Matt Vlasin, left, and mother Donna own Holiday Farms and The Beverage Barn, both on Highway 61 in Imperial. (Johnson Publications photo)
Sister businesses earn Chamber recognition
Instead of just one business being recognized by Chamber, December brings two.
Holiday Farms and The Beverage Barn are both owned and operated by Matt Vlasin and his mother, Donna Vlasin.
Holiday Farms started in 1996 as the supervised agricultural experience (SAE) project for Imperial FFA brothers Jeremy, Matt and Adam Vlasin.
The Beverage Barn opened its doors in 2012 after the family bought the building at 821 NE-61 in Imperial. The greenhouse of Holiday Farms sits right next to the building, which is now the home of The Beverage Barn.
“That greenhouse has been moved a lot,” Donna said.
While Jeremy and Adam took different paths, Matt took his SAE all the way.
Vlasin won his proficiency in Floriculture in 2003 at the national FFA Convention in Louisville, Kentucky.
Matt’s dad Randy, who was the Imperial FFA advisor at the time, said after Matt won, “The real purpose of the proficiency award is to choose someone who is becoming established in an agricultural career.”
Matt attended Front Range Community College in Fort Collins, Colorado in the nursery operations and landscape design program before coming home to continue Holiday Farms.
Holiday Farms offers all common landscaping needs including mowing and spraying.
“We just finished fall cleanup” before the snow hit, Donna said.
Right now, they’re selling Christmas trees.
While Holiday Farms did provide snow removal in the past, they’ve since stopped.
“It got to be too much,” she added.
Next door, The Beverage Barn offers all domestic beers, common wines and liquor in addition to some special options.
“We try to get in unique beers,” Donna said. “We’re so far from Omaha” so we like to have those options.
“We just try to make it fun over there,” she added.
The Beverage Barn also provides bartending for weddings and events.
Hours for Holiday Farms include 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. all week, with Sunday hours from 12 noon to 4 p.m.
The Beverage Barn is open from 9 a.m. to 10 p.m. weekdays, 9 a.m. to 11 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays and from 12 noon to 8 p.m. on Sundays.