Abundant Business & Industry
Small Business Spotlight:
Tree Enterprises
Tree Enterprises is a small, family-owned textile business in Rockingham County that began producing custom crib sheets for daycare centers more than 30 years ago. Jim Jefferson, who started the company to provide sheets for a friend’s child care center, made and sold the sheets out of the basement of his Stoneville home. “Those sheets were cut out by hand on our kitchen table from Fieldcrest sheeting that we bought from the “thirds and worse” box at the factory outlet. The colors were the worst of the worst, but the quality was the best of the best,” said Tish Terry, Jim’s daughter, and current owner of Tree Enterprises. It was that high-quality sheeting that grew Tree Enterprises’ reputation and success, allowing the company to be run by the next generation now. Jim’s daughter Tish Terry took over the family business about ten years ago and is growing the company, doubling the sales over time.
When Fieldcrest closed, Tish began importing sheeting fabric from China that is pre-sewn for the final step of adding locally-made elastic. The decision allowed her to expand the company’s product line and now offer a range of colors, including three exclusive custom prints that her daughter, Alexa Terry, designed. “The great news is that we no longer get the “thirds” in colors and now have 10, in-stock solid colors, plus the custom prints,” added Tish. Tree Enterprises now offers a diverse variety of specialty products to complement the sheeting line. The company manufactures nearly 200 variations of 14 different products, which includes sheets, burp cloths, blankets, pillows, play mats and more. Tish has also grown the business by expanding into more child care centers over a broader geographic base. She also developed a significant business by supplying US Military child care centers. She continues to expand Tree Enterprises into new markets and most recently earned several national Head Start accounts as well as new business from
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franchise daycare centers. All this growth resulted in a new facility for Tree Enterprises about two years ago when Tish built a new facility in Reidsville. The company has also added three part-time positions. Though the company’s competition tends to be large commodity suppliers, Tish has been able to differentiate the products based on high quality— higher end materials designed to last longer and be easier to clean and reuse. Customer service and customer relations are also essential to the company’s growth and the perfect complement to its premium product line. “High-quality sheeting is what our customers have grown to expect from us and we will not deviate from that expectation from our manufacturers now. Ours is a true family business, and when you call you will likely talk to me, my mom or my daughter Alexa,” said Tish. To find out more about Tree Enterprises and its products, visit www.treeenterprises.com.