Growing Through Grief - Behind the Scenes of Growing a Garden Business

Have you ever wondered what it would be like to take your passion in the garden and turn it into a garden consulting business? Well, today's episode is created just for you. In fact, this is the second episode that I have with one of a super special guest in the gardenary world. Her name is Ashley, and she is the founder of Heirloom Potager. She was on the podcast way back in May or June of this year, and she has been building her business all summer and fall long. And today we're gonna go behind the scenes and learn more about her story and how she's building her business in California. So you don't want to miss today's episode. It's gonna be inspiring. Whether you're a person who's looking for a garden consultant, which you should be, or you're a gardener who's interested in starting your own garden consulting business, this episode is for you. So let's dive in to behind the scenes of building a garden consulting business with Ashley, the founder of Heirloo Potager. Let's dig in.

Welcome to the Grow youw Self podcast. Surprising stories about the food we eat and inspiring conversations about what it really takes to live the whole and happy life we're all craving. I'm Nicole Johnseberg, your host and the owner of Rooted Garden and Gardenary Incorporated and author of Kitchen Garden Garden Revival.

Is it obvious yet?

I'm kind of obsessed with the kitchen garden. The kitchen garden may just be the answer that you've been looking for on your own journey to health and wholeness. In this podcast, it's going to inspire and enable you to make garden magic right in your very own space. If you're someone who wants to eat more good food that's actually good for you, fill your day with great stories you want to text to a friend. If you want to hear more about inspiring people and do a little bit each day better than the way you did it the day before, Grow yourself is what your ears have been waiting for.

You won't just learn about gardening here.

You'll learn how to make growing as a person a big part of your everyday life. And your life, your community. And your garden, of course, will be.

All the better for it.

So put in your headphones, turn up the volume, and let's take a walk, go on a drive, or just hang out in the kitchen garden together. Welcome to Grow youwself.

Welcome back to the Grow youw Self podcast. Ashley, thank you for joining me.

Thank you for having me. I am so excited to fill you in. A little bit more on what's been happening with Heirloom Potters Day and where we're going in 2021.

I'm super excited. So for those of you, well, none of you would know this, but we've been trying to put this episode together for about three months now. The original plan was to track your progress as you grow your business more closely. So from now on we will have this episode more regularly because you are like, you're kind of growing faster than I, than I anticipated. Well, you're definitely growing faster than I anticipated. So we have like, you know, in normal human life, we have like a year of work to catch up on that you've done in just a few months time. So let's go for those listeners who didn't hear your first episode, which you guys should totally go back and listen to that. We'll put the link to the original episode in the show notes. But for those of our listeners who don't know who you are, which I don't know why they wouldn't, but let's fill them in. Tell them all about Ashley, your background and how you started Heirloom Protege.

So I started Heirloom Protege this summer. It was time for me to do kind of a life change. And I was like, we're going to change, we're going to do something else. I've been a lifelong gardener. I was telling somebody actually about how the first house my husband and I bought, I totally didn't even want the house. But I made him promise me that he would build me Ray's garden beds in the back. So I said yes. And so that gardening has always been with me. I even like our first apartment. I tried to grow orchids because that was the only thing we could grow in front of our giant windows where we were balcony less. I've just always loved gardening. I grew up on my grandparents farm and so taking care of the earth and having fresh food was something that I have just always craved. And so now with the way that the world is, I think it's more important than ever to bring that back and to help people connect both with their community and with kind of what we've been missing. Because we have been so go, go, go for so long that now, as horrible as Covid is, it's also helping in some ways to have us forcing us to reset. And I think that's just a really important value that we're reassessing what is happening in the world and what is happening in our communities and what is happening in our own lives to make a change. And I think gardening is one of the best things that you can do for so many reasons.

Yeah. And so you actually, speaking of COVID you started Heirloom Protege in the middle of COVID in the middle of lockdown, Is that right?

I did. So for some people that don't know, I. During all of this, my mom passed away. And that was really part of the catalyst for when I say, like, I needed a new life change. I had been such a close caregiver for her for so long and trying to help take care of that. It was finally time for me to try something different. And so that was part of her dream before she passed, is that she was like, I need you to know, like, to do something that you love, like, make the most out of your life and enjoy what you do. And I had previously been wanting to start a bakery because I love to bake, which a lot of people don't know. And obviously, you can't sort of bakery or any type of a restaurant quite easily in the middle of a pandemic when people really aren't supposed to be going out and doing things. But that didn't stop me from having that, still having that great connection with food. And so I quickly realized I could do something with gardening and that my love of food, my love of growing, my love of connecting people over, you know, over a meal is really what is, like, the foundation of heirloom potage. And so I started a business and the middle of a pandemic. I'm a business student, so my husband likes to joke that I'm the MBA gardener. And so most things conventional wisdom would say, this is a horrible time to take a risk like this. And yet it's been the best thing that I've ever done for myself. And I know that now is a great time also to grow a business, because really, it's all about finding and making opportunities for yourself. And luckily, people have been responding in the positive, so.

