Early's Administrator
March 16, 2009
Terms & Conditions
Your use of this Web site constitutes an Agreement between you and Early's Farm & Garden Centre. This Agreement consists of the following Terms and Conditions, and all other Web site policies. The Agreement shall be construed and in exclusive accordance with the applicable provincial laws of Saskatchewan and the federal laws of Canada. And, the parties hereto exclusively attorn to the courts of the Province of Saskatchewan in respect of all matters and disputes arising out of this Agreement.
This agreement is effective until terminated by either you or Early's Farm & Garden Centre.
USE OF WEB SITE
The Early's Farm & Garden Centre Web site, Catalogue, and all contents, are provided solely for personal, noncommercial use of our users (other than the Catalogue). The downloadable portions of the Web site, Catalogue and all contents are provided only if you do not modify, reproduce, transmit, or distribute these materials for commercial use. You have no right, title or interest in any materials or software that may be transferred to you as a result of using our Web site or catalogue.
A. Customer Responsibilities
- To abide by this Agreement and policies.
- To fulfill all payment obligations applicable to a purchase.
- To abide by all applicable law, both provincially and federally.
- To respect all copyrights, trademarks, and licenses that exist within our Web site.
B. Merchant Responsibilities
- To provide accurate and maintained content within the Web site, including product and service pricing and descriptions.
- To fulfill all product and service offerings in an accurate and timely manner.
- To respect and protect visitor security and privacy with implementation of current technology.
- To post notification of changes to Privacy and Security or other procedural areas or policies.
- To abide by all applicable law, both provincially and federally.
COPYRIGHT
Unless otherwise noted, all content such as text, graphics, logos, images, audio, and any software are the property of Early's Farm & Garden Centre. The contents of our Web site are protected under copyright and trademark laws. The content and any software on this Web site may only be used for personal and personal shopping means. Any other use such as reproduction, transmission, distribution, or modification of this Web site and its contents is strictly prohibited.
TRADEMARK INFORMATION
Early's Farm & Garden Centre, TRADEMARK and LOGO, are registered trademarks of Early's Farm & Garden Centre. They are sole property of Early's Farm & Garden Centre and are not to be used in conjunction with any product or service that is not Early's Farm & Garden Centre or in a manner that may discredit Early's Farm & Garden Centre or other than as specifically permitted by Early's Farm & Garden Centre
Throughout our Web site other logos or trademarks from other organizations may be displayed and are the property of their respective owners.
DISCLAIMER
Our Web site and content are provided to our visitors on a \"as is\" basis without warranties of any kind to be implied or expressed or implied due to the operation of the Web site or information provided. To the full extent permissible by applicable law, Early's Farm & Garden Centre disclaims all warranties, expressed or implied, including but not limited to, implied warranties of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose. Early's Farm & Garden Centre will not be held liable for damages of any kind that may arise from the usage of this Web site, including but not limited to direct, indirect, incidental punitive and consequential damages.
INDEMNIFICATION
You agree to defend, indemnify and hold Early's Farm & Garden Centre and its directors, employees, agents, suppliers, licensors and any third party involved harmless from and against any and all claims, damages, costs and expenses, including legal fees that may arise from or related to your usage of this Web site (including negligent or wrongful conduct).
PRODUCTS
At Early's Farm & Garden Centre we strive to ensure quality selection and availability of our products. Our catalog will be maintained and updated in a timely manner to reflect inventory levels and quality selections. Products are available while supplies last. The prices displayed on our Web site are quoted in Canadian dollars.
A. Colors and Sizes
We have made every effort to display as accurately as possible the colors and sizes available of our products. The actual color of the chosen product may vary from what you have seen depending on your monitor; we cannot guarantee that your monitor's display of any color will be accurate.
B. Warranties
Product or service warranties will reflect the standard or regular in place warranty of the ordered item. The manufacturer or Merchant may define the warranties. To verify a warranty of a product(s) please do not hesitate to contact us.
PAYMENT
Early's Farm & Garden Centre has implemented the most advanced technologies to ensure your payment method security and authenticity. These technologies allow for your credit card information to be protected while being transmitted over the Internet. Further, an unauthorized party that attempts to intercept the information will be unable to read it due to the process of encryption and decryption.
PRIVACY POLICY
This is the Web site and interactive catalog of Early's Farm & Garden Centre. Our Web server automatically (where possible) aggregates information on what our visitors access, the number of visitors to a particular area, and any information visitors voluntarily provide. This data is only collected to help us improve our Web site and provide you quality customer service. Our server identifies you as a computer only, not a person. We may share this data with outside parties for statistical and measurement uses only to help us improve our Web site.
