75 years of experience, Stark Bro's — founded in 1816 and credited for discovering both the Red Delicious and Golden Delicious apples — will now be the nation's largest direct-to-consumer grower of fruit and nut trees, berry plants and other horticultural products.

"When my brother David passed away unexpectedly last spring, I knew it was time to retire," said J. E. Miller Nurseries CEO John Miller. "One of the first things I did was call my long-time friend, Cameron Brown (Stark Bro's CEO). The quality of their products and the care they take with their own customers made it an easy decision. I know David would be pleased with this arrangement."

Brown is honored with the Miller stewardship. "The real winners here are Miller's customers. There will be so much more for them… not just products, but advice, supplies and a large online community of fellow growers. I'm so grateful to John for his trust and confidence, and we can't wait to welcome their customers to our family and show them just how much they're appreciated."

Over the coming weeks, both companies will finalize the logistics of the acquisition, integrating product lines and introducing customers to the newly expanded offerings.

According to Stark Bro's Ken Lane, "We're excited to provide Miller's customers with an even wider choice of top-quality fruit trees, berry plants, and everything else they need to be successful. In addition, we will inherit Miller's growing capabilities for cold-hardy trees and plants, so that we can satisfy their sizable Northeast-based customer contingency and expand our own. Our object is to exceed Miller customer expectations at every point of contact."

Chief Operating Officer Jacqueline Zbleski added, "Miller customers will be pleased with Stark Bro's logistical and shipping abilities. We're able to ship trees and plants so that they spend less time in transit – better for the plants and better for customer success." The J. E. Miller Nurseries website will redirect to www.StarkBros.com, already one of the Internet's most popular nursery-supply sites.