Amazing. Okay, so I think we walked through this in the first podcast. Did you already have the idea before you came across Gardenary and the Garden Coach Society? So were you kind of already on the path?

I was kind of on the path of, like, what would this look like? And what actually started it was, I think I did a search because I had this idea. So my neighborhood is full of people who like to really take care of their homes, and they're interested in health and wellness. And I thought, how could I start a garden club here? And no joke, I Came across your Houston garden club. And I was like, so how would I do this? And I think it was because I started looking at rooted garden and the Houston garden club online is what then spurred one of the gardenary ads to show up in my Facebook feed. And I. It was four. It was right before you started one of the coaches challenge. I think I joined. So I joined right away. And then I think I joined GCS before the five day challenge even ended. I was like, this is what I want to do.

You're like my perfect student.

This is gonna be amazing. I knew I needed a support team to really kind of almost jumpstart, but also to keep me accountable and to have and have a group of peers that were going through the same things that I was. So if I was struggling, I could ask them if we were, you know, if something was working, we could share those wins and we could all grow together. And that was garden co soc for me. And so I just, I knew right then that that was going to be a really important investment in myself in the future of what I wanted to do. And so I didn't quite have a name yet. I didn't really have a whole business plan. I just knew that if somebody was else was doing it, there was a market and there was potential.

Love it. I will never forget the day I saw your you. I did not. I think you came in at a surprising time. So I wasn't looking for new students in the society at that moment. I was driving to a local nurs to go buy plants. It was like April ish, I think. And I got out and I was getting onto Instagram to post like to document me shopping and you had tagged me in your story. So you were talking about your business. You already had your handle set up. It was gorgeous, like branded, stylized, everything. And you're like, fancy talking about your business and like, I'm a gardenary, you know, I'm going through the garden side. I'm like, who is this wonder woman and where does she come from? So like DM'd you back. Like, when did you join? And you are doing amazing. I love this so much. So it has just been such a treat to get to watch you and just to feel like we are peers in this industry, which is so fun. So catch us up on what's happened. I mean, wow. First of all, I'm so sorry to hear about your mom and what a tribute to her and into her, like, you know, her heritage. And I just think of her smiling on what you're doing and just being so proud of what you're doing. And, I mean, just so much credit to you to take a very hard situation and. And turn it into something so beautiful. So I know you're honoring your mom, and I'm just. Yeah, I'm just wowed by you. So that's huge. But so kind of in the midst of that, I can remember actually you still. You emailing me about that and me thinking, oh, my goodness, I can't believe she's building a business in the middle of this grief and challenge. So, given that, tell us some milestones that you've come through since June.

So I think the biggest. So one of the biggest milestones is. Yes. So my love of gardening, obviously, is very much, you know, embraced by my mom, and we garden together. Right. So it was her. Her parents whose farm I grew up when I was a child. So she's very much here. And that's actually something that a few people, like, don't necessarily know. So one of the things at every home that we've lived in, we've moved around quite a bit for my. For my husband's job, every home that we live in, I plant flowers for the women in my life. So there are gladiators. There's tons of gladiolus on my property for my grandmother. There are beautiful lilies for my mom. And these were planted before, you know, any of this kind of happened. But it's a way to remember all of the women who I love. So a lot of, like, my good girlfriends and things like that, they also have flowers in my garden. And before my mom passes, one of the things she liked to believe, the idea that we come back as a bird. So her and I have this love of birds. And so she's like, I want to come back as a hummingbird. Okay, that's beautiful. Right. And we hadn't had hummingbirds. We were in Southern California. We're blessed. We have a lot of hummingbirds. We hadn't had a hummingbird in our yard for weeks leading up to her passing. And the very next morning, there she was. And so she's very much now a part of my garden as well. And so I think that's a beautiful thing. And so that's also one of the things that I've found, like, that's part of, like, the name of heirloom protege. Right. Is that I really. I've learned. I really love history. Yeah. And so that's part of that. And then part of an heirloom is really. Right. But it's something that's almost priceless. It's something of great value to you. Yeah. And that's what I think gardens should be. So. Right. So, like, I also love to plant with heirloom seeds, which are obviously historically relevant, but it creates this opportunity to really create a great legacy and something of immense value, not only to your property, but to you personally, to your family. And it's about making those memories. And so that is definitely, I would say, working. Building heirloom potage has been something that I think wouldn't have happened if I hadn't gone through this. If I didn't have my grave to work through, it wouldn't have looked the way it does. And so I think a big part of this whole process and part of how and why grown was just really to be able to honor her in a way that didn't solely revolve around me just laying in bed crying.

