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Running a Real Business

 

In this blog, I want to talk a lot about the behind the scenes business realities of having a small business.  If you want to grow plants successfully, you need to think about plants- that's easy.  But if you want to have a successful business, you need to think about business.  And that is the hard part!  

 

Doing it Wrong

 

I used to have a business- I owned a print shop in the late 90's.  For me, the printing part was easy because I grew up in my parent's print shop, where I learned everything about the art and craft of printing.   It was a great craft, and I was a good craftsman.  I would go into the shop at all hours of the day, and work on printing.  I loved it.  But what I didn't do was work on 'business'.  I was a horrible businessman.  My printing was a success, but my business was a failure.  I closed up after 4 years and went back into the Army to to lick my financial wounds and hike around the back woods of Georgia.

 

I keep that in mind as I am working on Jungle Brothers.  This may be a small business that I really want to succeed.  My definition of success is complex- I want to give to the community, I want to support people who provide labor, I want to teach people about plants.  But none of that can happen if the business side - money coming in, and money going out - does not succeed.

 

Cash Flow

 

The plant nursery business is tough.  When you create a plant, you know it won't sell for 3 months, 6 months, even years after you create it.  I have 9 sago palms that I don't expect to sell for at least 18 months.  That means my capital is tied up in plants that will not sell for a long time.  Having plants that are almost ready doesn't help when I need cash for more materials today.

 

Diversification

 

So we have a diversified business to maintain a steady cash flow.  This is where the services come into play- building gardens, pruning orchards.  I've become a defacto Handyman, because that is the work that is offered.  These are what maintain a positive cash flow.  These services come with a lot of work- and that means paying labor.

 

 

I've been filling this greenhouse with plants since last Fall, but I haven't sold any yet. It won't be until my sale in March that I start to see a return on this investment.  That is 6 months of costs- the gravel, the benches, the pots, soil, plants, fertilizer.  Everything is already paid for, with no return yet.

 

That is why cash flow is so important.  I need to bring in income, while I wait for these assets to be ready for sale.

 

So...do you need a gardener?  I'm looking for work!

 

This blog is here to document what running a business entails.  The scale of what I am doing is tiny- but we need to follow the same business concepts and fundamentals as any large horticultural operation- with one key exception:  We do everything with integrity.