We will collect the domain name and E-mail address where possible. The information we collect is only used to provide you the highest level of customer service, inform you of opportunities we think may be of interest, and to understand your needs. We presently do not share this collected data with outside organizations.
For further explanation, please refer to Privacy & Security.
MAINTENANCE AND MONITORING
Early's Farm & Garden Centre Online Store is generally available to you seven (7) days a week, 24 hours a day, except for maintenance to the Web site. We may from time to time be unavailable without notice or liability, to perform maintenance services to our Web site.
We are committed to providing you a high quality Web site and service and will strive to provide that quality by regularly monitoring the Web site.
LINKS TO OTHER WEB SITES
We intend to have available for your convenience, links to other related Web sites. These links are provided for your resource only and the availability and content of these Web sites is not under our control. We are not to be held liable for their content, privacy or security policies. Any concerns regarding these links should be directed to the particular link or outside source.
CHANGES TO TERMS AND CONDITIONS
Early's Farm & Garden Centre reserves the right to make changes to this Agreement and other policies contained within our Web site. We agree to provide reasonable notification of any changes and recommend that customers visit and review our policy areas on a regular basis.
TERMINATION
This Agreement is effective unless terminated by either Early's Farm & Garden Centre or you.
You may terminate this Agreement at any time and can do so immediately without notice. Upon termination, you must promptly destroy all materials that you may have downloaded or otherwise obtained from our Web site.
Early's Farm & Garden Centre may also terminate this Agreement if at any time in the sole discretion of Early's Farm & Garden Centre you fail to comply with any term or policy within this Agreement. Upon such termination, your access to the Web site will be denied and you must promptly destroy all materials that you may have downloaded or otherwise obtained from our Web site.
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General
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March 16, 2009
Your Privacy & Security
Early's Farm & Garden Centre is Strongly Committed to Protecting Your Privacy
We follow a simple, common sense principle: we ask for only the information we need to complete the service you have requested. The information that you provide is to ensure that you have a convenient shopping experience online and that we are meeting your needs. We respect our shoppers' concerns about providing information and feel it is your right to know why we gather information, how we use it and what your options are. The privacy of this information is maintained and protected using security technologies and policies that prevent unauthorized usage of your information.
Visiting Our Web Site
Your visit to our Web site is welcomed and we are glad you came. You are free to visit our Web site without telling us who you are or revealing any information. Personal information is available to us only if you provide it voluntarily by completing an order purchase form, or registration form.
What Information We Collect and How It Is Used
When an order is processed it is necessary that we collect your name, mailing address, E-mail address, and payment information. This information is gathered to provide you the highest quality of service, inform you of opportunities we think will be of interest, and to understand your needs. This information will only be used for internal marketing purposes and is not shared with outside parties without first posting notification on our Web site of this change. Shall you wish to opt out of our contact service please notify us by E-mail or postal mail. Shall a vendor or supplier be involved in the online purchase process they will only be given the absolute necessary information to complete their role.
In addition to the information that you voluntarily provide to us, our system automatically gathers certain statistical information like numbers and frequency of visitors. Our server cannot identify you as a person but only as a computer and this data, not your name, may from time to time be used in conjunction with outside parties for statistical resources. This information is studied to help us improve products and services, customer service, online operations, and our Web site in general.
Early's Farm & Garden Centre does not currently sell or rent any customer data, server logs, or personal information to any other companies or organizations. We shall, if required to do so only by law disclose your personal information to the necessary parties.
How Is My Credit Card Protected
At Early's Farm & Garden Centre, whenever you provide any personal information or credit card information, we make sure that no one else can read it while it is being transmitted over the Internet. This information is protected and transmitted through today's most advanced security systems. Your personal information is encrypted prior to being sent to us. Thus, your credit card information is safe and we are ensured payment authenticity and delivery.
Links to Our Web Site
Any links that are provided on our Web site are provided for your convenience. Early's Farm & Garden Centre reserves the right to not be held responsible for their content or the Web sites' privacy practices nor do we endorse the Web sites' services or policies.
Special Attention to Children On Our Web Site
Early's Farm & Garden Centre encourages parents to take an active role in their child's use of the Internet. We take care to protect the safety and privacy of children and do not intend to collect any personal information about children using our services. We encourage parents and children to review all our privacy, security and terms of use documents.
How You Can Opt Out
We want to ensure that we are providing you the highest quality of customer service by notifying you of promotions, what's new, and follow up for products or services. You may at any time, if you wish, stop receiving correspondence from Early's Farm & Garden Centre, or have your name removed from our internal lists.
Changes To Your Privacy on Our Web Site
Early's Farm & Garden Centre reserves the right to change this policy at any time but will not do so without first posting notification of changes on this Web site. You are encouraged to review Your Privacy, Your Security, and Terms of Use documents whenever you enter personal information on our Web site to ensure you understand how your information will be used.
