business has grown considerably as we’ve learned more about how to run a Christmas tree farm effectively and have fine-tuned our operations. Best yet, the revenue we bring in during the five weeks of sales carries the farm all year. We usually do have to supplement with some personal funds in November to purchase pre-cut trees and supplies, but the farm pays us back after that first weekend.
For years, we relied solely on friends and family to help us operate over the holiday season and never had to hire employees. In 2020, the pandemic prompted us to change. We sold 850 trees over Thanksgiving weekend alone, 60% of our sales for the entire season. And for the first time, we had eight people on payroll. We’ve added even more employees this year.
“We post photos of our trees during the off-season, to create excitement for the holidays and remind people we’re ready to serve them come November.”
We sell out of all our available trees every season—so I haven’t advertised in years. But social media, such as our Facebook and Instagram pages, as well as Google reviews, have been instrumental in driving new customers our way and increasing our sales. We post photos of our trees during the off-season, to create excitement for the holidays and remind people we’re ready to serve them come November. We also post photos and updates of other interesting or amusing things happening on our farm. Our repeat customers love to stay connected to what we’re doing throughout the year.
We’ve also created an experience that keeps our customers coming back. For example, we tie your tree to your car roof, a practice people love. And our nearly 200-year-old antique barn—with its massive fireplace, café and shop—is a huge wow factor. One common response we get from customers: “This is just like a Christmas Hallmark movie.”
So while a whole lot of things went wrong early on, a lot of things are going right at the moment. And maybe the richest reward is knowing we’ve created a successful seasonal business that my two kids love and may one day make their own.