“We lost a key customer heading into 2023, and in working with our internal team and reviewing our current debt structure, we realized it was no longer viable to move forward,” says Billy Brentlinger, who co-founded Seville Farms with his brother Bobby in 1994.
Since early July, Seville has been working with and sharing data with potential buyers, some of whom are interested in purchasing all assets of the company, and some that would require dividing facilities into separate businesses.
Brentlinger notes that all the company’s facilities are in good working order, and there have been upgrades over the past few years in both production space and technology.
Whatever the outcome of the potential sale, Brentlinger says he hopes for two outcomes: first, to ensure that the facilities continue to operate as nurseries (and that any raw land can be used in a similar manner).
Second, and perhaps more important, Billy says he and his brother’s goal is to keep the Seville Farms team fully employed under new ownership.
“We have really great people here with a lot of experience, and our focus during the transition is to keep as many people employed as possible,” he says.
All of Seville’s customers are aware of the current situation, and Brentlinger says the company has maintained production through week 29, with the majority of fall mums ready to move.
“We worked with our customers to let them know what we would and would not have for the fall and holidays, and the company will maintain and ship this product throughout the fall,” he says.
If there’s one lesson Brentlinger can share about what he says has been a very difficult decision, it’s the importance of having a broad customer base.
“It’s tough to be a large business with a high concentration of two or three customers,” Brentlinger says. “You need to have a go-forward plan in the event of losing just one of them.”