In This week's interview we'll visit with Larry and Letitia Pierce of Garden Anywhere Box.
WHAT IS GARDEN ANYWHERE BOX? HYDROPONICS? AQUAPONICS? DIRT IN A BOX? NONE OF THE ABOVE. GARDEN ANYWHERE BOX IS A UNIQUE AUTOMATICALLY-WATERING CONTAINER GARDEN. NO WEEDING. AUTOMATIC WATERING. PORTABLE.
Larry came up with this fabulous watering system so anyone, anywhere can grow vegetables and flowers whether they live on a farm or in an apartment!
This easy to use system might not be glamorous-yet! but it allows you to start your garden indoors before transferring outdoors and also allows you to have a garden even if you do not have a green thumb. It does the watering for you and NO weeding!
In fact, one of our favorite sayings for this gardening box is that it will Turn Brown Thumbs Green.
Let’s dive in…
First, a little about the Pierce's and how they got started...
IT ALL STARTED AS JUST TRYING TO FIND AN EASIER WAY TO GARDEN.
We started gardening in boxes nearly a decade ago. Each year we’d add a few more boxes and expand our garden.
When we had over 20 boxes, I asked Larry if there was an easier way to water the garden. He was out of town a lot for work and I was dragging a hose around daily to water.
He started to think on the problem and over a couple of summers through trial and error, came up with a solution. This is how our watering system and Garden Anywhere Box was born. Our watering system is what makes us unique and different from other container gardens.
We did not plan on starting a business at 50+ years old. We just wanted an easier way to garden. Once we had the watering system, we thought that others might like this way of gardening, too.
From our humble beginnings with our neighbors to Garden Shows, Expos and Fairs, and now branching out to friends across the nation, we do this because we believe that those who thought they couldn’t garden due to health problems, drought conditions, or any other reason can continue to enjoy the therapeutic and health benefits of having a beautiful garden at their fingertips with no worry, no weeding and no problems.
Today, we travel all over the country showing people that a garden can be easy, economical, effortless, and rewarding with the Garden Anywhere Box!
Here are their answers to the questions we asked:
Q: When did you first exhibit in a Trade Show?
Answer: January 2013 OKC Home Show
Q: Approximately how many Trade Shows have you exhibited in?
Answer: We’ve done the January and March OKC Home Shows from 2013-2018 and the January Home Show in 2019. We also have done random trade shows like the Tulsa OK Home show and other shows around Oklahoma.
Q: Please give 3 examples of how exhibiting in a Trade Show helped you or your business?
Answer:
Being a part of a trade show helps to give us the exposure that we need. We are able to talk to a variety of people. Our product needs to be explained, so a trade show is a good venue for us.
Q: Please share 3 negative experiences that made you either re-think wanting to exhibit or challenged you to find a solution to enable you/your company to continue exhibiting in Trade Shows?
Answer:
We’ve not really had any negative experiences doing trade shows. The only negatives have to do with us personally. The older we get, the harder it is to do shows. We have to set up our booth and be “on” for three days, talking almost non-stop to explain about our product.
Q: What advice (or tips) would you give to business owners on the following?
1. Booth set up?
Answer:
It depends on what you are selling, but we tried to make our booth as easy as possible to set up and take down.
2. Signage?
Answer:
Signage is important. Make sure that your message is concise and eye-catching.
3. Choosing location for your booth?
Answer:
it is good to have the same location each show, if possible. Your customers will look for you.
4. Expectations?
Answer:
we expected to talk to a lot of people and we did. We didn’t always sell what we expected at the shows, but would make up for it with after-show sales.
5. Materials to bring, how much/many?
Answer:
We bring plenty of brochures and cards. We used to hand out brochures to everyone, but now just hand them out to people that seem interested.
6. How do you approach customers?
Answer:
As people pass our booth, we say, “easier way to garden”. That will get their attention. They come over and we explain how Garden Anywhere Box works.
7. Specials and offer at a Trade Show?
Answer:
We have offered a signup for a free Starter Kit in the past. We get lots of leads that way. ($199 value)
Above Woodrow Wilson Kindergarten is learning to plant--so easy with Garden Anywhere Boxes!
We asked for their best advice?
Answer: We learned a lot from our first home show.
- We handed out brochures to anyone that walked by. We have learned not to do that. People who are interested in our product, will ask for a brochure.
- We learned to make interesting business cards that stand out and people want to keep. If you can use a picture or several of your product, they will be eye-catching and different than a regular card.
- Bring healthy snacks and bottles of water.
Last Question:What would you like to share with our audience about YOUR company/products/services?
Garden Anywhere Box is an easier way to garden. No weeding. Automatic watering. Portable. What is unique about GAB is our automatic watering system. Our boxes connect together by tubing, like box cars. Water flows from the source, rain barrel or faucet, through the watering system to all of the boxes at once and shuts off when full. No electricity. Gravity-fed. Not hydroponics. Garden Anywhere Box…Turning Brown Thumbs Green. www.gardenanywherebox.com
So many happy and more than satisfied customers of the Garden Anywhere Box!
Here is one testimonial:
This is one of those products that will undoubtedly hit the national and international markets soon. It has ONE flaw..there should be THIS fine print on the instructions… (AND I’M NOT KIDDING): “Be very prepared for success! Your tomatoes are going to be loaded up and you need to stake them and cage them or they may not hold up to their production, cucumbers, squash..all of it is going to do better than what you are used to.. do prepare for this early by caging, staking etc… unbelievable. You should stop by our shop and see ours!”