Yeah, I hear that. I think sometimes that I've lost two friends to cancer, and when I've told my, like, I lost them around the time that I started rooted garden. And I think of them often, you know, that they don't have the chance. And, you know, it kind of gives you this, like, this urgency, like, we don't have forever. So if you want to do this and you have a dream to do this, let's go, you know, and they would give us that message if they were here, too, so.

They absolutely would. And so it's. It's. That's kind of where the gardens are for me. And so that's, you know, that's how I do. I work with clients, too. So we always ask, now, you know, what's something special? Tell me a special memory of a garden that you've had in your, you know, in your life. And what does that look like? Or what are some flowers of friends and family that, you know, that they like? And so I found that that's just an extra personal touch that I can add to the gardens that we're designing so that people kind of fall in love with them even more than they are.

I love it. That's so. And that's so deep. That's so cool. All right, so you're talking about clients and meeting and, you know, your seeds. So what are. If you had to pick, say, two or three milestones that are real big that have happened, what would those be?

I would say a couple big milestones are. I already, like, I'm already working on my first commercial project, which I know that shortly after we had our during our podcast, I said, I think that's where I want to go. I want to start working a lot with restaurants and I want to work on commercial projects. Shortly after that, I got my very first commercial project. And it's such. It's so close to my heart. It's through an organization in LA called icann and they help adults with developmental disabilities learn the life skills that come a little bit easier to the rest of us. And they're doing such important work. They're so amazing. So they're building a new facility and their program director reached out to me and said, we have a 2,400 square foot dirt lot attached for parking lot. We think it would be cool to make it a garden. And So, I mean, 2,400 square feet is just really quite a large space. And so we went and we've transformed it. And so it's starting to take shape and become a garden. I'm really excited. It'll probably be something that we finally plant in maybe like late December or early January. But it's. The community is coming together, so we're working with lots of boy Scout and Girl Scout troops to build the planters and to, you know, do a bunch of different plants, little projects. So I really love that it's such a community effort. And I would say that's probably a huge milestone like to have that happen right away. And then that of course has led to some interest from some other commercial projects and restaurants. And so I'm really looking forward to starting those in 2021. But also some really positive milestones would just be the overall encouragement and kind of acceptance from my ideal target audience. So I decided to go and attract my neighbors because I and luck out, I live in a cool historic neighborhood. And so I knew that they were the people that would really value what I wanted to do. And the reception that I've had from them has been amazing. I've been of course, solicited to. We have a home tour every spring. And so this last year, obviously it was canceled due to Covid, but next year they want to have it be a garden only tour. And I already have four projects lined up and every single person wants their garden to be on the home tour. So to have that kind of like reception and acceptance from my ideal client and have people be that excited to then also show off what I'm designing, I think is just the most humbly honored I can't imagine. And so I know that that then will then really kind of like be an amazing catalyst for where heirloom protege will go, because we usually have like over a thousand or two thousand.

Oh, wow.

To go. So I'm just. I'm looking forward to what that looks like. It's. It's also given me an opportunity to really do all of the work that you talk about within the Garden Coach Society. And that framework has been really invaluable for getting me to where I am, to tracking my numbers, to knowing how much things cost of really truly understanding my profit margins. That really has been key to me being able to make really smart business decisions. And that has also what is helping fuel me for 2021. I would ultimately like to bring my husband in as officially as my, like, lead builder and such and have him really help me with project management. And I don't think he thought that that was going to be possible. When I first started, like, first started talking about what I wanted to do to tease me that I'm the MBA gardener now.

Yeah.

And so. But he is really seeing this come to life and he is seeing how much interest there is. He. Of course, a couple people have known you've featured it on Gardenary. We built a showcase garden at our home in our front yard. And it's incredible. Thank you. It has been so well received. And he's. I mean, it's just. It's really cool. He's. He still. Even yesterday we had somebody else stop by and take some photos and he. You said this is how this was going to be. I really didn't know that it was going to be like this. And he's like, I can't believe just how much interest people have in it. And so I think even that has just been also, I would say a real. A blessing is that I've gotten to talk and, you know, connect with so many more of my neighbors over a mutual love of food, which not everyone maybe knew before.

