In 1945, Jules "Toots" Armellini and his wife Sarah began transporting flowers from Vineland, New Jersey into Philadelphia and New York City. They started with one truck and utilized a barn as their terminal.

Through hard work and a commitment to customer satisfaction, their first business, Armellini Express Lines, prospered. Soon, a small fleet of trucks added New England to its service area. In 1953, Armellini began hauling product out of Florida, and moved its corporate headquarters to the heart of Florida's flower growing region ten years later.

Jules Armellini has always been at the forefront of new technology in floral transportation; he contributed to the design of the first "flower specific" refrigeration units for trailers, was the first to use wooden decking to split the trailer to relieve pressure on the flower boxes and promote air circulation, and was also the first to use satellite tracking to pinpoint the position of all trucks. With a fleet of 150 trucks and a reputation for prompt, quality service, Armellini Express Lines, Inc. continues to flourish.

Today, Armellini Express Lines, Inc. encompasses many businesses: Armellini Express Lines, Inc., J.A. Flower Service,Inc., Fresco Service, Inc., and NorthStar Transportation, Inc. The family's second generation has taken over the responsibilities of keeping the corporation on the cutting edge of the floral industry.

J.A. Flower Service, Inc. was created in 1977 to quickly and efficiently clear product through customs and USDA inspection. Today, JAFS is the largest customhouse brokerage clearing perishables into Miami International Airport. JAFS services customers throughout the United States, Canada and Europe, with customs clearing, cold storage and transfers of perishable commodities.

Fresco Service, Inc., was born in 1983 out of a need for quality refrigerated handling of delicate flower shipments into Miami International Airport. Today, Fresco is one of the largest refrigerated and bonded warehouses to serve as a ground handler for airlines carrying perishables from Central and South America. Fresco provides storage, pre-cooling, inspection and handling of product brought into Miami for distribution.