President's Perspective

Emily Showalter, Willoway Nurseries, Inc.

Our Responsibility to Educate

Early statistics of just how much the COVID-19 pandemic has affected our industry are astounding. Research from economists and garden center groups report that somewhere in the range of 30 million new consumers entered the “gardening” sector in 2020. New interest in horticulture, house plants, improving curb appeal, upgrading/renovating your backyard for staycations, edible gardening, cut flowers, and related green industry activities have become the focus of many consumers’ free time throughout the pandemic. I wrote about the silver lining of COVID-19 in The Buckeye last month and I am happy to report that many of our ONLA members continue to see increased sales and profits as we enter month 5 of battling the virus in the US.

What do we do now? It is the responsibility of our industry, ONLA members, and green industry business owners to keep the foot on the gas pedal. We can do this through education. These approximate 30 million new garden enthusiasts have our attention. We must keep them engaged in their newfound love of plants by educating end consumers on the health, well-being, and economic benefits of plants. I will not argue that plants are beautiful but the facts surrounding why consumers need plants in their lives is very powerful and must be promoted by every ONLA member, right now.

Education material related to the benefits of plants can be found in many places, including the #PlantsDoThat infographics at consumerhort.org. Some ideas to promote this material include: place the infographics around your nursery, garden center, or on the back of your landscape crews’ clipboards. Share the information in your company newsletter or at your next department or company meeting. Email the infographics to your friends and families. Post the links on social media— frequently. Include facts on the back of your invoice, quote, or statement to customers. Encourage your customers to share the benefits with their customers. Ask the local newspaper to publish the material, too. Making sure your staff understand the purpose behind why we do what we do is of the utmost importance. Once the staff understands their impact on the environment they will buy in and promote the benefits of our products without even thinking about it.

While you are educating your staff about the true positive impact of our products (above and beyond beauty) this also opens the door for increased transparency in other facets of your business. If your employees do not know the input costs to run your business, they surely do not understand the value of the products when installed in the landscape or sold at the Garden Center. Start by teaching some of the numbers including cost of labor (general summary, not individual salaries), cost to run your fleet (fuel, maintenance, insurance, etc.), cost of health insurance or other employee perks, and other inputs such as soil, pots, utilities, equipment, tools, etc. Most employees will be open to learning the numbers and you will find that many of them had no idea of the actual costs of running the company. But once they are informed, they will be able to help make better daily decisions and ultimately impact your bottom line.

There has been and will continue to be an economic downturn in response to the pandemic. The future is filled with unknowns. Does anyone remember that the only industry to experience increased spending during the Great Recession in 2008–2009? The answer is…pets! I love my dog dearly, but plants have so much more to offer than pets in the areas of increased health, well-being, and economic impact. (As far as I know, owning a dog does provide a 109% ROI on my home.) The green industry can continue to compete for consumer business through the pandemic as long as we do our part to capture our new audience through education. And no Ohio State football this fall means more time to garden!

Stay strong as we continue to navigate this stressful time. Please reach out to anyone at the ONLA for assistance, questions, comments or concerns. We are in this together and are here to help or just listen. B

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7/29/20 2:24 PM

Welcome New Members!

The following companies are applying for ACTIVE membership:

Brehob Nursery, Inc. Erick Brehob 4316 Bluff Rd. Indianapolis, IN 46217

Central Ohio Landscape Co. Timothy Crump 188 Twp Rd. 158 Waldo, OH 43356 Cincinnati Nature Center Cory Christopher 4949 Tealtown Rd Milford, OH 45150

DLL Landscaping & Tree Service Stephanie Richardson 3080 Lamb Ave. Columbus, OH 43219

Maxville Quarries Inc. Jeff Stimmel P.O. Box 737 Logan, OH 43138 River Plant Co. Jennifer Hihn 2600 Rocky River Oval Rocky River, OH 44116

The following individual is applying for PROFESSIONAL INDIVIDUAL membership:

Valerie Reinhardt, Lake Metroparks

BE A LEARN-IT-ALL, NOT A KNOW-IT-ALL Marty Grunder, Grunder Landscaping Co.

In the past few months, my team at Grunder Landscaping Co. has had a wealth of opportunities to learn and grow as we’ve adapted to the ongoing challenges of COVID-19 and implemented new technology. And that goes for me, too. As business owners, it’s easy to be a know-it-all, and even to feel like you need to have all the answers for your team and clients. After all, you’re at the top of the org chart. Isn’t it your job to know everything?

Yet the most successful business people I know all have one trait in common: No matter how much knowledge and experience they have, they are constantly striving to learn more, and they know good lessons can come from anywhere—whether it’s inside their industry or outside, whether it’s from a seasoned expert or a young new hire. That’s why I try to stick to this mentality myself, and why I’m always looking for people and companies I can learn from.

At GLC, our director of design-build, Dalton, has been a great role model this year, and I have learned so much from the way he navigates the obstacles we face. He remains impressively calm and patient and doesn’t dwell on anything for long. If there’s a disagreement or disappointment one day, he has let it go by the next.

Dalton gives his direct reports the grace they need to learn without being discouraged, and his humble and steady leadership style has helped team members to grow as leaders themselves. Dalton may be more than 20 years my junior, but he’s taught me to be more patient, to ask more questions and jump to fewer conclusions, and to let go of any bad feelings or stress at the end of the day.

Our teams are filled with people, young and old, to learn from if we have the right attitude. I believe you can also learn from every business you interact with, if you pay attention. In Dayton, Ohio, where GLC is based, we have a fantastic local grocery store called Dorothy Lane Market. I have shopped there for years and continue to marvel at how well they run their business. They have handily beat out Whole Foods in our area, despite being a small local operator competing for the same clientele. It’s a classic David-and-Goliath story. How is this small grocer succeeding against a national company with vast resources? By taking careful aim and exceeding customer expectations every step of the way.

DLM is extraordinarily committed to quality: they have fresher produce, better meat and seafood, and delicious prepared foods made in house and by hand. They also have friendly, knowledgeable, and truly passionate team members. They understand what their customers want in their shopping experience, and they deliver on it consistently. They always have my favorite products in stock, and if I ever have a question or need assistance, they bend over backward to help.

From DLM, I’ve learned to always be acutely aware of what our GLC clients want and to ensure we deliver on that and more. We make sure we provide quality landscaping while also executing on the small touches, like bringing up client trash cans or gifting them surplus plant materials, that go beyond the expected and set us apart from the competition.

Take a look around your company and the businesses you frequent. What can you learn from the people you work with and buy from to make your business better? If you challenge yourself to be a learn-it-all rather than a know-it-all, the sky is the limit for how far you can go.

If you want to keep learning and growing your landscaping business, join me online for one of our upcoming virtual events at The Grow Group. We’re offering one a month through the end of the year; learn more at growgroupinc.com/upcomingevents. B

Contact Marty at marty.grunder@ grunderlandscaping.com