How Can I Further Protect Myself
The Internet does present a vast and open market, similar to a very large shopping mall. Therefore you need to take the same safety measures with electronic shopping as you would in the 'physical' world. Seek Web sites that display reputable security symbols and NEVER give your credit card information to anyone who contacts you via E-mail or Instant Message.
Questions and Concerns
The door at the Early's Farm & Garden Centre Online Store is open 24 hours, 7 days a week. If you have any questions or concerns about Your Privacy or Your Security please contact us by E-mail at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
Secure Web Hosting
Early's Farm & Garden Centre's Web Site is securely hosted by Blacksun Web Hosting. For more information or to contact Blacksun, please visit www.blacksun.ca.
Published in
General
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March 16, 2009
In the Beginning
100+ Years of Growing
Early's Farm & Garden Centre - selling Garden Supplies, Seeds, Fertilizers, Pet Supplies, Livestock Feeds, Grass and Forage Seed, Golf Course Supplies, Statuary, Fountains, Pond Supplies and more since 1907!
In the Beginning
In 1907, S.A. Early started a hay, grain and feed store in a small frame building on Twentieth Street East, just east of the former location of the Saskatoon Star Phoenix. In addition to running his feed store, in 1909 he joined his cousin, J.H. “Hunter” Early, in a fruit and produce sales operation. Hunter Early managed the wholesale fruit business for a few years but later ventured into the automotive business, establishing the J.H. Early Motor Company located at Third Avenue, presently the site of the Sturdy Stone Government Building.
In 1910, the feed store re-located to a site on Wall Street just south of 22nd Street near the present site of the YMCA. From the very beginning, the company developed a “Customer Satisfaction” policy that is still in existence today. S.A. Early pioneered the way for growth and diversification and quickly established the ability to expand with the growing needs of the major move in 1914, when the company relocated to 198 Avenue A South (Idylwyld Drive across the street from the Saskatoon Fire Department Headquarters). S.A. purchased one-half acre of land on which he constructed a grain elevator in addition to a new feed store.
The company continued to keep pace with the general growth and development of Saskatoon and the surrounding area and in 1928, constructed a second elevator adjacent to the existing building. The two elevators facilitated the company’s venturing into livestock feed manufacturing and seed grain cleaning business. While the depression years, known as the “dirty thirties”, were not conducive to growth in the seed business, Early’s forged ahead, pioneering its way into the garden seed packet trade. In 1942, S.A. Early & Co. published its first Spring Catalogue which contained products for sale such as grains, grasses, feeds, poultry and livestock supplies, vegetable and flour seeds, pet food and pet supplies and something new – baby chicks, which were a product of Early’s own hatchery.
The Changing Times
In 1948, having survived two World Wars and the Great Depression, the company underwent a significant name change; S.A. Early & Company became Early Seed & Feed Ltd., a name which more definitively described its main product lines. Under the new structure, S.A. Early, owner, became President while one of his sons, Tom, who joined the company in 1936, became the General Manager.
In addition to successfully guiding his own business, S.A. was a prominent and significant contributor to the Saskatoon Business Community as a whole. He served on City Council for 14 years, was a founding member of the Nutana Curling Club and a member of the Saskatoon Collegiate Board. He was active in numerous business related organizations, including the Canadian Seed Trade Association. He was a long time member of the Saskatoon Club and Cosmopolitan Club served as President of Cosmopolitan International.
S.A. Early passed away in 1962, leaving a legacy Mission Statement that continues as the cornerstone of the company’s service policy today. In recognition of the major role that S.A. played in “early” development of the City of Saskatoon, a Saskatoon street, Early Drive was so named in his honour!
Upon his father’s passing, Tom Early became president of the company which had expanded its operation including a retail store in North Battleford, a poultry hatchery, a hog ranch in north Saskatoon and seed grain cleaning in Aylsham, Saskacthewan. Over the years, new product lines were continuously surfacing that included beekeeping supplies, agricultural fertilizers and herbicides, and an on-going demand for the company’s own manufactured brand of “Sunlight” livestock feeds. Tom himself, a shrewd business man with a somewhat flamboyant character, guided the company through several trying years.
Continued Growth
With the continued growth of business, in 1966, Tom ventured outside the family tree and hired a young but somewhat experienced individual, Joe Bloski, to assist him in managing the 60-year-old company. This proved to be the beginning of the development of a strong management team which in 1967 included the hiring of Andy Kobiela, a feed nutritionist with seed cleaning expertise. In 1971, John Bloski joined the company primarily to oversee the warehousing and distribution of agricultural and horticultural supplies. Rounding out the management team was the Accountant/Office Manager, Mary Clynton, who worked for the company for 27 years, retiring in 1979.