Yeah. So fun. I think my husband just. I was giving him my revenue numbers for Rooted Garden the other day, and he was like, wow, that still shocks me. And he. He's been listening to. I don't know what he gets into these podcasts. So one of the podcasts, he really likes Dolly Parton. And so he's been listening to. She's been doing all these interesting podcasts. So on one podcast, she tells the story of she's graduating from high school and they ask all the graduates what their dream is. And she gets up and she says, I'm gonna go to Nashville and I'm gonna win a Grammy. And she said, you know, of course, everybody looked at her like, you're crazy. And he said, don't you kind of feel like that? He's like, don't you feel like you had this plan? And we all looked at you like you were crazy, but you really knew what you were doing. And I see that in you. I see that in so many. So many members of the Garden Coach Society. And it takes stamina, doesn't it? I mean, it takes a lot. It takes a lot to keep seeing it when someone else that you love dearly and respect and need approval from isn't yet there.

It definitely does. And I think I am. My husband is, you know, an engineer, so he is more in tune with the details. Yeah, he's really great. He sees the big picture, but I am very much a big picture person. And so sometimes I don't communicate the full vision for him. But then when it's live, when it's in action, he sees it and he is. He's like, okay, you really knew what you were talking about. You. You know, I started talking with him about what I want to do in 2021 and breaking it down by quarters, and he's kind of looking at me like, how are you gonna do this? And he honestly was like, you're gonna need a team soon. Like, you're really, you know, he's like, I know you've put your. Your. Your team of kind of contractors, of people who are helping you with all these projects, but he's like, you're actually gonna need a team, and how are we gonna do. You know, he's like, how are we gonna do this? And the fact that I'm able to now share with him, like, okay, here's how we're going to pay for this. Here's how we're going to do this. I think is really brought him around to being able to say, like, wow, yeah, she's got this. She knows what she wants to do and how she wants to grow. And that is both really inspiring and just also, you know, kind of reconfirming, like, okay, you're right. That vision that you had, that idea that I think, again, like, it's that spark, right? Like, I knew, like, I got that spark from you that I knew that I was going to be able to do this. And being able to hold kind of that candle, like, lit, like you said, is exhausting. It's hard. It takes a lot of fortitude. There's been a handful of days through all of this that I have struggled and been like, I'M not doing it right. You know, like, my Instagram isn't growing fast enough or I'm not doing this. And it. I just have to kind of call, like, walk myself back and say, but this is what is working and this is how. This is what you know, the work that you've put into it. And if you can keep that up, you'll be able to keep growing. You have to trust the guidance, and sometimes that's hard, but you have to.

Trust that process, definitely. And it's. I love the honesty. Okay, let's keep going. So tell me a setback you faced. I feel like what we just did with milestones, you told me tons of successes, which is so awesome. So just to recap here, first, big commercial client. Not just a commercial client, but a client that's going to mean so much to your brand. Like, to be associated with a company that's doing good for people that deserve it, and then bringing the community in, that's huge. Connecting with your ideal clients and having hundreds of them and having them see you as their leader, and then all this opportunity to network with them, to serve them, and then to be able to support, spread that, that's huge. And then your own growth with. With your own front yard, gorgeous garden, and bringing your husband along the journey, which honestly sometimes can be the hardest part of the whole thing. So those are huge successes. So tell me one setback that you faced.

Oh, gosh. Okay. So I feel like there's certain, like there's small setbacks and sometimes they feel, you know, they. But they feel monumental in the moment. So as an example, my husband was. My husband likes to do woodworking in his spare time. So he right now is my lead builder for all of my beds. But when we were putting together the showcase garden, it was really important for me to be a really active part of the work so that I knew exactly how much time and effort and just like almost physicality was required to do this work. Because it's important to me that people get paid fair wages. And I really, obviously with gardening, sometimes labor is one of the biggest line items on an estimate.

Yeah.

And so I wanted to make sure that that wasn't going to become a bargaining chip for people to be like, well, I think we could probably hire, you know, somebody else for a couple hundred or whatever it was last. So I really wanted to know how much work went into it, and I also wanted to just have that knowledge to be able to help troubleshoot on the fly. So having my husband also help me with That I think we grew as a couple even more so in our communication style, because he really. I needed his help with certain things. So, like, one example was like, you know, it wasn't. The project wasn't moving at the rate that I wanted it to, you know, because I'm kind of that, like, we've got all the pieces, let's start doing it. But I had to respect his time as well, knowing that he was also working full time and doing that. So we kind of fit it in where we could. But one subject that happened was then he was really, really bogged down with work. And so the soil delivery came and we had to have. We had eight yards of soil delivered. It completely filled our driveway, which for.

