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The new documentary The Merchants of Joy follows five families who sell Christmas trees on the streets of New York CityGeorge Nash of Uptown Christmas Trees says in the film that his business was once threatened by the mafia”We were doing very well, but I didn’t realize that I was stepping on the toes of the legitimate mafia wholesalers,” he recalls

Buying Christmas trees is a beloved tradition for people around the world. However, those who sell them sometimes face extreme challenges. 

The new documentary The Merchants of Joy, which premiered Dec. 1 on Prime Video, follows five families who sell Christmas trees on the busy streets of New York City. While the sellers relish in spreading holiday joy throughout the city (and making money while they’re at it), they have experienced a few major obstacles due to the competitive nature of the business. 

George Nash of Uptown Christmas Trees says in the documentary that his business – which he operates with his wife Jane Waterman and their daughter Ciree Nash – was once threatened by the mafia.

George Nash and Jane Waterman of of Uptown Christmas Trees in ‘The Merchants of Joy’.

Prime

Nash begins by discussing the controversial retailer Kevin Hammer, “an American Christmas tree Godfather.” He recalls selling Hammer his first trees in 1974 after being hired to use his flatbed truck to transport a load of them.

Nash says he was stopped on the interstate by another vehicle carrying a group of men, including Hammer. The men questioned him about the trees until he offered to connect them with the tree grower, who, in turn, offered to sell a few hundred trees to Hammer, who then hired Nash to transport them. 

‘The Merchants of Joy’.

Prime

“He was 19 years old, saved by the Church of Scientology,” Nash claims of Hammer. “I never knew that until years later. Kevin, to his credit, had this brilliant insight, which was that you could sell really nice Christmas trees on the sidewalk in New York for the prices the florists and little delis were selling crappy trees for. The next year, he had grown already, to the point where I couldn’t supply him any more trees myself.”

According to Ciree, Hammer is “the largest seller in the city,” while Greg Walsh of Greg’s Trees notes that the man has “100 lots.”

Hammer’s quick fame, according to Nash, caused him to develop a bad reputation in the industry. “He began getting the notion that every tree moved in the city, he got to have some say or control over it,” Nash says. “There’s this whole legend in the industry that [Hammer’s] some kind of terrifying Keyser Soze-kind of guy.”

“I created Kevin Hammer,” he continues. “I’m responsible for him. I sometimes lose sleep with guilt over that.”

Nash goes on to explain that in the years after he sold those first trees to Hammer, the industry engaged in “a vicious turf war.”

“There’s a long history of retailers being pitted against each other,” his daughter notes. Walsh, agrees, saying, “It was a tougher New York 30 years ago. We used to pay off people. We used to pay off the mafia.”

Greg Walsh of Greg’s Trees in ‘The Merchants of Joy’.

Prime

“We were really big then in the wholesale business,” Nash remembers. “We were doing very well, but I didn’t realize that I was stepping on the toes of the legitimate mafia wholesalers. We got a message loud and clear, we got shaken down, we got extorted, we got robbed. There was a competitor murdered.”

Thankfully, times have changed over the decades. “It’s so different today,” George Smith of NYC Tree Shop admits. “But it’s not a place to step on someone’s toes if you don’t know what you’re doing.”

Hammer declined to participate in the documentary, though he is briefly heard in a phone call.

‘The Merchants of Joy’ poster.

Prime

While the threats of violence among sellers have decreased, they still face various roadblocks. One highlighted in the documentary is the rigorous process they must go through to legally find spots in N.Y.C. to set up shop. To do so, the New York City Parks Department has sellers submit a sealed bid on city locations through an auction.

As a result, the sellers don’t always get the locations they desire or are intruded upon by competitors. Walsh is shown getting outbid for a spot he found by Hammer, while Smith purchases a stand across from Heather Neville of NYC Tree Lady, and Neville wins a stand near Ciree.

“I might have upset people, but it is what it is. I didn’t do anything wrong,” Neville says after the results are announced.

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The Merchants of Joy is directed by Celia Aniskovich, and Ben Affleck is an executive producer. In addition to highlighting the competitive nature of selling Christmas trees in the Big Apple, it also sheds light on the familial nature of the businesses.

“The story I thought would be about Christmas commerce became something much deeper: a story of family, resilience and hope,” Aniskovich said in a statement.

The Merchants of Joy is now streaming on Prime Video.