We grew rapidly in the first years of operation, expanding our “sales-by-education” approach to other products like imported carnations (which competed with locally grown carnations on the basis of longer vase life and lower price), and Colombian Color Roses, which had much larger heads and brighter colors than what was available in the market.

We soon became the leading importer and distributor of South American roses in Southern California, with a very large market share of a very small market. With time and as the market in general came to accept the superior quality, price and reliability of the imported varieties, the market grew exponentially, and other market participants entered the market. We realized soon, that it was not only sufficient for us to rely on our superior product, but that service mattered. We focused a great deal of our energy on the service we provided to our customers and we developed a very passionate culture of customer service that permeated the whole company. The relentless growth of that time made us large enough to be able to obtain great operational efficiencies, better transportation rates, faster delivery times, and great prices from neighboring farms that wanted us to market and distribute their products. This allowed us to offer our customers excellent prices for superior product, delivered reliably with great service. That is when our company’s operating principle was born: “Price, Quality and Service”. Because of it, our customer’s profitability grew, along with our company.