Henry F. Michell Company
The Henry F. Michell Company is a U.S. wholesale horticultural broker and distributor, founded in 1890, supplying flowering plants, plugs, nursery stock, seed, and related materials to commercial greenhouses, nurseries, landscapers, and garden centers nationwide through a regional field sales team and shop.michells.com online portal.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1890
- HeadquartersKing Of Prussia, United States
- Headcount51–100
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What Henry F. Michell Company does
The Henry F. Michell Company, founded in 1890 and headquartered in King of Prussia, Pennsylvania, operates as a horticultural broker and wholesale distributor serving commercial production greenhouses, nursery growers, landscapers, and garden centers across the United States. The company maintains a 4,000+ SKU portfolio spanning flowering vegetative annuals, hydrangeas, chrysanthemums, nursery stock (container, field grown, bare root), perennials, plugs, poinsettias, seed (vegetable, flower, herb), tropicals, and exclusive product programs. Supply is sourced through a curated network of partners, including exclusive distribution agreements with Burchell Nursery, Alexander Hay Greenhouses, and C.L.I. Colors, alongside relationships with 30+ greenhouse breeders (e.g., American Takii, Syngenta Flowers, Dümmen Orange, Pan American Seed) and 20+ plug suppliers (e.g., KubePak, PlugConnection, Speedling, Walters Gardens).
Revenue is generated through transaction-based wholesale distribution of plant materials and supplies to commercial growers. The go-to-market model combines a regional field sales force that assigns each grower a dedicated customer service representative with an e-commerce ordering portal at shop.michells.com offering instant availability on key product lines, supported by annual digital flipbook catalogs. New customers must complete a wholesale credit application with sales tax exemption forms; pricing is not publicly disclosed and credit approval typically takes three to five business days. The business has been continuously family-led for four generations, with Henry F. Michell 4th (Rick) currently serving as President and CEO and Rob McHale as National Sales Manager. The underlying technology stack is conventional commerce and CRM tooling rather than proprietary platform technology; the company's central capability is its aggregation role between breeders and a fragmented base of commercial growers.
Henry F. Michell Company firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Henry F. Michell Company
- Legal name
- The Henry F. Michell Company
- Website
- https://michells.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1890
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 51–100 employees
- Short description
- The Henry F. Michell Company is a U.S. wholesale horticultural broker and distributor, founded in 1890, supplying flowering plants, plugs, nursery stock, seed, and related materials to commercial greenhouses, nurseries, landscapers, and garden centers nationwide through a regional field sales team and shop.michells.com online portal.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Henry F. Michell Company industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Wholesale Horticultural Distribution
- akta.pro primary industry
- Landscape Plant & Nursery Stock Wholesalers (Grower-Wholesalers) (AFAGAHAM)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- Greenhouse Floriculture (Cut Flowers) (AFAGAHAD)
Keywords
Where Henry F. Michell Company is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- King Of Prussia
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
Henry F. Michell Company business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Supply Chain, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- Wholesale Horticultural Distribution / Brokerage: The Henry F. Michell Company operates as a horticultural broker and wholesale distributor. The company partners with top-tier vendors worldwide to provide quality material for the nursery and greenhouse industry, including greenhouse liners of annuals and perennials, nursery stock liners, finished foliage and citrus, and annual, perennial, vegetable and herb seed. Revenue is generated through the sale of wholesale plant materials and supplies to commercial growers.
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels3 records
Marketing channels3 records
Henry F. Michell Company product offering
Product offeringCore offering
The Henry F. Michell Company operates as a horticultural broker and wholesale distributor, sourcing greenhouse liners of annuals and perennials, nursery stock liners, finished foliage and citrus, and annual, perennial, vegetable and herb seed from top-tier global breeders and growers. It sells these wholesale plant materials, plugs, and nursery supplies to commercial growers (production greenhouses, nursery growers, landscapers, and garden centers) in the United States through a regional sales-rep model and a B2B e-commerce portal.
Product overview
Henry F. Michell Company is America's Wholesale Horticultural Distributor established in 1890, operating as a horticultural broker that connects commercial growers with quality plant material. The company's product portfolio consists of multiple product categories that work together to serve wholesale production greenhouses, nursery growers, landscapers, and garden centers nationwide. Core offerings include Flowering Vegetative Annuals (4000+ varieties), Plugs, Poinsettias, Hydrangeas, Chrysanthemums/Mums, Perennials, Nursery Stock, Seed, Tropicals, and Exclusives. The company provides greenhouse liners of annuals and perennials, nursery stock liners, finished foliage and citrus, and an extensive variety of annual, perennial, vegetable and herb seed. A regional customer service program allows growers to work with dedicated representatives to source products across the entire portfolio.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Flowering Vegetative Annuals A wholesale line of over 4,000 different flowering annual plants supplied to Michell's commercial grower customers and sourced from leading growers such as Four Star, Natural Beauty, Lucas Greenhouse, Mast Young Plants and Pleasant View.
