Hines Nurseries officially announced Oct. 13 it filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, marking the second time in 26 months the operation has filed for Chapter 11. The announcement drew a reaction from a few Greenhouse Grower readers, who made comments at GreenhouseGrower.com.
All comments were made anonymously, and Greenhouse Grower edited them for clarity. Here is a sample:
–”[Hines] will simply make their debt go away in Chapter 11–and the folks who have stuck with them and supplied them in good faith during their earlier troubles will end up with nothing. And some of them will go out of business. The lawyers, banks and tax collectors will get what there is, and actual vendors will be shafted again. Then, they will begin again, the cycle starts again and the result will be the same again.”
–”I’m having a hard time feeling sorry for any of the management at the Hines location near Richmond, Texas. I have owned and operated my small nursery business for 39 years only 10 miles from Hines and for years endured their ‘holier than thou’ attitude toward us smaller retail operations and finally bought elsewhere. If you did not need an order for a whole semi truckload of plants, they would look down their noses at you like you were a peasant. A really crummy attitude from my standpoint. Well, I was here in business before they showed up, and it looks like I’ll be here long after they are gone. Good riddance. Our industry needs us to all work together and not play the ‘we’re bigger than you are’ game.”
–”It’s very difficult to feel compassion for them (Hines), but for the industry as a whole to see this ‘Chapter 11’ virus so prolific is a concern. However, for those ready for it, there is great opportunity for the less-than-traditional companies to gather up the pennies and do something awesome. Horticulture isn’t going away!”
Learn more about Hines’ Chapter 11 announcement.