On The Move

Jennifer Zurko

A.M.A. Horticulture has introduced the new “Ellepots by A.M.A. Grower Guide,” a quick-reference guide to help growers and propagators make the right selections for their crop, enhance bench density and more. Ellepots by A.M.A. are a sustainable solution for plant propagation, and A.M.A. manufactures 15 sizes of Ellepots, with more than 100 tray options and several soil formulas and paper types, including increasingly popular options for organic growers. The scannable, informative guide is now available as a free downloadable resource on A.M.A.’s website at amahort.com/ellepots-by-ama.

BAILEY

Bailey announced Kim Goodwin as the newest member of the Bailey sales team, joining as a Territory Sales Representative. In her new role, Kim will partner with customers in Illinois, Northern Indiana and Michigan. Kim joins Bailey with over 20 years of production experience with growing perennials, shrubs and roses, as well as working with shade trees, ornamentals, evergreens and propagation.

BALL INGENUITY

Recently, this division of distribution company Ball Seed has refreshed its website, www.BallIngenuity.com, to showcase all of the trending plant categories it’s exploring to bring the next big thing to market. The updated homepage is animated with a few of the team’s recent success stories, like Jurassic Rex Begonias and Shangri-La Philodendron, and new videos that share tips for successful production.

BALL SEED

Tom Seery is Ball Seed’s new Regional Business Manager for the Midwest Region, and John Steinlage is now the Regional Business Manager for the Northeast and Great Lakes Region. For the past 11 years, Tom was the Ball Seed Sales Representative in Eastern and Central Iowa. Prior to joining Ball, Tom spent eight years on Wall Street in New York and two years as an educator in New Jersey. He will be taking the place of Ron Brum, who will be retiring within the year.  

Before this promotion, John was serving as the Ball Seed Sales Representative in Eastern Wisconsin. He has over 10 years of experience in horticultural sales, coming to Ball five years ago from the Henry F. Michell Company, where he covered the Midwest sales territory. John has a degree in Economics from Michigan State, and spent time in marketing with Adidas and the Detroit Red Wings before entering horticultural sales.

Both Tom and John have family legacies in the greenhouse industry: Tom’s earliest memories of Ball are from traveling to Ball Seed Customer Day with his father, Clyde Seery, who served for over 40 years as a Ball Seed Sales Representative. And John’s father, Bob, is a leader in the industry, having spent a long career in sales with Michell’s.  

BLUESKYE CREATIVE, INC.

BlueSkye Creative, a marketing agency devoted exclusively to the horticulture market, announced the addition of Debbie Rempert as Account Manager. In her new role with BlueSkye Creative, Debbie will be managing the relationship with specific key accounts. She’ll also be involved with BlueSkye Creative’s marketing efforts, social media campaign management and public relations.

Debbie brings a wealth of horticultural marketing experience and project management knowledge to the BlueSkye Creative team, with her years of experience working with breeding companies, brokers and suppliers. Before joining BlueSkye Creative, Debbie gained more than 20 years of marketing experience with the Ball Horticultural family of companies, and most recently as the Senior Brand Manager for Dümmen Orange, McHutchison and Vaughan’s Horticulture.

HUMMERT INTERNATIONAL

Hummert announced the promotion of Dr. Chad Follis to Director of Sales and Education. Dr. Follis joined the company last year as a member of the Educational Resources department. In that position, he worked closely with the Marketing and Sales teams to develop product knowledge for distribution to customers and employees. As Director of Sales and Education, Dr. Follis will lead the continued growth of the Sales team, meeting one-on-one with territory managers to create and manage goals. He’ll also collaborate with the Marketing and Technology teams to create timely marketing messages and promotions, and implement tools to improve efficiency.

His professional experience includes the Division Chair of Agriculture, Science and Math, and Department Chair and Professor of Agriculture Greenhouse and Sports Field Supervisor at a Missouri college. Additionally, Dr. Follis has a strong background in greenhouse operations and crops like hemp, vegetables and bedding plants, as well as turf and sports fields. And with many published industry pieces, he’s also written grants to help the education community and has experience working with different types of pollinators.

OHP, INC.

OHP Inc., an American Vanguard Company, announced the addition of technical sales managers Jake Chilek and Frank Fornari to its team.

In their new positions, Jake and Frank are responsible for stewarding the OHP product portfolio to both ornamental growers and distribution in key regions of the U.S.

Jake, from his home base in Texas, will cover Texas and the mid-south. He previously worked for distribution companies BWI and Winfield United, covering key grower accounts in Texas and Oklahoma. He also has experience as a nursery scout and commercial applicator, as well as distribution warehouse experience.

A Florida resident, Frank most recently worked as a regional manager for Berger Horticultural Products. He has vast horticultural sales experience, having served in national sales and senior sales representative positions with BASF Corp. and Valent USA Corp. He also served in sales capacities with Clark Mosquito Control Products and AT Plastics. GT