Saunders Bros.
We had already scheduled this film to be posted this week when we learned of the recent passing of family patriarch, Paul Saunders. In celebration of the legacy he leaves behind, we share this glimpse into the Saunders Brothers business and offer our condolences to his family and friends in this time.
Keeping a business alive and thriving for fifty years is a difficult task, but the Saunders Brothers have achieved over double that. Since 1915, The Saunders Brothers have been providing plants and fruits to the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains.
Of course, when you’re running a family business for this long, you’re bound to hit road bumps along the way. But Tom Saunders thinks the satisfaction of the work outweighs those struggles.
“We've had challenges over the years…solving the problems is just satisfying. Working with people and beautifying the Earth…it's peaceful, it's peaceful. It does a lot for the soul.”
They are known best for growing boxwoods, but peaches are another staple for the Saunders Brothers and happen to be where a lot of the brothers got their start.
“I just think it's really been fun to see the business grow and change over the years. When we were in high school…peaches was our thing…And then as the nursery began to grow, the role of the nursery took on a larger and larger part of our business,” Jim Saunders says.
The business has spanned three generations so far and is already starting to take on members of the fourth, as Robert Saunders says.
“The next generation coming back makes me love what I do a little bit more because I think I'm fixing a way for them to have a great living. One of my daughters is already here, and I wouldn't be surprised if some more of my kids end up back in it.”
All of the Saunders family credits their grandfather for building the business that they’ve been able to carry on. He instilled a love for plants that will continue to be passed on for more generations of the family.
“My grandfather really created this company, and what we're creating here, what they've created here is just so beautiful…there's an innate responsibility to just continue the tradition.”
A film by Josh Wingard.
Produced by Kendahl Huber.