Those of you guys listening, one yard of soil is about £1,000.

Yes.

He has £8,000 of soil on your driveway. No biggie.

Right. And so he wasn't available to help me move it.

Oh, my gosh.

All myself. All myself got wheelbarrow. I mean, my arms were looking awesome at the end of that week, that's for sure. So I moved it all. And he was amazed. He was just like, he's like, wow, she's out there moving. Well, one setback that happened. And again, this was such a great learning piece was I was as. I'm like, I know how we're going to do this. I'm just going to tip the wheelbarrow over into the bed. And then I'm like, I am not going to tip the wheelbarrow over into that bed. That is not going to work. And then like you said, soil is really heavy. And so it wasn't like I could just lift the whole wheelbarrow and dump it.

Like you said, it's a two person.

Job at least, right?

Two men, two grown men job. Yes.

I was like, how am I gonna do this myself? So I went and I found a piece of plywood in our garage and was able to use that as a ramp.

Oh, nice.

Which was awesome. Totally helped me. Except then the ramp slipped on one of the beds and it marked and it totally broke the finish, like the edge top of the bed. And I was like, how am I gonna tell my husband, Right? How many of this? How am I gonna have this happen? And then in my head, I'm like, what if this happened at the client's house?

Yes.

What would I do? And it was so funny because it happened. And then my husband was like, well, we'll just fix it. Yeah, we'll just unscrew it. We'll just Put a new piece of wood down. And I was like, oh, yeah. It was the fact that, like, I went to that worst case scenario. But we've had a couple of those instances, right? Like, how would we do this? And those setbacks and then, you know, like, planning. You know, I like to plan. So not having things kind of happen on the schedule in which I would love them to happen has felt like a huge setback. But I'm really working on knowing that I'm doing all of the right steps to know that it's going to happen. And if I just practice a little bit more patience, it's going to happen.

Yeah.

And it's, you know, and it's. It's going to happen in any way. And so that has also helped me, helped lead me to a couple of commercial projects that are going to start in 2021 that, you know, I probably was in my head trying to figure out, like, how I could force these projects to happen. And now it was like, when I took that step back, when I trusted that everything that I was doing was the right way to do happened.

Yeah.

And so I think those. Those setbacks, right? So, like, also, I would say, like, one setback is also, I would say budgeting. So, you know, like, I know how much our showcase garden cost and that figuring that, like, figuring out how to properly price those things has felt like a little bit of, like a learning lesson. And knowing then, okay, like, what is the proper markup and what do you, you know, how much time does it actually take? Because it actually ends up taking a lot longer than you kind of think things will happen. And so that kind of felt like a setback, but now it has helped us work through. So, like, we were doing installations right now and doing a couple more in the next few weeks. Now I feel like we have a way better process of how that's going to occur. My trellis. I ordered a whole bunch of trellising from this really great company in Northern California in August. It was just delivered on Monday. And the order just kept growing and growing and growing because they had grown, sold stuff to clients.

Yeah.

So that felt like a setback.

Right?

Like, I wasn't delivering on my promises. I wasn't delivering what somebody had paid me for. Everybody has, like, all of my clients have been incredibly, you know, understanding.

Yeah, definitely.

But it was just for me, it was like that, oh, my gosh, what if they, like, you know, think. Start thinking poorly of me or what happens if they give me a bat, you know, if they decided to Rate me on Houzz or, you know, on Yelp or something like that. And they were, like, not quite as good as we expected. You know, like, what would that feel like?

Right?

So kind of following that old mantra of under promising and over delivering is really something I live by. And so when those. When not everything happened the way that I thought it would, that felt like a setback. But it's provided me an opportunity to really grow and be gracious myself as a business owner. And knowing that it's very important for me to work with that small business who is doing all of these amazing trellis work, but then also to find somebody else maybe who might be able to help fill in when they get a little faster.

Yeah, yeah. It's a skill, right? I mean, it's funny. We want it to be. I think we, you know, we deal with this with. With garden clients, right? Like, gardeners want to just immediately know how to garden and realizing, no, like, learning to garden is just like learning to play tennis or how to do yoga. Like, you show up every day, get on the mat, and you get better every day. And building a business, same thing. It's like a sport, right? So, like, if you show up every day at practice, some days you're gonna look awesome, some days you're not gonna look so awesome. But if you keep showing up for practice every day, you're gonna get better and you're gonna learn, you know, and the games, you know, like, it's for us, our game is, you know, like, we're at the client's home, right? We've got an audience, people are watching, we're performing. But what if you strike out? Like, what if you throw an interception? Well, you push the replay button, you figure out what went wrong, and you go, I'm going to go back to practice tomorrow and I'm going to figure out how to not have that happen next time. And I think we talked through this in one of our sessions where I said, okay, you guys, let's go to worst case scenario, right? Because we all love to do that. Our fear does that to us. So worst case scenario, what's the worst thing that could happen? So go ahead and go there because your mind is playing with that, but you actually don't go all the way there. And then, do you remember what I said? Like, what would happen? And I think you just basically voiced it, but I walked you guys through the process and I was like, okay, what if the worst thing happens? Like, what if you set up a garden? It's horrible. It's ugly, your client hates it, Everything dies, the soil is toxic. Like go all the way to the worst, worst, worst thing. And then what would you do?

