Albin Hagstrom & Son, known today as one of the nation’s top producers of Leatherleaf Fern and other cut foliages, is a fourth and fifth generation family business, located in our hometown of Pierson, Florida, colloquially known as the “Fern Capital of the World,” for almost 100 years.
Five generations ago, our business was started in 1928 by our namesake, Mr. Albin Hagstrom, who began growing and selling Plumosus Fern on a small plot of land in Pierson, in the days of transport by rail and ship. Later, joined four generations ago by son Raiford, word began to spread of quality cut foliages, grown by Albin and his son, available to be shipped across the country from a small town in Florida, the business began to grow and the name “Albin Hagstrom & Son” became synchronous to the name of a leader in the cut foliage industry.
As years went by and the floral industry began to change, notably from the availability of shipping via truck and air freight, so did our business, where the number of acres used for production, and foliages grown and shipped over the years increased. The family in the business began to grow as well, where three generations ago, Mr. Richard Hagstrom, Mr. Morris Hagstrom and Mr. Ray Hagstrom, all sons of Raiford, took over the family business as it grew larger than ever.
In the 1990s and 2000s, from rising demand and the abundance of resources and climate available in the Pierson area, our business began lines of Christmas wreaths and garlands during the holiday season, plus a selection of garlands, handmade from greenery grown by us, that are some of our most popular products today. These years also marked the entrance of the fourth generation of the Hagstrom Family into the business, with Richard’s son, Erik, and Morris’ son and Richard’s nephew, Lars, entering the business to lead alongside Richard.
Today at Albin Hagstrom & Son, Richard, Erik and Lars, along with several younger members of the family as the fifth generation, manage a team of nearly 100 employees, many of whom who have also been with the business for 20, 30 or even over 40 years, are responsible for the production, processing, sales, distribution and marketing of nearly 50 varieties of foliage produced from hundreds of acres, shipped all around the world.
