ALEXANDRIA – Two men who, through decades of quiet leadership, embody the highest possible levels of integrity, service and commitment to excellence, have received the highest honor in the floral industry: Harrison “Red” Kennicott, III, AAF, and the late Todd Bachman were named to the Floriculture Hall of Fame by the Society of American Florists (SAF) during its 126th Annual Convention. Kennicott is CEO of Kennicott Brothers in Chicago. Bachman was president of Bachman's, Inc., in Minneapolis. The Hall of Fame is reserved for individuals who have made a permanent and significant contribution to the advancement of floriculture. The announcement was the highlight of an evening of honors presented during SAF's Industry Awards Dinner on Sept. 23 in Orlando.
Jim Leider, AAF, of Leider Horticultural Companies, Inc., in Buffalo Grove, Ill, presided over Bachman's induction ceremony. The former SAF president and Hall of Fame member called the moment "bittersweet…because senseless tragedy befell a selfless leader whose life was grounded in generosity, good humor and integrity.” Bachman died while attending the 2008 Olympics in Beijing. “Countless industry members could talk to you about Todd’s business acumen,” said Leider, and just as many would laud Bachman for the way he treated everyone “with respect, dignity and compassion…. Whether it was to his family, his business, the industry or to his community, Todd’s unwavering commitment to do the right thing was the bedrock on which he lived his life." Barbara Bachman accepted the honor for her late husband.
The powerful contributions of Red Kennicott were noted by SAF Awards Committee Chairman Bob Luthultz, AAF, of Pittsburgh Cut Flower Company in Pittsburgh, Pa. Calling Kennicott a champion of diplomacy, an advocate for cooperation and a master of perseverance in the floral industry for more than 50 years, Luthultz said: “Kennicott’s influence is everywhere, even if his fingerprints are not…. He has quietly helped to improve facets of every trade channel without asking for recognition, acclaim or material gain.” Through his particular style of low-key, confident leadership, Luthultz said, "Kennicott put into action his philosophy that great businesses and industries are not built on overnight successes but through everyday business decisions made strategically, thoughtfully and always honestly."
Read more about the 2010 Hall of Fame honorees below.
For more information or to nominate an industry member for SAF's Floriculture Hall of Fame Award, visit www.safnow.org/awards or contact Shelley Estersohn, (800) 336-4743, awards@safnow.org.
Todd Bachman
Todd Bachman literally grew up in the family business, riding his bike to and from the company’s main building as a kid. After graduating from the University of Minnesota, Bachman returned home to the business to work alongside his father Lloyd at a new growing range on the Bachman property. Eventually, he started working in the main store, demonstrating a strong work ethic, business savvy and a commitment to excellence that set the standard for employees and family members alike. When it came time for the leadership to pass from the third to the fourth generation, there was no question that Todd Bachman would take the lead.
As the oldest member of the family’s fourth generation, Bachman moved into the role of president in 1989 at a time when his characteristic steadiness, patience and dedication proved particularly important. The 80’s and 90’s brought significant business challenges and new competition to all segments of the floral industry, and Bachman quickly realized that the decade would test Bachman’s core business – retail mall locations. When Todd assumed the presidency, Bachman’s had seven locations in area malls, but sales were down and management companies courted national chains instead of local vendors.
It was a critical time for the company, and under Todd's leadership family members came together to chart a new course. They set their sights on creating larger garden center, gift and floral centers, and crafted a strategy to transition from renting properties to owning them outright. By 2000, the company had fully reinvented itself and had revitalized its business. As one family member said: “The transition was quite complicated; it would have tested anyone’s leadership. We needed someone steady at the helm and we had that and much more in Todd.”
Bachman's business acumen was evident on a daily basis, but for many his greatest attribute had less to do with his handling of specific challenges and everything to do with how he treated family members, friends, colleagues and employees with respect, dignity and compassion. He was a natural at making others feel appreciated. While he put in long hours in the family business, he also was the first to recognize other people’s sacrifices and contributions.
Beyond his family’s business, Bachman held leadership positions in many industry organizations including SAF, the American Floral Endowment, the Minnesota Nursery and Landscape Association Foundation and Hortica. Of his service in these organizations, colleagues have said that even when the odds were stacked against him — when an organization lacked proper funding or an initiative required extra hours — Todd remained determined and committed to the goals and objectives he was working on.
"Commitment is a word that surfaces time and time again when people talk about Todd," said Jim Leider. "Today, two years after his death, the family misses him every day. But Todd’s wife Barbara and his three daughters have courageously moved forward in the face of adversity," carrying on the legacy Bachman started years ago working alongside his father in the growing range. One of the most telling tributes to Todd may have been the Bachman family’s decision to keep its stores open after Todd’s death in Beijing, Leider said. "By doing so, the family sent a message that could have come directly from Todd: 'We have an obligation to the people we serve and the employees we support to stay open for business.' I think that’s exactly the way Todd would have wanted it.”
