‘Stocking the yard:’ West Milford business fills landscaping supply needs

Businessman Jim Stock, 56, of Hewitt, saw a need for landscaping and drainage work supplies and decided to fill it.

“I saw a need for a supply yard in this area due to other businesses closing and the distances people had to travel (for supplies),” said Stock, who has been in the excavation, construction and heavy machines industry for 35 years, said in front of the office of Stock Yard Supply Company on the Warwick Turnpike.

Stock opened the yard about almost a year ago, serving the needs of individuals, landscaping companies and contractors by supplying them with the materials they need to complete a variety of jobs and projects.

Supplies including mulch, paving stones, soil, and piping, fill the yard in the rear of the 852 Warwick Turnpike location in the Hewitt section of West Milford Township.

“I figured it was a good thing to open up and have landscaping, excavating, drainage, soils, stone, all the products here that people (and contractors) use,” he said. “Most of our best-selling items are the mulch, stone and sand.”

He said he also sells a good amount of PVC piping as well as septic tanks and distribution boxes.

“We pretty much carry everything you need for site improvements,” he said. “A lot of people are glad that we are here and they don’t have to travel so far.”

Stock said the business is starting to catch a buzz, with contractors passing its name along to others and people realizing the yard is there.

He said the yard has the materials needed for any sized job that an individual or contractor may have.

“It’s one-stop shopping,” he said. “We have (it) all here.”

In addition to the raw materials, the business also carries the tools needed for those that want to do the work themselves.

For those not able to do it on their own, Stock will recommend local contractors to do the work.

Although Stock also owns Savage Equipment Company, which does excavating, he said he tries to be fair to others in the business and not recommend his own company for all the jobs.

The business offers delivery within a 20-mile radius, but could expand that depending on the size of the order, Stock said.

Stock said it’s important to have a local contractor from the area who is familiar with the geography as opposed to bringing in someone who works in a different geographical area.

Lisa Abrahams, the office manager for both companies, said the business has expanded greatly in the last few months based on the needs of the area.

“It evolved from just having pipe and landscaping stuff to everything we (now) have out here,” she said. “We are getting a lot more homeowners now through word-of-mouth.”

Abrahams said the prices are competitive and they can order “pretty much anything” customers need.

“Whatever you need, we can get it for you,” she said.

The yard is open Monday-Friday, 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. and 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Saturdays, or customers can call (973) 853-0880.