- Hydrangeas Wholesale hydrangeas available from unrooted cuttings to finished plants, including mophead and lacecap varieties in various colors, sourced from vendors such as Dahlstrom & Watt, Kamps Greenhouse and Kurt Weiss.
- Chrysanthemums (Mums) Wholesale chrysanthemum cuttings (unrooted and rooted) for garden, pot, and cut mum production, sourced from the top three mum breeders in the world for world-class genetics.
- Nursery Stock Wholesale nursery stock including shade, evergreen and flowering trees, shrubs, finished perennials, edibles and citrus, sourced from a nationwide network of suppliers spanning Connecticut to Oregon and Georgia to California.
- Perennials Wholesale perennial flowers and plants offered from unrooted cuttings to bare root, sourced from suppliers worldwide and including exclusive perennial varieties with custom cell sizes.
- Plugs Wholesale flowering annual plant plugs — over 4,000 items available from 20 different suppliers nationwide — with custom plug programs and a range of plug sizes to meet specific grower needs.
- Poinsettias Wholesale poinsettia assortment sourced from large-scale suppliers including Syngenta Flowers, Selecta One and Dümmen Orange, featuring dependable genetics and visually striking varieties.
- Seed Wholesale vegetable, flower and herb seeds from over 30 greenhouse breeders including American Takii, Hem Genetics, Sakata America, Syngenta Flowers and Pan American Seed, with 99.9% purity and compliance with state and federal quality standards.
- Tropicals Wholesale tropical plant program including azaleas, cut flowers, chrysanthemums, dish gardens, geraniums, foliage and succulents, sourced from exclusive partners such as Alexander Hay Greenhouses.
- Exclusives An exclusive wholesale product program spanning flowering annuals, perennials, tropical plants, miniature gardens, plastic containers and accessory products, made available through strategic partnerships with Burchell Nursery, Alexander Hay Greenhouses, and C.L.I. Colors.
Companies that use Henry F. Michell Company
Customer profileSegments4 records
Ideal customer profiles4 records
Henry F. Michell Company technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Henry F. Michell Company partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
25 partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.
- Burchell NurserycoreExclusive partnership providing customers with access to high-quality nursery products including berries, citrus plants, fruit trees, lavender, olives and rosemary. The partnership is designed to give customers the highest quality options in tropical plants and miniature gardens.
- Alexander Hay GreenhousescoreExclusive partnership providing customers with azaleas, cut flowers, chrysanthemums, dish gardens, foliage, geraniums, and succulents. The exclusive product areas span tropical plants and miniature gardens.
- C.L.I. ColorscoreExclusive partnership providing customers with access to exclusive flowering plants. The exclusive product areas span flowering annuals, perennials, tropical plants, and accessory products.
- Four StarminorLeading grower providing flowering annuals to Michell's wholesale customers. One of the many growers Michell's works with for the flowering annuals product line.
- Natural BeautyminorGrower providing flowering annuals to Michell's wholesale customers.
- Lucas GreenhouseminorGrower providing flowering annuals and mum combos to Michell's wholesale customers. Catalog partner producing flipbook materials.
- Mast Young PlantsminorGrower providing flowering annuals to Michell's wholesale customers. Produces trial garden reports and seasonal catalogs.
- Pleasant ViewminorGrower providing flowering annuals to Michell's wholesale customers.
- Syngenta FlowersminorMajor supplier of poinsettias, garden mums, seed, and flowering annuals to Michell's. One of the top 30+ greenhouse breeders partnered with for seed. Produces flipbook catalogs for Michell's.
- Dümmen OrangeminorLarge-scale supplier of poinsettias and perennials to Michell's. Partner producing annuals, perennials, and garden mums catalogs via flipbooks.
- Selecta OneminorSupplier of poinsettias to Michell's wholesale customers.
- American TakiiminorOne of over 30 greenhouse breeders providing vegetable, flower and herb seeds to Michell's wholesale customers.
- Hem GeneticsminorOne of over 30 greenhouse breeders providing vegetable, flower and herb seeds to Michell's wholesale customers.
- Sakata AmericaminorOne of over 30 greenhouse breeders providing vegetable, flower and herb seeds to Michell's wholesale customers.
- Pan American SeedminorOne of over 30 greenhouse breeders providing vegetable, flower and herb seeds to Michell's wholesale customers.
- Dahlstrom & WattminorSupplier of hydrangeas to Michell's, offering unrooted cuttings, rooted liners, prefinshed to finished products.
- Kamps GreenhouseminorSupplier of hydrangeas to Michell's, offering unrooted cuttings, rooted liners, prefinshed to finished products.
- Kurt WeissminorSupplier of hydrangeas to Michell's, offering unrooted cuttings, rooted liners, prefinshed to finished products.
- KubePakminorSupplier of flowering vegetative annuals to Michell's with instant availability through the shop portal.
