We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Jen. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Jen below.
Jen , appreciate you joining us 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.
Yes, the industry standard wasn’t meeting the needs of people who wanted to set up a successful garden. We’ve carved out our own niche that bridges gardening with high end design. As moms who are used to creative problem solving, we also started as novice gardeners whose needs weren’t being met. Jill Oliver is a lifelong gardener. Nicole and I moved to Houston from different states, so learning to garden in this unique climate posed many challenges. Our options were to use landscapers (who specialized in landscaping but not organic kitchen gardens) or learn how to do it ourselves. After years of doing it the wrong way, we figured out what it takes to start and maintain a beautiful and productive kitchen garden. We are now considered the fairy godmothers of gardening because we take the guesswork and overwhelm out of something that should be enjoyable! We want our clients to spend quality time in their gardens, so we are thrilled to provide turnkey design, installation and continued education.
Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.
I’m proud to have founded Garden Girls with two equally ambitious, dedicated and creative partners~ Jill Oliver and Nicole Shah. We each bring something special to the table and collaborate on every single project.
My name is Jen McDonald and I’m originally from Calistoga, CA. I grew up in a tiny house with a big backyard garden that my father used to spend hours in. I enjoyed sitting on an overturned bucket, eating whatever he harvested as it came straight from the vine.
As an adult, I didn’t start gardening until I was over 40. I tinkered with growing in pots~ mostly flowers and an occasional herb, but without consistent irrigation, I didn’t have very good results. But I enjoyed being outside and wanted a hobby that gave me joy. It took a few years and a lot of experimentation to move to raised beds and veggies.
Jill, Nicole and I came together many years ago and bonded over our love of growing. I learned a lot from both of them and the three of us realized that gardening was the hobby that gave us the most joy. We turned it into a career and launched Garden Girls after working together for another company for a few years. Our goal is to take the stress out of starting a kitchen garden and we always start with a raised bed. We specialize in designing dreamy, productive, beautiful gardens that represent our clients lifestyles.
I’m incredibly proud of the way we’ve built our business with integrity and respect. We treat every garden as if it was our own and want to create confident gardeners. In turn, our clients look to us for continued support and education. This is a special relationship that we are honored to have.
What do you think helped you build your reputation within your market?
A solid business plan and being selective in the projects that we take on. We can’t be everything to everyone. We choose to work with clients who truly want to learn how to garden. This is a collaborative approach to gardening and when a client succeeds, so do we.
Any advice for growing your clientele? What’s been most effective for you?
Our clients have become our best marketers! They share our passion and refer friends and family to us.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.gardengirlstx.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/gardengirlstx
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/gardengirlstx
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/gardengirlstx
- Twitter: https://www.x.com/gardengirlstx
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/gardengirlstx
Image Credits
Harlow and May Studios