An O’Donals worker owner in front of rhododendron saplings at the nursery. O’Donal’s Nursery
O’Donal’s worker-owned nursery. O’Donal’s Nursery
O’Donal’s Nursery of Scarborough has entered a fresh chapter in its long history, becoming a worker-owned cooperative. Founded in 1953 by Royce and Selma O’Donal, this family-owned business has been a cornerstone of the community for generations.
Nestled on 10 acres of picturesque land in Scarborough, O’Donal’s Nursery has cultivated a reputation as a trusted source for high-quality plant material. Its vast size, extensive inventory, and the expertise of its staff have made it a go-to destination for gardening needs.
Jeffery O’Donal bought the nursery from his parents in 2006. Upon announcing his retirement, he said he wanted to keep the nursery ownership in the hands of the stake holders, the employees.
Rather than selling to an out-of-state buyer or shuttering the business, O’Donal decided to keep things close to home. He reached out to the Cooperative Development Institute (CDI) to explore how he could sell the business directly to its most invested stakeholders: the employees. Nearly half of the O’Donals staff had been with the business for ten or more years, and 22 employees signed on to form a cooperative to purchase the nursery together. Working alongside O’Donal and CDI, they successfully completed the transition to a worker-owned cooperative this past spring.
The transformation of O’Donal’s into a worker cooperative may have flown under the radar for some of its customers. Nicholas Vacchiano, one of the dedicated worker-owners, took great care to ensure that the essence of the nursery, cherished by the community for decades, remains unchanged. The goal was for customers to continue feeling the same familiarity when they step into O’Donal’s.
“I’m not sure most customers really realize that O’Donal’s is now completely employee-owned, or what it even means to be a worker cooperative,” Vacchiano said. “Both Jeff and the employees wanted people to feel like they were coming back to the same nursery that they had been visiting since they were kids. It was important to everyone in the transition that O’Donal’s remains the same O’Donal’s that people know and love.”
The journey towards a worker cooperative was a learning experience for all involved. “We are still learning daily what it means to be a worker cooperative,” Vacchiano said. “Running a business is complicated and it’s something none of us have ever done before. We have lots still to learn. It’s a steep learning curve, but O’Donal’s has very dedicated employees that care lots about the place that they work and that seems like the most important part of running a worker cooperative.”
“We just want people to see O’Donal’s as the same place it has always been. It’s a special place and becoming a worker cooperative was the best possible way to preserve that,” Vacchiano said.
While change is in the air, the roots of community, quality, and tradition that have defined the nursery for nearly 70 years remain firmly planted.
O’Donal’s Nursery is located at 6 County Road in Scarborough.
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