- PlugConnectionminorSupplier of plugs to Michell's with instant availability through the shop portal.
- SpeedlingminorSupplier of plugs to Michell's with locations in Florida and Georgia. Instant availability through the shop portal.
- Walters GardensminorSupplier of perennials to Michell's with availability documentation provided.
- Pacific Plug & LinerminorSupplier of perennials to Michell's with availability documentation provided.
- Emerald Coast GrowersminorSupplier of perennials to Michell's with availability documentation provided.
- Island Tropical FoliageminorProduces tropical foliage flipbook catalogs for Michell's customers.
Scale indicators5 records
Recent moves10 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Henry F. Michell Company competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Ball Seed Company: Wholesale distributor of seeds, plugs, and young plants serving commercial greenhouse growers across North America. Operates a similar broker/distributor model with comparable product breadth in annuals, perennials, and vegetables — direct competitor for Michell's core customer base.
- Griffin Greenhouse Supplies: Wholesale distributor of greenhouse and nursery supplies, hardgoods, and plant material to commercial growers in the eastern U.S. Comparable B2B distribution model serving greenhouse and nursery customers with similar SKU breadth.
- McHutchison Horticultural Distributors: Long-established horticultural broker and wholesale distributor serving growers with cuttings, liners, and finished plant material. Closely overlaps Michell's product portfolio in flowering plants and nursery stock with comparable brokerage approach.
- Eason Horticultural Resources: Wholesale horticultural broker specializing in cuttings, liners, and plug material for greenhouse and nursery growers. Direct head-to-head competitor in the brokerage segment with overlapping supplier relationships and customer base.
- BFG Supply Co. Wholesale distributor of greenhouse and nursery supplies including plant material, hardgoods, and equipment across the Midwest and eastern U.S. Competes with Michell's on greenhouse supply distribution to commercial growers.
- Hummert International: Wholesale distributor of horticultural supplies, greenhouse equipment, and plant material serving commercial growers and garden centers. Comparable B2B distribution model with multi-category product breadth overlapping Michell's customer segments.
- Fred C. Gloeckner & Company: Long-tenured horticultural broker distributing cuttings, seed, and bulbs to commercial growers. Mirrors Michell's brokerage heritage and supplier-broker model in floriculture and nursery inputs.
Broad incumbents
- Dümmen Orange: One of the world's largest ornamental plant breeders with significant direct-to-grower sales of poinsettias, perennials, and annuals. Both a key Michell's supplier and a structural threat as it expands direct distribution, bypassing the broker layer.
- Syngenta Flowers: Global breeder and supplier of flower seeds and cuttings with direct sales to large growers and retailers. A major Michell's supplier with growing direct distribution that competes with the wholesale broker channel.
Emerging players
- Selecta One: European ornamental breeder with growing North American presence in poinsettias, annuals, and perennials. Sells both through distributors like Michell's and increasingly direct, representing partial overlap and channel competition in select categories.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Henry F. Michell Company social profiles
Digital presenceHenry F. Michell Company financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Henry F. Michell Company leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles2 records
Henry F. Michell Company funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Henry F. Michell Company M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Henry F. Michell Company
What does Henry F. Michell Company do?
The Henry F. Michell Company operates as a horticultural broker and wholesale distributor, sourcing greenhouse liners of annuals and perennials, nursery stock liners, finished foliage and citrus, and annual, perennial, vegetable and herb seed from top-tier global breeders and growers. It sells these wholesale plant materials, plugs, and nursery supplies to commercial growers (production greenhouses, nursery growers, landscapers, and garden centers) in the United States through a regional sales-rep model and a B2B e-commerce portal.
Is Henry F. Michell Company a public or private company?
Henry F. Michell Company is a private company. It is classified as family owned and is currently operating.
When was Henry F. Michell Company founded?
Henry F. Michell Company was founded in 1890. It employs 51 to 100 people.
Where is Henry F. Michell Company based?
Henry F. Michell Company is headquartered in King Of Prussia, United States, in the North America region.
How does Henry F. Michell Company make money?
One revenue line is on record: wholesale Horticultural Distribution / Brokerage.
Who are Henry F. Michell Company's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Ball Seed Company, Griffin Greenhouse Supplies, McHutchison Horticultural Distributors, Eason Horticultural Resources, BFG Supply Co., Hummert International and Fred C. Gloeckner & Company. Broad incumbents are Dümmen Orange and Syngenta Flowers. Selecta One is listed as an emerging player.
Does Henry F. Michell Company have an API?
No public API is recorded for Henry F. Michell Company.
What industry is Henry F. Michell Company in?
Henry F. Michell Company's product category is Wholesale Horticultural Distribution. Its primary akta.pro industry code is AFAGAHAM, Landscape Plant & Nursery Stock Wholesalers (Grower-Wholesalers), with a secondary code of AFAGAHAD, Greenhouse Floriculture (Cut Flowers).