Yep.

You'd fix it.

Exactly. And I think that was that. I remember, I distinctly remember that because I think that was right before I started. I think I had to do one of my first installs and I, it kind of like I was like, oh my gosh, I don't think I thought through all of these worst case scenarios what is gonna happen? And. But then I started to realize, like you said, because you're like, I think that the, I think it was the beautiful side of that is like, you're like, not only do you know how you're gonna resolve it, but also think of kind of the, the opportunity cost of you not doing it. So if you let fear stall you and let it stop you, what are you actually losing out? And I think that is also probably one of the biggest lessons that I keep reminding myself of. Right. So taking on a commercial client, this first commercial client, I mean, I even flat out said to her, I was like, you know, I haven't quite done a project quite this large. And she's like, yeah, but we know that you know what you're doing. And then to also learn, like eventually that they had also interviewed some other designers and they were like, yeah, no, we totally trust you. We know that you know what you're gonna deliver to us, what we want. Having somebody trust you like that, that is so reaffirming. But also, like, if I had let fear win out, I probably would have talked myself out of getting that job. Right. I would have convinced them that I was not the right person for them and I would have lost out on that. And so it, that really is a big part of that. Remembering and believing in yourself and hold, you know, lighting that, keeping that candle lit for yourself. That even. Not only can you sometimes get the doubt from outsiders, but you can also have that doubt within yourself. But it's really important to keep remembering that you do know what you're doing.

Yeah. And even if. Yeah, and even if it goes south and everything goes bad, you know that your moral compass won't allow. You're not going to walk away from that. She's going to fix it. So I love it. Okay, so we. I have time for maybe two more questions, so let's do. If you. This is your chance. Do you have a question you would ask. You would like to ask me?

Oh, goodness. I think for me right now is I have A couple of questions and they're kind of like, they build on each other. So one is this idea of I know that I need to hire. And you had kind of mentioned to me before, you're like, you know, the best decision is to hire a little bit before you really absolutely need somebody because otherwise it's that much more stressful. So I guess really knowing and trusting, like what was maybe that like little intuitive sign that told you now is definitely the right time to do this. And from there, like how. What would you say would be the most important thing when hiring somebody?

I love that question. So yes, you should definitely be hiring. I didn't hire soon enough. I give that advice to hire before you need it because I hired after I needed it. So I missed a lot of opportunities that first spring and this is going to come for you. My spring of 16, I was incredibly busy and really, if I did not have such persistent clients, I would have lost some of my best clients that spring because I was so busy maintaining gardens that I had already set up that I was missing new clients. So for instance, like the story I tell about Andrew, the man who had pancreatic cancer and hired me, he was literally like, his assistant was like chasing me down to get an estimate and I was out planting corn, you know, so I should have hired that garden maintenance person that March, really. So as soon as I had enough gardens for someone to maintain on a part time basis, probably 10 hours a week, I should have found somebody. So that was the first piece for me. I don't know if you're going to run a maintenance side of your business. For me, that was super important for client satisfaction, for client happiness. And that was a piece that I talk about this in the society, hiring someone that the client isn't necessarily interacting with that person and won't necessarily feel your absence, but it could be done with quality, you know, just as high quality. So that was a super important hire in terms of like, if there's a piece, you know, that will make your client experience better, then that's, that's a definite, like, if you can feel that there's a hole and especially for new business, if you're missing out on new business because you're taking care of existing clients, there's going to be a gap there and you're going to, you're either going to frustrate existing clients, which you definitely don't want to do, or you're going to miss new opportunities. So that's a piece. And then if you're not doing the maintenance or like an ongoing service. Then for me a super critical piece was finding Monica. So I knew I needed Monica the day I started Rooted Garden. She was a friend of mine and, and she was like the lead of the PTO at our kids school and she just had a skill set I immediately recognized as something that I don't have. So I would say a key hire is finding someone who is not an entrepreneur and who has the admin and the integration skills. Because oftentimes people like you and I and most people who are attracted to growing and starting a business are more the visionaries. So they've got the great ideas, they're ready to make the connections and oftentimes we're about 10 steps ahead of where our feet are. So like our hands are out here and our feet are, you know, back behind us. So we end up with our face flat on the ground sometimes. So that person who can take your plans and your thoughts and turn them into action, that, that is actually the most important hire. The client happiness piece is definitely critical, but the finding that person who can put feet to your dreams and likes that role. So that's a huge, that's a huge part is really finding someone who's a go getter who loves to work but isn't wanting to be the visionary that, that I would say is higher. Would be higher number one, if possible.

