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

Erin , looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. One of the things we most admire about small businesses is their ability to diverge from the corporate/industry standard. Is there something that you or your brand do that differs from the industry standard? We’d love to hear about it as well as any stories you might have that illustrate how or why this difference matters.

I pride myself as being a “boutique gardener” meaning I focus on a small niche of the landscaping world. I concentrate on seasonal flowers and plants for outdoor containers, window boxes and small garden beds.

Erin , love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

I’m Erin Robbins, owner of Petals & Pots by Erin. I specialize in designing and planting outdoor seasonal containers and flower gardens.
It all started with a passion and desire for colorful outdoor spaces after growing up in the beautiful desert of Arizona and then moving to Colorado and experiencing the dormant Colorado winters. We here in Colorado wait anxiously for our spring and summer when we can begin to add colorful flowers to our patios and porches. I found pure joy in learning about, designing, and creating beautiful outdoor spaces with the simple touch of flowers and seasonal decor. I quickly learned that people LOVE flowers. They often make us “happy” but many get frustrated with the process, what to plant, and most importantly keeping everything alive successfully. As I was exiting the corporate world of healthcare, I began to see that there was a real need to assist homeowners and businesses design their entrances and outdoor spaces. I saw an immediate need for boutique gardening, meaning we focus solely on seasonal flowers and plants rather than the “landscape” as a whole. I don’t have the desire or man power to take on full landscape jobs and often times the landscapers don’t have the time or desire to plant the detailed beautiful flower pots. We try to collaborate with landscape companies for this exact reason. I’m here to help make the first impression of a home or business one that pops with pizazz no matter the season.

When I’m not digging in the dirt, I love spending time with my husband, 2 sons, family and friends. We thoroughly enjoy the outdoors and love golfing, skiing, and hiking. Sometimes we lounge and we always relish any opportunity to travel and explore other areas of the country and world.

Any stories or insights that might help us understand how you’ve built such a strong reputation?

I have been able to grow my business solely on word of mouth from my clients. Luckily, every time someone walks into a home with beautiful flower pots at their front door it’s pretty easy to ask who did the flowers and wha la my name gets passed around. I once had a call from a new client and she said ” well once the 4th person I asked gave me your name I figured you are the one to call!” I believe because I give every client and household my full attention to detail on designing and planting their containers, and or gardens I build a true relationship with each client that lasts. Im not just the average lawnmower who you don’t really know that shows up every Friday! When I first started out, I thought Id put flyers on doors, try to do a bunch of advertising, etc but really my business has grown to be successful just on referrals and to this day I’ve never gotten around to much marketing! One challenge we have in denver is that we are very dependent on our weather in late May and we never know when our last snow storm could be. Summer flowers cannot be planted until it is truly finished snowing, therefore I have every single one of my clients ready for flowers yesterday!! With this in mind, I load up on seasonal help and we work 12 hours a day getting through summer installs. It’s a wild ride for about 3 weeks but oh so fun and I love every minute of it. We’re getting sunshine, extreme exercise, a break from technology and beautifying homes everywhere. Im often referred to as the “flower ferry” because I show up, instal, clean up and am gone before you even return home!

Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?

I was in the growth of my company when covid hit and because my business was all outdoors I was able to continue to some capacity. It was however rather tedious. The wholesale nurseries didn’t have the inventory they used to and I was fighting the same issues that everyone was with the local Home Depot, Lowes and specialty nurseries. Lines were wrapped around the building, 6ft apart, masks on, limited inventory everywhere yet I was still trying to cover the needs of all my clients and figure out how to charge for my time and labor appropriately. Covid also gave a lot of people more free time and the desire to want to take a stab at planting their flowers themselves. This worked well for some and not so well for others. I was more than happy to assist clients via zoom with ideas and tips for them to try! In the end business only grew more after covid with more people working from home and wanting to enjoy their outdoor spaces more. The more time you spend in your outdoor space the more beautiful you want to make it!

Contact Info:

• Website: www.petalsandpotsbyerin.net
• Instagram: petalsandpotsbyerin