We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Megan Gilliland a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Megan, thanks for joining us today. Risking taking is a huge part of most people’s story but too often society overlooks those risks and only focuses on where you are today. Can you talk to us about a risk you’ve taken – it could be a big risk or a small one – but walk us through the backstory.

I often tell our customers that I consider my husband the “accidental beekeeper.” He’s an arborist who has managed large divisions in the lawn and landscape industry but we really hadn’t planned to become small business owners with a working farm and open-to-the-public farm store. It just kind of evolved over the years and, eventually, the small business took over our lives and we’ve never looked back.

Chad wanted an orchard on our property because he’s a tree guy. He wanted various types of apples, pears, and peaches and wanted to try to grow everything without pesticides and as little interference from humans as possible. He planted 100 fruit trees in our front yard and then he decided that bees would be beneficial for pollination. He started with a few hives for the orchard. Then, he added a few more hives, and a few more, and then, expanded beyond our property. What was 2 hives to start with became 5, then 10, then 25…and now we have 95 hives across two counties. We became Next to Nature Farm in 2016 and we’ve grown every year from our very humble beginnings.

In 2017, our family was working multiple farmers’ markets and many special events on the weekends to support the farm business. It became clear that Chad could not continue to work both his lawn and landscaping management job and manage the small business. He quit his full-time job in 2017 and became a full-time small business owner.

As the business grew, it was literally taking over our lives – our kitchen was the hub where we made all of our products – and we had to choose the next step. In 2019 we decided to build an on-site farm store where people could come visit the farm and learn about small-scale agriculture and bees/pollinators. We planned to open our farm store on April 5, 2020…and then the world shut down.

We pushed our opening back until May 2020. The world was still in a state of panic and fear but we felt like we had to keep moving forward. We opened our farm store on Mother’s Day weekend of 2020 and people felt safe and comfortable coming to our 10 acres where they could spread out and do something interesting but not have to be in close proximity to others. We offered a space for families to still gather but keep their distance.

Since opening the store in 2020, we have expanded our operations dramatically. We have a commercial kitchen now for our production but we also rent the space out to other entrepreneurs.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers

Next to Nature Farm is located in northeast Kansas, in between Lawrence and Kansas City. We are a small family farm committed to offering all of our products in their most natural form. Next to Nature Farm strives to ensure a line of the highest quality products with an environmentally friendly focus. The farm is owned by Chad and Megan Gilliland. However, this farm operation is a family adventure and everyone pitches in including 10-year-old son (known as the Itty Bitty Beekeeper)!

We provide an extensive line of handmade and homemade products but we specialize in local honey and beeswax skincare. We’ve expanded our products available include a line of olive oils and vinegars and kombucha. Our farm store supports other small businesses with shelf space to showcase their products.

We have a loyal following for our classes and events that we offer throughout the year. We offer entertainment, education, and a fun environment for people of all ages.

Do you sell on your site, or do you use a platform like Amazon, Etsy, Cratejoy, etc?

Next to Nature Farm developed an e-commerce website in the fall of 2019. We knew that e-commerce and online ordering was going to be important but little did we know how important it would become in the next few months. In the spring of 2020, when the pandemic hit, we were able to keep our business going and pivot to porch deliveries to keep products going out the door. We offered a free porch delivery during the pandemic and still offer the service for a small fee. We believe the relationship we create with customers is the most important part of our business.

Any insights you can share with us about how you built up your social media presence?

From the beginning of our effort, our social media has been key. We have always tried to be storytellers on our social media, not just sellers of a product. We try to educate/inform people why local honey is so important and we try to educate them about pollinators and their impact to our world.

We’ve grown our Facebook following to 6.3K followers and we’re working to grow Instagram. We know social media is a key component of our marketing plan and we want to keep increasing our reach and engagement.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.NextttoNatureFarm.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nexttonaturefarm/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/NextToNatureFarm