That's where we would pile up corn or watermelons. Curran and Birge have since added on three times to their two-story headquarters by enclosing porches and constructing new ones. Only 15 percent of the space is dedicated to the retail operation. The latest expansion began on Memorial Day on the East and West sides of the building. It will yield 6,000 more square feet, mostly for the fish department that was started three years ago.
Trucks make runs to the Boston fish market four or five days per week now.
Our philosophy is we buy first from Vermont farmers to promote sustainable agriculture and support the landscape in Vermont. Taking the argument full circle, he says when tourists come to Vermont for its rural countryside, they dine in restaurants, which make up the majority of Black River's clients. In fact, Black River owes much of its growth to chefs, who change jobs every five years on average, Curran says. Each time they switched to a new restaurant, they'd take Black River with them, he says. Keeping those restaurants stocked with freshly cut flowers has been one of the main ways the company has branched out in the past two years.