ABOVE: Austin Philipp, Anna Mundahl, LaNette and Jon Janzen stand inside Janzen’s Greenhouse in Fairmont. Austin and Anna are the new owners of the greenhouse and have plans to open it later this spring.

FAIRMONT– Janzen’s Greenhouse has a new pair of owners that are preparing to open the business later this spring. Austin Philipp and Anna Mundahl have bought the greenhouse, located at 2401 Albion Ave. in Fairmont, from long-time owners, Jon and LaNette Janzen.

The greenhouse has been a fixture in the community since Jon’s parents, Harlan and Odette, bought it from the Timms in 1952 and opened it in the spring of 1953

Jon explained that the way his parents ran the greenhouse back then is very different than how greenhouses are operated in today’s world. At the time they opened it, there were also no big box stores in the area to compete with.

“My parents sold snapdragons. They wrapped them in newspapers and sold them to customers,” Jon said.

He pointed out that back in the 50s a lot of people also had vegetable gardens as that’s how they provided for their families.

While Jon never planned on running the greenhouse, he and his wife, LaNette, started operating it full-time after his father passed away in 1990. They ran it as a seasonal greenhouse all the way up until the spring of 2019, when they closed it to the public. They grew CBD hemp for a private investor for about a year, but shut down when the COVID-19 pandemic hit.

“That’s when we put it up for sale,” said Jon.

While they’ve had a few offers in the past three years, Jon explained that there’s a difference between someone saying they want to work in a greenhouse, and someone being able to actually operate a greenhouse.

“A lot of people think working in a greenhouse is the greatest job in the world, and it is. It’s sunshine and vitamin D. You get to see life growing,” Jon said.

However, he said that in the years that he and LaNette operated the greenhouse, they were changing their business model every five to 10 years as they needed to keep up with what was popular.

He and LaNette were a fan of Austin and Anna’s business plan and felt like the young couple held the capability to not just sustain the business, but allow it to thrive.

“Anna’s coming with some experience and Austin will have experience, too. LaNette and I are very excited for them. We’re excited for a young couple to take over. The exciting thing is, it’s a small family business that’s going to keep existing,” Jon said.

Austin is a 2016 graduate of Fairmont High School. He currently works for an automation company and has an interest in vegetable gardening. Originally from Buffalo, Anna went to South Dakota State University where she majored in agriculture education and minored in horticulture. She spent the past three years working in a garden center.

While Anna and Austin were living in South Dakota, last summer they drove by Janzen’s Greenhouse and noticed the for sale sign.

“We started looking into it and had a business plan written up and it started coming to fruition,” Anna said.

The two have since relocated to Fairmont and after officially becoming the greenhouse’s new owners in late February, have been busy getting it ready to open later this spring.

Anna explained why they intend to operate the greenhouse by the same name.

“Jon and LaNette have built such a wide-standing relationship with people in this community and beyond. It’s such a well-known name.”

Austin and Anna don’t plan to drop anything that’s previously been offered at Janzen’s, though they may add some more items in the future. It will be open from the spring to late summer with the possibility of short-term sales for fall and winter plants.

While Austin didn’t see himself moving back to Fairmont, much less owning a greenhouse here, he’s excited for the opportunity.

“I’m excited to have people in here again and to be able to help provide this for the community and surrounding area,” Anna said.

Since they’ve been working on reopening the business, Anna said they’ve had the opportunity to work with several local businesses, which they plan to continue to do moving forward. They plan to open this spring with about three employees.

“We’ll get more employees as need-be,” said Austin.

The young couple commented on how supportive the community has been since word spread that the greenhouse will be reopening.

“The customer base goes deep. It’s not just Fairmont, but county-deep, across the state line,” said Jon.

In order to update the public on the status of the greenhouse, Austin and Anna plan to use the Janzen’s Greenhouse Facebook page and are also working on creating a website and other social media pages.

All in all, the Janzens are excited to see the legacy of the greenhouse live on. After all, it was 70 years ago this spring that Jon’s parents opened the greenhouse. He’s been a part of it nearly as long, and LaNette for the past 40 years. They both feel good turning the greenhouse over into the hands, and green thumbs, of the new owners.

“I hope they have 70 more wonderful years in here,” said Jon.