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"It's temperature and humidity controlled, it's way cool,” says Richard Chamberlin, Harris Seeds President.

Millions of flower and vegetable seeds, worth millions of dollars, are stored in what Harris Seeds calls its dry room, similar to a bank vault.

"There’s a lot of money sitting here at any given time," said Chamberlin.

The bulk of storage eventually makes its way to the germination lab where its germ tested.

Chamberlin said,"Nothing goes out our door without germ testing first."

When its test approved, the product goes to packaging, and orders are then shipped.

"A good share of our business is with the smaller grower. We actively pursue the customer that nobody talks to," says Chamberlin.

A relatively small company, Harris Seeds continues to grow. The business moved into a new building last year in Chili and has already outgrown its space. It employs 40 full time and part time people along with 50 seasonal employees.

Much of its revenue is generated in about five months from January through May. The company publishes half a million catalogs a year. The staff also spends time on the road, selecting the finest of new vegetables and flowers to sell to its customers.

"In anticipation of spring is finding new varieties and bringing new products to the marketplace. We have a very active web site and an email program that goes to professional growers as well as home gardeners," says Chamberlin.

Harris Seeds has nearly 50-thousand customers across the country, with 30 to 40 percent of its' business along the North East coast where name recognition is said to be strong. The company is also present in Alaska and Hawaii.

"We can effectively call people across the country and people that no one, no one really pays any attention to and to talk to them about their products and services and how we can help them and it's been working. We believe in service, it's not just a motto, it's something that we do, and it's something that has to be done to make our business grow," says Chamberlin.

Harris Seeds says it plans to continue to strive for what the company became widely known for and that is, offer customers a quality product at a fair price, and they will return.

Harris Seeds