Snowline Acres owners Tom and Kristin Davis are approaching a decade of helping people celebrate the most wonderful time of the year. 

When the couple took over the Christmas tree and wreath company in 2016 from Tom and Carolyn Little as a new business venture, they continued a legacy that started in 1955. 

Outside in the Snowline Acres’ Christmas tree lot, stocked with sturdy Scotch pines, Douglas firs and fragrant Fraser firs in a variety of sizes suitable for both residential and commercial customers, businesses looking for a tree large enough to stand out in a big space. 

“There’s not a lot of businesses locally, that sell big trees for some of those lodges, or hotels and restaurants," Kristin said. 

This year, Tom estimated the tallest tree sold by mid-November was 20 feet. Since opening Snowline Acres, he estimates the tallest tree they’ve sold was about 30 feet.  

It’s a tradition that harkens back to the roots of the business as the Snow Line Tree Co. under the Little family, which in its heyday in the 1950s and 1960s, annually shipped out about a half million trees.  

It was part of what was once a booming Christmas tree industry in Northwest Montana, as the area served as the nation’s leading Christmas tree supplier. In 1956, 4.2 million trees were cut in Montana, according to a previous Daily Inter Lake article.  

Procuring the trees from around the state and Midwest, Snowline Acres typically sells and delivers trees the week before Thanksgiving through mid-December. Any remaining trees, which usually isn’t a lot, are donated to area churches or organizations, Tom said. 

“And for Christmas wreaths, we make custom wreaths up to 15 feet in diameter and as small as 14 inches and everything in between,” he said. 

A team of designers makes the custom wreaths. Typical designs range from the classic look of pinecones and red bows, to floral and themed designs. 

“I just saw the other day where it [a wreath] had a fishing pole with a lure on it,” Tom said. “Or it might have a cowboy theme with a lasso and horseshoes. We had one with cattails and a retriever dog toy. So, we’ve got a lot of very unique, custom, creative wreaths.” 

Since taking over the business, the Davises have expanded that legacy well beyond Christmas trees — starting in 2017 with the relocation of the 1939 Kalispell Lumber Company building on West Idaho Street to 33115 U.S. 93 South, where it was restored into a grand, event venue.  

Ideas for the property snowballed from there, opening a guest house and drive-thru coffee shop, with their most recent addition, The Collective, a retail shop and space for people to book creative workshops and small events located next door to the Ashley Creek Historic Venue. 

“Then ... we had this building," said Tom during an interview with his wife at The Collective. 

The retail shop is housed in a remodeled pole building that used to serve as a Christmas tree warehouse from the days when the business primarily operated as a wholesale company, selling trees all over the West. 

More interested in retail, the Davises began holding a seasonal Christmas market in the Ashley Creek Historic Venue three weeks per year. The market soon became an annual staple. 

“About a year and a half, two years ago, we said we should really utilize this building in a different, or better, way,” said Kristin. 

The Davises started remodeling the pole building last spring with plans to further expand its retail operation. 

"Because we had that passion for retail and bringing the community together ... we thought, let’s do a year-round shop here and that way we wouldn’t have to set up and take down [the market] and we’d keep the venue for the Christmas parties and the weddings and the concerts and keep the retail piece here,” said Kristen.  

With its white exterior, vertical siding, barn doors and interior exposed trusses and wood paneling, The Collective blends modern design with rustic charm that complements the neighboring event venue.  

“All the wood siding that you see is actually leftover wood from the Kalispell Lumber building,” Tom said. 

Though the building spans 8,800 square feet, it feels warm and inviting, filled with curated holiday decor, thoughtfully staged retail displays and the distinct scent of evergreen. 

A decorated Christmas tree greets visitors at one of the entrances while another Christmas tree stands nearby, encased in brilliant white flocking, a service the Davises have continued, using a nontoxic, biodegradable mixture of cornstarch and paper pulp. 

“I think like a lot of trends, it comes back in popularity and we’re kind of, I would say, entering the peak of its popularity. People realize that it looks nice and it helps the tree with needle retention,” he said. “You can really flock most anything." 

There is much to look at throughout The Collective, including furniture and handmade goods and wares from local vendors that are sold on consignment. 

“It gives them a presence, you know, in our shop to sell their goods without having to have their own storefront,” said Kristin. 

As the Davises look forward to the future, they’ve got more ideas brewing. When asked about any new business ventures, Kristin smiled and said nothing they can announce quite yet. 

Reporter Hilary Matheson may be reached at 758-4431 or [email protected]. 

  

    DJ and Jack Weatherly shop for a Christmas tree at The Collective at Snowline Acres in Kalispell on Saturday, Nov. 29. (Casey Kreider/Daily Inter Lake)

    Christmas wreaths hang from a wall outside The Collective at Snowline Acres in Kalispell on Saturday, Nov. 29. (Casey Kreider/Daily Inter Lake)

    The Collective at Snowline Acres in Kalispell on Saturday, Nov. 29. (Casey Kreider/Daily Inter Lake)

    A family shops for a Christmas tree at The Collective at Snowline Acres in Kalispell on Saturday, Nov. 29. (Casey Kreider/Daily Inter Lake)

    The Collective at Snowline Acres in Kalispell on Saturday, Nov. 29. (Casey Kreider/Daily Inter Lake)
 Casey Kreider