Thanks to Mullica Hill’s award-winning Bast Brothers Garden Center, our Main Street is looking even more picturesque. Get the details of their generous donation and meet Allie and Bert Bast, the delightful couple behind Bast Brothers.
You may have noticed Main Street is looking even more picturesque than usual, thanks to the flowers blooming in the urns lining the street. This added charm was made possible by a generous donation from Mullica Hill’s Bast Brothers Garden Center, owned by Allie and Robert (Bert) Bast and their family.
Mayor Lou Manzo expressed our community’s gratitude: “On behalf of our residents, we are so grateful for this generous donation from Bast Brothers Garden Center owners Allie and Bert Bast and their family. Bast Brothers has been a wonderful corporate citizen, and the Bast family, now with four generations living in Harrison Township, has also been pillars of our community.”
The story of Bast Brothers Garden Center is a testament to the Bast family’s love, faith, and commitment to our community. It begins with entrepreneur Bob Bast, Bert’s father and the founder of Foreverlawn of South Jersey, a local artificial turf company. Bob envisioned transforming an abandoned historic farm on Ellis Mill Road into a family garden center. He pitched the idea to his wife Janet, Allie, Bert, and Bert’s brother Tim and his wife Kelly. At the time, Allie and Bert were preparing for a move to Wisconsin. Allie, a Fashion Institute of Technology graduate, was taking a job with Kohl’s Department Stores at their headquarters in Milwaukee.
Allie recalls, “I had just landed my dream job, and neither Bert nor I had any interest or experience in gardening. I imagined us surrounded by a bunch of dead plants…”
After a few years in Wisconsin, the couple started thinking about growing their family. Allie and Bert, both Clearview grads who grew up in Harrison Township with close-knit families, share a deep commitment to their faith and cherish their community. They wanted the same experience for their children.
Bert shared, “We are deeply connected to our faith, family, and community. The idea of our children missing out on this weighed on us. We prayed for guidance.”
Over the years, the Bast family continued to have discussions regarding opening a garden center. When Allie and Bert decided to move back home, the family purchased the Ellis Mill Road property. Bert, the garden center’s first employee, began cleaning up the grounds and renovating the buildings. This was a perfect fit, as he had a passion for construction and a degree in Construction Management. Meanwhile, Allie continued her fashion career with a job at URBN (Urban Outfitters & Free People).
Bast Brothers Garden Center opened in the Fall of 2014, starting modestly with Christmas wreaths and grave blankets. By the Spring of 2015, they expanded to include outdoor pottery, perennials, trees, and shrubs. As their business grew, so did Allie and Bert’s family, with the blessing of their first child, daughter Parker, in 2017. After five years, Bert was able to draw a small salary, while Allie managed Bast Brothers’ marketing alongside her full-time job at URBN.
Reflecting on this time, Bert told us, “Although challenging, these were joyous times. We were building a business, working together, and starting the family we dreamed of.”
Soon the couple faced another difficult decision: should Allie leave her successful career in fashion to join Bert in the business full-time? There was a lot to consider, as their second child was on the way. Once again, their prayers were answered, and their blessings continued. Allie left the security of her corporate job, and son Robbie (Robert Bast III) arrived in 2020.
Allie shared, “I had often envisioned Bert and me strolling through the beautiful grounds of the garden center with our children laughing and playing. I am grateful to have realized this countless times.”
Today, Bast Brothers Garden Center is much more than just a garden center. It is a boutique nursery, home décor, and gift destination known for its vast selection of locally grown perennials, trees, shrubs, vegetables, herbs, and a variety of indoor plants. Alongside their unique home goods, kitchenware, hand-poured soy candles, local honey, and an array of gift items, they offer services like local plant delivery, commercial planter design and installation, residential landscape design, and an in-store potting station.
Allie and Bert run the business, with Allie overseeing marketing and merchandising of hard goods and Bert overseeing operations and live goods. Their unwavering commitment to “People First” is evident in their exceptional customer service. It has certainly paid off; Bast Brothers Garden Center has been recognized as the “Best Garden Center in Gloucester County” for six consecutive years and the “Best Nursery in South Jersey” by South Jersey Magazine for the past two years.
The Bast family’s well-deserved blessings continue; Allie and Bert are expecting their third child in August!
1214 Ellis Mill Rd, Mullica Hill
856-612-5344
www.bastbrothers.com
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