I think that's such great advice and that really does help me know. So I was not initially planning on offering maintenance and that is like you said, that is the number one request from you have installs already is they're kind of so what's the next step and what's this like, what is this going to look like and when will you be back? I've gotten that a couple like when will you be back? And, and it's like you said, it's not going to be something that I'm going to be able to maintain for forever. And so knowing who I can hire, I think it will be critical and I think that will just be an important factor in the brand that I didn't necessarily think about at first. I think I initially thought that like everybody, like you said, would either just be so excited that they'd start learning and then maybe I'd do like a handful of coaching sessions with them and then they'd feel confident enough when you mentioned that too. I have a client who we've done coaching with and when I delivered his trellising he goes, I really thought that I would have mastered this whole Gardening thing by now. And we just kind of left. And I said, I've been doing this for how many years? Like, you're not going to get it right away, but you keep trying and you keep testing things and you know, when you have a question, you can email me or ask me. So I didn't necessarily realize like how much time, like how much, how much I would be stretched. So I love the advice, really learning, you know, and hiring for what? Hiring for the skills that you don't have so that I can lean into the things that I actually am really great at. And I think that's a super important. So I will.

Yeah, so start putting fillers out there. Yeah, I think you start looking. You did say what to look for. I would say, you know, look for, look for people, especially that you enjoy working with people that have similar work ethics to you. People who are self motivated. Monica and I, we laugh as we talk through, like building our team. She's like, okay, core value. Like, because we'll come across, you know, something with the team or with someone we're working with and something's missing. And she's like, okay, core value. This is a core value because you almost, it's almost like a dirty house versus a clean house. Like, you don't notice a clean house, but you definitely notice the dirt. And so you've got values in yourself as you've developed and you're developing your business that probably you may not even have words for yet or you don't even realize that's just a way. It's like part of your ethos and so starting to kind of take note of those things. Like, oh, this is a value of mine. This is something that even if the person isn't an entrepreneur, isn't owning the business. I want, I want everyone on Heirloom Protege team to have this quality and starting to kind of note those things that are intrinsic to you that are almost like freckles, like they're just there. You don't even, you don't notice them, but other people do. I love this conversation. I can do this all day. It sounds like someone is doing work in my house. Can you hear that saw?

I heard a little bit, but, you know.

Okay, well, for my podcast listeners, I'm actually trying to add an. I'm adding doors and walls to my office because it didn't have those things. And now my whole family is home all day. So except for Jason. So if you hear that noise, that wasn't a plan. I guess someone just showed up and decided to stop my house. Let's close out. I would love it. I'm guessing that probably if someone has followed along this far in the episode, two things. So we'll start first with the gardeners. Then we'll close out about you and how people can find you. But first, if anybody's listening, that's a gardener that's like, I'm interested in starting my business or I'd really like to, you know, consider turning my passion for the garden into a business too. What would be one piece of advice you'd give them?

I would say start doing the work. Start thinking about who that client is that you want to work with. Really hone down and really also think about your capabilities. I think that's one of the, I would say one of the things that we sometimes like especially I know like you and I, like, we're like, we can do it all. And recognizing the things that you can't do is as equally as important as recognizing what you can do. So that, that way what you're offering is completely in line with your clients expectations. And so I think that would be like just putting yourself out there, knowing that it's going to take a little time. Like again, like I want to be 10 steps ahead as well and but knowing that every step is super important. So also, you know, like, like talking to the lawyer and getting your business set up properly super important feels really laborious and not exciting, but it's super important. And so at first, like the first step, if you're just thinking about it, talk to a couple of your friends who you think would be amazing people that you'd want to work with and just say like, would you, would you pay for this? What? Would you, would you, would you be interested in this? I think that's also been a way that I've been figuring out some of the products like some of which I consider marketing products for heirloom potage. But that has been one of the things that we're getting good reception with our neighbors. And so it's helping me get heirloom potager's name out into the community. But it wasn't what I thought, you know, like I wouldn't have necessarily thought of that. I wouldn't, that wouldn't have been what I based a business around. So really just kind of knowing that you have it, like reminding yourself that you have what it takes and then really just kind of taking that first step or five steps and one foot in front of the other and don't try to jump all the way to the end, which is really, you know, common end, or just like the natural inclination is that we want to go further and then knowing. Right. Just that will help have that confidence. I think that is one of the things also that we tend to forget. Like you said, the imposter syndrome is really easy to fall into. And when you do the steps, you build the confidence that you need to know that you're making the right decisions and to show up tomorrow to do the same thing.

