NORCAL features Skyline in its newsletter

NORCAL Featured Member of the Week       Behind the success of Skyline Flower Growers Written by Monica Quintero, Skyline's Promotions & Marketing Director    The Goldbergs passion for flowers all started during the Great Depression back in the 1930's and even today, in this tough economy the family business keeps expanding. Skyline Flower Growers has three farms in Oxnard, Nipomo and Camarillo, California. There are also wholesale locations in Seattle and Spokane, Washington. What has been the key to success during these hard times in our country? Just like with any another company, it's hard to pinpoint one area. I want to share with you what I've seen.  Over the years, successful companies typically have strong leaders. The owners of our company, Joe and Tom Goldberg, not only work hard but are caring and compassionate about their employees. Most successful people usually have workaholic type personalities. Yes, they both fit that category and I say that with a smile, but there are many who don't take the time to make sure their employees are shown the appreciation they deserve. A perfect example, our Skyline year-end holiday party. There are many businesses these days that have cut those holiday events to save money. These are hard times and we understand some companies have to do that to stay afloat, but the Goldbergs feel it's important to reward employees for hard work. They even go above and beyond holding it at a nice restaurant, giving gifts and recognizing those who work tirelessly for Skyline. Actually, there are numerous employees who work countless hours. I've never worked for a company where so many people work so hard without complaining and again, I think it's because of the strong leadership. It's also a company that believes in giving back to the communities around them. It's something Joe and Tom have been doing for years but before I came along, no one knew and that didn't matter to them. For the past four years, they have taken a group of kids from the Boys & Girls Club of Santa Maria Valley to a Los Angeles Dodgers baseball game. Last August, 50 kids took advantage and their tickets, transportation, food and drinks were covered by Skyline's owners. Joe is also very involved in the Rotary Club of Santa Maria and is serving as President Elect this year. This passion for flowers also seems to run in their blood. There are four generations of Goldbergs involved in the family business. Joe and Tom are brothers and owners of the company. Their father, LeRoy Goldberg, still stops by the Oxnard farm almost everyday. Joe and Tom's sister, Susan Robertson, is the Sales Manager of the Oxnard location. Joe's son Patrick runs the Spokane distribution center while his other son, Gerald, runs the Seattle facility. Tom's daughter, Johanna Reyes works in the Skyline Flower sales department in Oxnard. The company is rich in history and it's a great story for another time.  You can also read about it here: http://skylineflowers.com/Family_History.html.  There was also a great article written about the Goldberg family in the January issue of Bloomin' News: http://bloominnews.com/pdfs/BNews-Winter2013-web.pdf. An interesting video that gives you some insight into Skyline's history: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5FJldlHM7NE. So, is the success of a business due to those laws of attraction everyone talks about? Will good deeds be rewarded with good? I'm not sure, Skyline has had its ups and downs like many other companies and for that matter, like many people in life. Either way, some of these things seem to be playing into this recipe for a business that's thriving in this tough economy. At the very least, I hope to have opened your eyes to the way some Californians run their businesses. It truly is the small things that make a big difference!  We are always posting lots of good information about our company on our social media sites. Here's a link that will make it easy for you to find them and connect with us: http://skylineflowers.com/Social_Media.html. Valentine's promo:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-NfC0_eol68