Van Belle Nursery is on a mission to grow healthy businesses through healthy people, embracing joy, and creating freedom. Our vision is to provide an uncommon culture where all team members can reach their full potential.
We invest in people so every team member can own and engage the financials and have a meaningful stake in the outcome.
We serve the horticultural space by providing millions of starter plants to other nurseries, as well as supplying major mass retailers with a full line of plants, from annuals to trees.
Tell us about yourself?
I grew up in this business and decided to return to it after college to build a company. I really enjoy working with people and working with them to build something special is very rewarding.
If you could go back in time a year or two, what piece of advice would you give yourself?
Keep thinking bigger, and don’t be afraid to take more chances.
What problem does your business solve?
Our Bloomin’ Easy plants are geared towards helping young homeowners be successful in their yards. We remove the fear of “I kill plants, and I can’t grow them” with easy-to-use technology that provides specific care instructions for your plant purchases. We make having success with plants in your yard “bloomin’ easy!”
What is the inspiration behind your business?
My personal inspiration for our business is the many immigrants who have moved here for a better life. They are smart, driven, and humble, and they came here for a chance to fulfill their dreams. That is very inspirational to me. With the actual business, we are a nursery that is doing our best to meet the needs of our customers, from mass merchant retailers to independent nurseries.
What is your magic sauce?
Our magic sauce is our culture. We really work hard at having all our staff “feel, think, and act like owners” so that our staff is what really drives the business. We practice open book management, where we not only share our financials but actively teach the rules of business, so that our staff can contribute to the bottom line. They also have a chance to earn a profit share if our business does well. Since they are the ones who can make a difference, it is motivating.
What is the plan for the next 5 years? What do you want to achieve?
We want to double our business in five years using our existing staff and culture. Ideally, we are able to make an acquisition or two in order to either expand our offerings, or vertically integrate some part of the supply chain.
What is the biggest challenge you’ve faced so far?
COVID-19 and all the shutdowns around that were very stressful. It was very tight financially, and I would prefer not to go through that again. Current challenges are making sure we are developing our staff, something we have been very tightly focused on this year.
How can people get involved?
You can support our “Made In Canada” angle by purchasing our brand of plants, Bloomin Easy, at several of the largest retailers. To order online, go to www.bloomineasyplants.com.