HOME HISTORY FLORAL GREENHOUSES SYSTEMS

A Brief History of Westbrook

William Vermeer Sr., founder of Wesbtrook

Westbrook has its humble beginnings in the year 1959 when William Vermeer Sr. (my Opa) founded a small local greenhouse operation in the town of Grimsby. The very first Greenhouse of Westbrook produced mainly orchids, cut chrysanthemums, cut roses and sweetheart roses, cut lilies, cut carnations and finally a variety of potted plants. As the years went on, the company began to grow and thrive, ever producing more cut flowers and eventually opening more greenhouse locations. Current production area of the different greenhouses is over 30 acres. After the success of Plant 1, Plant 2 was opened off the south service road in Beamsville, and is used mainly for the production of potted plants. The opening of Plant 2 was followed by Plant 3, located beside the shipping center on the other side of the highway right next to Lake Ontario. The final greenhouse operation (Plant 4) has been most recently opened about 6 years ago, and produces mainly orchids. On top of the greenhouses, there is also Westbrook Systems which manufactures greenhouses, Westbrook Logistics, which ships our product out all around Canada and even the US, and Westbrook Floral which is the office location, and the heart of the company.

A family operation

Here is a table describing the different locations, their jobs, and which family member runs each section of the company.

Location	Manager	Purpose
Westbrook Floral	P.J. Vermeer	Westbrook floral is the head office of Westbrook, Located in Grimsby, Ontario. Sales representatives have their offices here, as well as the company's top management.
Westbrook Systems	Arch Vermeer	Westbrook Systems is located just off the south service road in Beamsville, Ontario. It is the greenhouse manufacturing portion of the company
Plant 1	-	Plant 1 has recently been torn down, as production levels were no longer efficient. Flower product that was originally produced here was moved to Plant 2 and in the place of where Plant 1, the first operation of Westbrook stood, is now a new development of subdivisions. The development is named Westbrook Gardens in honour of the company.
Plant 2	Ian Vermeer	Plant 2 is our largest greenhouse operation, in charge of potted plants such as roses, hydrangeas, violets, tropicals, ivy, large trops, mums, poinsettias, and much more.
Plant 3	Hemo Oosterveen	Plant 3 is located right on the edge of Lake Ontario, and produces potted plants such as tulips, roses and mums.
Plant 4	Dave Bergsheof	Located between Grimsby and Beamsville, Plant 4 is the most modernized greenhouse operation within Westbrook, and produces mainly orchids and other tropical potted plants.
Shipping Centre	Dave Vermeer, William Vermeer	Westbrook Logistics is located right beside Plant 3 on the other side of the highway from the Plant 2 operation. This location ships out all our product, including cuts, potted plants, and floral supplies to all Canadian and American retail customer locations.