Harrison “Red” Kennicott III, AAF
Through his particular style of quiet, confident leadership, Red Kennicott has lived a life far greater than the sum of its parts. “If you try to dissect Red’s career, you’ll find mostly small steps – compromises and meetings, support and dedication to an idea or organization,’ said Charles F. Kremp, 3rd, AAF, a former SAF president. ‘But if you look at his life and his long career, you see a man with a successful marriage, family and business and a reputation for making an impact. His success doesn’t play out in four or five bullet-point accomplishments. His life is about small, committed actions that have made, and still make, a very big difference.”
Kennicott’s influence can be found across the floral industry. His actions throught his 50-year career have been rooted in a deeply-held belief that great companies are created through strategic, thoughtful business decisions, made with absolute honesty, day after day.Thanks to his thorough understanding of the global industry, wholesalers, growers, retailers and suppliers routinely seek out Kennicott's counsel on major strategic initiatives from transportation, marketing and public relations, importing and product trends, to more tactical but no less important issues such as customer service, human resources and operations management. Working quietly and without concern for recognition or personal gain, he has helped to improve every segment of the trade.
Kennicott currently serves as chairman of the American Floral Endowment Board of Trustees, but he has held many other positions of leadership in the industry. He has been the president of SAF, the Wholesale Florist & Florist Supplier Association (WF&FSA) and the Illinois Allied Florists Association; and he has served on many boards, including those of SAF, WF&FSA, AFE, the Seeley Conference, and Roses Inc.
Creating an industry-wide promotion effort that encourages consumers to buy more flowers and plants is a cause close to Kennicott’s heart. He was an early supporter of both Floraboard and PromoFlor, national initiatives requiring the support of Congress to help promote flowers and plants to consumers. He subsequently was a founding member of the Floral Marketing Funding Initiative Committee, a group created to find resources to fund a national marketing campaign. Despite several attempts at a unified effort, the industry has yet to craft the perfect promotion plan, one that’s comprehensive and sustainable. But while Kennicott’s resolve has been tested, he’s never given up on a cause that he believes will benefit the industry today and far into the future. “He has never lost sight of the fact that, for all of us to succeed, we need more consumers to buy more flowers,” Kremp said. “He keeps talking to people about promoting flowers, and for that reason, he brings people together. Even on complicated issues. He never gives up.”
Kennicott Brothers Company is one of the oldest businesses in Illinois. In 1836, John Kennicott, Red’s great-great grandfather, used a federal land grant to found The Grove Nursery, the first major nursery in northern Illinois. In 1881, Red’s great-grandfather, Amasa Kennicott, started Kennicott Brothers Company with his brother Flint to sell The Grove’s flowers and plants. In the process, the brothers became the Midwest’s first floral wholesalers. Today, with its network of farms in the U.S. and South America and eight distribution centers, Kennicott Brothers is one of the largest floral distributors in the country.
Kennicott joined the family business professionally after graduating summa cum laude in 1959 from Michigan State University’s Honor College. That summer, he married his wife, Katie. Post-college, he was front-and-center as the company grew — adding additional locations in the Chicago area and moving its headquarters, most recently in 1999, to accommodate the new technologies and challenges of the floral industry. In 2000, he helped transition Kennicott Brothers into an employee-owned business (ESOP). With his son, Steve, Kennicott recently launched another company, Kennicott Kuts, which grows peonies through a network of partner farms from Chile to Alaska.
He is also dedicated to many philanthropic organizations, both within the floral industry and far beyond. Since 1997, he and Katie have organized two clothing drives to benefit Colombians displaced by guerilla fighters. The drives required them to find the clothes and organize delivery to remote areas — a challenging task they were able to accomplish largely through force of will and the assistance of many industry friends. Closer to home, Red frequently takes on the role of mentor, guiding members of younger generations through school and into fulfilling careers – often in the floral industry.
Kennicott regularly donates flowers to local schools and is currently advising his church on a new garden project for children. He and Katie also are devoted fundraisers for Batten Disease research. Recognizing his family’s long history, Red, who has five children, 15 grandchildren and three great-grandchildren, remains committed to The Grove, the Kennicott Homestead that served as the springboard for Kennicott Brothers Company. The home and its grounds are now a registered National Historic Monument managed by the Glenview Park District.
For his dedication to the floral industry, Red Kennicott has been recognized with many prestigious honors, among them the SAF Paul Ecke Jr. Award, and the American Institute of Floral Designers’ Award of Merit. In 2001, following the footsteps of his father, Harrison Kennicott, Jr., 20 years earlier, he received the WF&FSA Leland T. Kintzele Award. This year, Red once again joins his father — a 1980 honoree — as a member of the SAF Hall of Fame.
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For photographs from the 2010 Industry Awards Dinner and SAF Orlando 2010, contact Shelley Estersohn, (800) 336-4743, communications@safnow.org
Source: Society of American Florists
