Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Melissa Hartner. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Melissa, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Coming up with the idea is so exciting, but then comes the hard part – executing. Too often the media ignores the execution part and goes from idea to success, skipping over the nitty, gritty details of executing in the early days. We think that’s a disservice both to the entrepreneurs who built something amazing as well as the public who isn’t getting a realistic picture of what it takes to succeed. So, we’d really appreciate if you could open up about your execution story – how did you go from idea to execution?

I started playing around with the idea of having a flower farm a few years ago. I have always loved flowers and gardening. My Dad is an avid gardener and always made sure to involve us children in the garden when we were growing up. Being exposed to gardening as a child really ignited my love for growing things.

I actually asked my husband to help me plant a wildflower garden for my birthday present a few years ago. He kindly did just that. He went and purchased a drag to help even out the ground where we would be planting and purchased thousands of wildflower seeds! The wildflower garden thrived. I enjoyed going out every morning to see what flowers were in bloom. Around that same time I began following some female flower farmers online. I was so inspired by them. I thought, if they can do this, than so can I! I purchased more seeds and bulbs and began planting! I joined some cut flower growing groups on facebook and that really helped me learn a lot.

I decided to make arrangements and sell them at the end of my driveway. We live in a fairly quiet neighborhood in the country. I put up a sign advertising my flowers and I also made a post on facebook marketplace. People actually came and purchased my arrangements! I was elated. Next, I decided to create a traveling flower stand. Like I mentioned earlier, we live in the country, so not a ton of people were stopping at the stand so not all of my arrangements sold. I wanted to put my flowers in front of more people, hence, the traveling flower stand. I convinced some friends and family to let me put my traveling flower stand at the end of their driveways. It was a cabinet with a cashbox screwed onto the side and I also left my paypal/venmo info. I once again made some sales, but a fair amount of flowers still ended up going to waste. I decided to change things up and dream bigger and smarter. I saw that some other flower farmers were offering flower arrangement subscriptions. I thought that was smart because this way none of my flowers would go to waste. I wanted to know that every arrangement I made would have a home. I decided a website would be beneficial as well, so I hired a local lady to help me create one. She did a fantastic job and I believe having an amazing website really helped me boost my sales.

I began advertising for my flower subscriptions in the winter of 2021. I sold 15 biweekly flower subscriptions. I used that money to purchase everything I would need for that growing season. Seeds, bulbs, vases, hoses, sprinklers, my dripline irrigation system, etc. Once my flowers started blooming that spring it was go time! I would harvest the flowers, arrange them and deliver them. It was a lot of work, but also very rewarding. I really enjoyed seeing the delight my flowers brought my customers. People do not have to be a subscriber to purchase flowers from me, I also offer single purchase arrangements for special events or for anyone just wanting to buy fresh locally grown flowers! In fact, I even offer bridal bouquets, boutonnieres, and corsages. Thus far I have had the honor of making two bridal bouquets, the brides both raved about their bouquets so I think I must have a knack for making them! I also offer nursing home resident flower arrangements for donation. I have a special place in my heart for the elderly. I know it can be a difficult season of life and I wanted to bring some joy to those who may need it the most. This is why I decided to include an option of my website that allows anyone to purchase a flower arrangement for a nursing home resident. I match every one of these purchases. I donate these arrangements to local nursing homes here in central MN. It brings me to joy to see the delight and cheer my flowers bring to the seniors!

In addition to my flower subscriptions, I also decided to have a large flower stand built. I hired my brother and brother in-law to build it for me. They did an awesome job. I began stocking my flower stand with lots of flowers every weekend for people to come and make their own flower arrangements. I knew how much fun I was having arranging flowers and I figured others would enjoy making flowers arrangements as well. It was a hit! I got great feedback from people saying how much they enjoyed coming out and making their own arrangements! I also decided to host some classes and events here. I offered some flower arrangement classes, painting classes, and pick your own flower days. I got a great turn out and everyone seemed to enjoy their time here. I also started offering photography sessions here. I enjoy photography and am available for hire, I also allow other photographers to come here for a small hourly fee.

I am now in my third year of running this business. I doubled my flower subscriptions this year and now have my sister helping me deliver flowers which has been wonderful! I hope to continue to grow this business and bring more people fresh locally grown flowers! I am hoping to have a gazebo or outdoor shelter built here in the near future so I can offer classes no matter the weather! I also am hoping to purchase a greenhouse to help me extend our short growing season! I am a dreamer and I love working hard to bring my dreams to fruition. It is extremely gratifying to work hard at something that is life giving and soul pleasing!

Melissa, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

I got into this business because I love flowers, I love working outside, and I wanted to make a little money doing what I love! I think what sets me apart from other florists is the fact that I am using my own homegrown flowers to make my flower arrangements. I also think that what sets me apart from other flower farmers is that I am not selling my flowers to florists, I am the florist! I also think that by hosting classes and pick your own flower days here helps set me apart. I get meet my customers and get to know them and they get to know me. I have really enjoyed meeting other local flower enthusiasts! I am especially proud of the flowers that I am selling. They are grown naturally, they are staying local, they are beautiful and so fresh!

Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?

This flower farming journey has taught me to be resilient. Not everything has gone according to plan. There has been trials and tribulations. The first year I officially started my daughters and I planted 1,000 tulip bulbs in the fall. I looked forward to those tulips all winter long. Minnesota winters are long, cold and dark. The thought of my tulips blooming was so exciting it helped me get through that long winter. Come spring they began popping up, all 1,000 of them! I was so excited, than shortly thereafter, the began to get chomped! We have lots of deer around here and silly me had no idea that dear love tulips! I ended up with about 40 tulips that actually bloomed. Wow, that was a bummer. I may have shed a tear or two, but I decided to learn more about deer resistant flowers and also invested in some fencing, because I love tulips, lillies, sunflowers, etc. just as much as the deer around here do, so I have to keep them protected! It was a tough lesson to learn, but I certainly learned!

How did you build your audience on social media?

I have been quite active on social media, facebook in particular, from the get go. At this point in time I have a couple thousand followers. I believe by posting beautiful pictures of flowers, almost daily, and doing lots of contests and giveaways I have really drawn in a lot of followers. I encourage people to like and share my posts in order to be eligible to win flowers, seeds, gift certificates, etc. This is a win win. They get a chance at winning free products, and I get free advertising! I also share a bit about me, from time to time, but I mainly try to keep the focus on the flowers!

Contact Info:

• Website: oldsiloflowerfarm.com
• Instagram: oldsiloflowerfarm
• Facebook: Old Silo Flower Farm