Our Mission / History

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Our Mission

At McHutchison our mission is to provide the best and most service-oriented wholesale distribution of plants and related products in North America. Our dedicated staff is our most fundamental resource, and they make their everyday about providing tailored business solutions that drive growth and value for our customers and suppliers. Our teams combine extensive experience and creative thinking to make sure you always have the best suppliers and most sustainable solutions to build your business. We take pride in our ability to maintain a future vision filled with growth and opportunities, while staying true to our unwavering commitment of distributing the utmost quality products and services.

History

  • 1875

    James E. McHutchison, an Australian, begins his horticultural career at age 15 with Paton & Sons, a nursery and florist in Melbourne.

  • 1896

    James E. McHutchison arrives in the U.S. and works as a representative of August Rhotert of New York City. This firm pioneered the importation of horticultural raw materials from Europe.

  • 1902

    James E. McHutchison establishes the firm of McHutchison by opening offices at 218 Fulton Street in New York City, calling on nurseries, seeds men and florists throughout the country.

  • 1905

    McHutchison outgrows its offices and relocates to 17 Murray Street, New York City.

  • 1915

    McHutchison again relocates to 95 Chambers Street. This address becomes one of the best-known addresses to the wholesale horticultural trade in the United States.

  • 1932

    James E. McHutchison is an active participant in Congressional and USDA plant quarantine hearings in Washington, DC.

  • 1941

    James McHutchison dies and his oldest son, James Edgar McHutchison II, known as "Ed" to the trade, assumes the position of President.

  • 1947

    McHutchison begins to develop the MAC-PAK line to service "garden centers", retailers who service the home gardeners who have become a key component of the horticultural trade after the war.

  • 1955

    McHutchison relocates from Chambers Street to 695 Grand Avenue in Ridgefield, New Jersey.

  • 1966

    McHutchison becomes part of the Vaughan's Seed Company of Downers Grove, Illinois.

  • 1972

    Ed McHutchison retires and Paul E. Haffey becomes President. Paul was the first non-family member to head the firm, originally joining in 1948 as a sales representative.

  • 1988

    Paul E. Haffey retires and the position of President is filled by Stephen J. Huber who had relocated to Ridgefield in 1971 as National Sales Manager after a successful sales career in Michigan.

  • 1989

    Assets of Vaughan Products, Inc. of which McHutchison was a division, was purchased by Sandoz Pharmaceuticals of Basel, Switzerland.

  • 1990

    The office staff of McHutchison and its sister company Skidelsky & Co. are merged operationally with the respective sales forces continuing to operate independently in their existing territories.

  • 1993

    McHutchison is reorganized and renamed the Vaughan's Seed Company Nursery Division.

  • 1996

    Sandoz sells Vaughan Seed Nursery Division to a corporate partnership - 70% owned by employees, 30% by investors. The firm is renamed McHutchison, LLC. Stephen J. Huber is named CEO and Mike Tizio becomes President.

  • 2002

    McHutchison relocates to 64 Mountain View Boulevard in Wayne, New Jersey and celebrates its 100th Anniversary.

  • 2005

    Ron Bracciante of McHutchison is named "Nursery Plant Salesman of the Year" at the American Nursery and Landscape Association.

  • 2006

    The 34 owners of McHutchison, LLC merged the assets into a new S-Corp owned by the McHutchison Employee Stock Ownership program, making McHutchison a 100% employee-owned company.

  • 2012

    McHutchison announces the formation of a new division, Vaughan's Horticulture, based out of Naperville, IL, to serve the medium - large greenhouse trade.

  • 2014

    Mike Tizio assumes role of CEO as well as president.

  • 2015

    July 1, 2015 McHutchison launches its new logo as a symbol of the company's progression toward a more vibrant corporate identity in the horticultural marketplace.

SERVICE - QUALITY - DEPENDABILITY

These were the cornerstones upon which McHutchison was founded upon back in 1902, and still serve as the guiding values in how we conduct business today. McHutchison continues to be committed to providing our customers with the highest quality product in the industry. Our product managers, sales managers and sales force are constantly looking for the newest varietal selections, cutting edge technology and innovative production techniques which will keep our customers at the forefront of a constantly changing horticultural market.