Rohrer Seeds, a 4th generation family business established in 1919, has been operating out of the same Smoketown, Pennsylvania building since 1923. Much has changed, however, since P.L. Rohrer started his mail-order business. Together with his brother John, P.L. sold vegetable, flower and farm seed, through the Great Depression and two World Wars. As his great-grandson Doug Rohrer, now the company’s president, pointed out, “Through good times and bad, people need to grow food.”

When P.L. died suddenly his son Willis took over the business, making it a true family effort. Brothers Clarence and Petey ran the garden department; Earl, the youngest brother, worked the agricultural end of the business; and sister Mary helped out where she could. At that time the company owned a bulk fertilizer business as well, and their customer base was 90% commercial agriculture. But as interest rates skyrocketed in the 70s, profitability suffered. Something had to change.

By the time Doug Rohrer came to the business in 1995, his father, Gordon, had been handling the accounting for a couple of decades. Realizing that an up-to-date computer system was a necessity, Gordon called on his son, who had majored in math and gone on to work in the actuarial field.

“Those early times were enjoyable,” recalls Doug. “I would start the day by going into my dad’s office and we would discuss sports, which we both follow.” Thirteen years after starting, Doug became president. “Lots of the people here still think of me as the tech guy, though,” he laughed. Gordon retired just last year, leaving Doug as the sole family member at Rohrer Seeds.

“We’ve needed to adapt and change in order to stick around for 100 years and counting,” said Doug. The company still serves a lot of the “plain people,” which he defined as the Amish and Mennonite communities, but the business now is largely wholesale home and garden, with a robust retail component. “It’s totally flipped around,” Doug noted.

“We got out of selling fertilizer back in the ‘80s, and the commercial agriculture business is now about 10% of the total, down from a high of 90%. In addition, we’re looking at new markets and ideas. We’ve added organics to our line, and are beginning to explore the industrial hemp market.”

“We’ve established a culture of empowering employees to make decisions, so that they can serve our customers well,” explained Doug. This is abundantly on display in the store and in the warehouse. Earl, a seasonal employee who returns year after year to help during busy times, shared the mechanics of his seed packing equipment with great enthusiasm. A relative newcomer at 14 years—some of Rohrer 23 year-round employees have been with the company for more that 40 years—he takes delight in creating pulleys, chutes, and other adaptations to make his work go more smoothly.

At home, you might find Doug Rohrer out in his own garden. “I love to try something new every year. A couple of the staple items that I grow are Shikou Japanese Eggplant, Chef Choice Orange Tomato, and okra.” He also puts in a lot of family time, involving himself in cross-country meets, and soccer practices and games. “In the midst of my three kids’ non-stop activities, my wife and I try to get a nice long walk in with our golden-doodle dog as often as we can.” 

I enjoy coming to work every day,” Doug said. “There’s great camaraderie here in this company, and in the business in general. It’s not a cutthroat environment. And I like the ebb and flow of the work, with times of intense work followed by more relaxed periods that allow us to breathe.” “It’s cyclical, like nature.”