Some streamlining of the company’s operating began to take place with the sale of both the Battleford store and Aylsham elevator to enable management time to focus on the Saskatoon retail and manufacturing facility.
In spite of again experiencing success under the new management team, time began taking its toll on the aging buildings and fatigued equipment. It became apparent that changes were imminent of the company was to continue into the 21st Century. The continued redevelopment of the downtown area, Midtown Plaza, was in itself forcing the question of Early’s viability at its Idywyld location.
In 1982 a major reconstruction of the company’s ownership began to take place. Through Tom Early’s foresight and leadership and with the support of two long time employees, Joe and John Bloski, Early Seed & Feed Limited became Early’s Farm & Garden Center Inc. For the first time in the 76-year history of the company, it now had shareholders outside of the Early family, as Joe and John Bloski became partners with Tom Early.
Mr. Early was the major shareholder and assumed the position of President. However, the entire business operation was entrusted to Joe Bloski as General Manager and John Bloski, who became Assistant to the General Manager.
Shortly thereafter, plans for relocating began to take place on February 23rd, 1983, Early’s Farm & Garden Centre Inc. opened its doors to a new facility at 2615 Lorne Avenue. This move marked the beginning of a new era for Early’s! Gone was the feed manufacturing and the seed cleaning plant but more significant was the demise of the downtown location which had been a prominent city landmark for 70 years!
As product lines continued to change with a greater emphasis on retail, the history of the company’s seed and feed business still maintained its high profile position. Management recognized the opportunity to capitalize on the golf course boom and aggressively pursued marketing not only the sale of seed but other golf course amenities. Early’s became a major supplier to new projects like the Willows and Elkridge Golf Resort and expanded its marketing to approximately 200 golf facilities throughout Saskatchewan, Manitoba and Alberta. The new 25,000 sq. ft. facility also enabled the company to expand its garden product line and pet supply department along with saddlery and tack.
Early’s ability to be flexible and change with the times while maintaining S.A. Early’s Mission Statement of Policy, “Commitment to Customer Service”, paved the way for its success into the 21st Century.
The 21st Century
Although the move to Lorne Avenue was a major risk, it did open its doors to new opportunities. Through its general growth and expansion, the company’s profile in the community was experiencing new levels in both company participation and management’s involvement in varied community events. The Bloski/Early family management team grew as well with Joe’s son Derek having joined the company in 1982, Tom’s son Spencer (third generation Early) in 1984, and Kevin (Joe’s second son) in 1995.
Tom Early took full retirement in 1995 after having spent almost 60 years of his life with the company. In addition to his work, he spent five years in the Navy during World War II, was an active person in the community and business related organizations. He served in various capacities in the Cosmopolitan, Saskatoon and Usadian Clubs and was an avid golfer as a member of Riverside Country Club. Tom was noted for his support of business organizations such as the Canadian Feed Manufacturers Association and the Canadian Seed Trade Association. In 1989 he was the recipient of an Honorary Life Membership in the CSTA.
T.H. (Tom) Early passed away September 30th, 2005 and, not unlike his father, had left a legacy of business principles and history for generations to come. Following T.H.’s retirement in 1995, his son Spencer became President, maintaining the Bloski/Early Management combination. The growth of the company continued with the opening of a second location at 502 – 51st Street. Undoubtedly, one of the main factors in contributing to the company’s ability to continue its diverse growth and expansion throughout its 100+ year history is its staff! Long term, dedicated, loyal staff of 36 people strive daily to deliver S.A. Early’s Mission Statement of Policy.
In 2001, Joe and John Bloski sold their respective shares to Spencer and Jan Early but continue with the company in Management roles. Joe Bloski worked for Early's for 49 years until his retirement in 2015. While his brother John Bloski passed away in 2012. Joe's two sons Derek and Kevin Bloski now manage the day to day operation of the business.
There are many factors that have contributed to Early’s successful 100+ year survival. Perseverance, dedication, commitment, foresight, entrepreneurship and just plain hard work may have brought the company to where it is today. However, the main factor contributing to the company’s longevity is its PEOPLE! People in the work place and people in the community. S.A. Early set a standard that has been successfully maintained throughout history. The Early Companies and their management have displayed a high level of involvement and support of community and business organizations; whether it’s in the Arts, Business, or Sports and Leisure, it’s the kind of commitment that will enable Early’s to continue to achieve success in the next 100 years!
There are LOTS of new and exciting things coming to Early's in 2026. Your favorite pet, garden, tack, and more store is always searching for new products and ideas to make your shopping experience more enjoyable. We hope to see you soon!
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