Very good. Awesome. And should they join the Garden Coach Society?

Absolutely. One of the best investments that I've ever. Like I said, I've, you know, as somebody who has an advanced degree, you know, that's. That's a huge investment that you put into yourself and for your family and such. And yet I was like, here's one more thing. But it's been amazing. It's an investment into yourself and into your business and to where you want to be. So if you're thinking about wanting to start a garden coaching business or to become a consultant or to become. Go to doing the installations like you do with Rooted Garden and we do with Heirloom Potager. You need a framework and you need a support network. And that is exactly what the Garden Coach Society is. And I love where it's growing. I have. I mean, you've learned that we have a little Southern California network group here that we put together just because there were different things that we were experiencing here that we were like, how do we do this? How do we support one another having that? Like, that's what Garden Coach Society did. It brought us together and it's allowing us to encourage one another. So I would just say if you don't do it, you're going to regret it six months down the road or a year down the road, because chances are you're going to be in a very similar place then as you were 12 months ago, because you just don't have all of the support. So Garden Coach Society has definitely helped me fast track my growth, which has been amazing.

And I love how you show up to everything. It's so awesome. I had to ask you that question. Of course, for those of you listening, if you are interested, actually, at the time of this, Garden Coach Society isn't open, but you can get on the waitlist@gardencoachsociety.com for when we open in the spring or in February, actually. All right, final question. How does everyone find you? How can your clients get in touch with you? How do they order a consult with you. How do people find the amazing Heirloom protege?

So we. I'm most active on Instagram, so you can find me at Heirloom Potager or you can Visit our website, heirloompotager.com. that's where you can sign up for our email newsletters, which I try to feature. Talk about friends and family in the garden. I try to. I'm working on some chef interviews so that we also get a recipe. I usually include a discount to our garden store for Orange county friends. That's the two places or three places that I usually am the most. So please send me a DM or follow along. I'd love to have you join our growing family.

And you mentioned Floral park neighborhood. That's where your Showcase Garden is, L.A. like, what parts of that area would you be serving as a garden consultant?

Yeah. So I live in Santa Ana, California, which is kind of in the center of Orange County, California. It's a great community. It's just south of, you know, Anaheim, but we live in this cool, historic neighborhood that's Floral Park. It's kind of a hidden gem. That's where you can find me. Find the showcase garden. But we are serving kind of South LA county and all of Orange County.

Awesome. So South LA County. All of Orange County. Go look up Heirloom Potager and get yourself a kitchen garden. I love it.

Thank you so much, Ashley.

Thank you for your time. Thank you for making time with me. After I canceled about 20 appointments, I must need to hire somebody else to help me with my calendar. Maybe that's my next hire for an assistant. Email inbox assistant. I love you. I love your story. I love the fact that we get to grow our businesses together. And I love that this has a much bigger meaning, that it's not just about us growing our business, but you're actually changing the environment where you live. You're gonna. You're bringing bees and butterflies, and you're restoring people's serenity and peace during a really crazy time. And you're creating beauty right where you are. And I just want to cheer you on and tell you, don't quit.

Okay. Thank you.

I love it. Thanks so much for being here. And we'll do this again maybe in two months.

Months.

We'll do another. Check back in and find out all the fun things you've done in the meantime.

I'm looking forward to it.

All right. Bye, Ashley.

Bye.

Thanks so much for listening to the Grow youw Self podcast. I am so glad you got to join in and listen to the behind the scenes of Ashley building her business, Heirloom Protege, in South LA and Orange County. If you feel inspired to get Ashley's help, which of course you should, you can check her out@heirloompeg.com and if you're a gardener that's also considering starting your own business, you got to take Ashley's advice and come check out the Garden Coach Society. I've designed it to be the support we all need as we grow our own businesses, and we will be enrolling new members in the Society in February of 2021. So you want to get on the wait list so you know when that happens. Thanks again for listening. This episode is brought to you by the Garden Coach Society and we've got some fun free downloads you can check out on today's blog post@gardenary.com blog thanks again for listening and I'll see you next week.