August 1, 2025 • 34 mins
The green industry is more than just plants—it’s about people, purpose, and partnership. In this episode, Taylor Clem sits down with local leaders and entrepreneurs Andy Turner and Mike Zaffaroni to explore career opportunities within the green industry. From hands-on work and design to logistics, marketing, and business ownership, the industry offers diverse paths for anyone ready to grow. Andy and Mike share how collaboration, networking, and continued education—including certifications and involvement with organizations like FNGLA—can help newcomers thrive. Whether you're just starting out or looking for a new direction, this episode offers real-world advice and inspiration to help you take root and succeed in a field that’s shaping the future.
Resources
- Florida Nursery Growers and Landscape Association
- Licensing & Certification within the Green Industry
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
(00:08):
Thank you for joining us today for another episode of
Cultivating Curiosity. This is Doctor Taylor Clem.
And for this month's summer Sobering to jump right into the
program and explore green industry and green industry
careers with two leaders in Northeast Florida, Andy Turner
and Mike Zaffrani. Thank you for joining us today.
How are y'all doing? I'm doing great, Andy.
How about you? I'm excited to be here.
(00:31):
I want to thank you both for coming.
So today we have Andy Turner andMike Zafferoni.
So can you both take a second and kind of introduce what you
all do? Happy to Yeah.
My name is Mike Zafferoni. I own a company called Liberty
Landscape Supply. We are a Jacksonville and
Northeast Florida based supplierof landscape materials and a
(00:51):
surprise there. We also do some installation
work, residential commercials, some government work as well.
The core of our business though is, is supplying materials.
So we have 4 locations that thatthat do that and about 180
people. Oh wow, wonderful.
So, Andy, tell us a little aboutyour company and what you do.
(01:11):
My name is Andy Turner. My company is Sarah Noah
Landscape Design and I am a Florida native, father of three.
We have one on the way. Oh.
Nice. Congratulations.
Thank you. So I love nature, I enjoy being
a small business owner and I'm really passionate about gardens,
(01:34):
both creating them and experiencing them and just
talking about them. I'm I really enjoy the space.
Overall, absolutely, I really appreciate you all taking the
time to come here today. But what I want us to talk about
is, you know for people listening to this is how can it
be a part of the green industry?What is it?
How can the industry grow and change etcetera?
(01:55):
So I want to ask you all, when you hear the term green
industry, what does that mean toyou?
That's a big broad question, butwhat to you?
What is the green industry? Yeah.
I'll, I'll start. Andy.
I think the green industry is infact a very broad industry and,
(02:15):
and, and for me and for my company and my employees, I
think it means anywhere that landscaping is touching the
lives of the citizens of the state of Florida.
And so it can be a grass or turf, it can be a golf course.
It's certainly, and we think that it is the woods and trees
(02:36):
and, and whether they're decorative ornamental landscapes
or, you know, natural areas thatwe're trying to help rebuild.
It's really, as you stated, incredibly broad.
And it almost seems as every year passes, I'm learning new
ways that the green industry, asI just defined it, at least
(02:58):
touches our customers and even our customers customers in
different ways. So I, I, I, I think you're
exactly right. It's a lot more and it's there's
a lot more to it than probably the average person realizes.
Right, right. I don't think I could say it any
better than that, but I'll just add on to it slightly that
(03:19):
there's actually a lot of this web that's the green industry
with the landscaping and all theplants that you see on the side
of the highway to golf courses and all of that.
There's an extension of that that ties into all the people
that support that too. There's a lot of truck drivers
that drive the plants from SouthFlorida up here to a lot of our
(03:41):
job sites. And there's just like the the
heavy equipment rental companiesthat support the green industry.
There's tons of, you know there's the green industry
itself is huge, but then there'sall these other like ancillary
support services where there youhave got the drivers and the
heavy equipment and all of thosekinds of correlating people that
(04:06):
are working that are kind of behind the scenes in our
industry too. Yeah.
I, I think you're right, becauseI think that's commonly missed
is, you know, you think the whole logistic network supply
chain that goes within the greenindustry.
I mean, just mentioning the truck drivers is you have the
guys that are, you know, drivingwholesale to like our commercial
nurseries and you know, sometimes we're pulling stuff in
across state lines, we're bringing things from South
(04:28):
Florida, North Florida or vice versa.
So because a lot of times it seems like people have the
perspective of it's just like those, you know, the we call
that, we say the MO blow go guys, the guys that are just
like mowing lawns, you know, basic fertilizer maintenance for
landscapes. But it goes from original idea
of what a landscape should be oran environment can look like.
(04:50):
So you're thinking about design all the way to installation,
maintenance and management. So the entire lifeline of that
landscape, somebody has a hand on it.
And that's like green industriesand sometimes might change hands
within that green industry, you know, But nonetheless, you know,
that all falls within that realm.
So it's incredibly broad. Is in, in within our business,
(05:12):
I've made the mistake. I've been doing this for 18
years and I've made a mistake numerous times of thinking that
something was going to be easy because it was adjacent to what
we were already doing or it was similar.
It was a product. For example, we went five or six
years where we sold sod and our retail stores.
And you think, OK, well, of course that makes sense.
It's landscape business and you're, you've got landscape
(05:34):
supply stores, you have customers coming in every day
turns out. So it's really, really
difficult. It's difficult to manage the
logistics behind it. It's difficult to manage the the
initial phases of getting it established.
It's difficult to manage it longterm.
And so we had taken on this product that was, you know,
(05:55):
seemingly a no brainer and for five years beat our head up
against the wall thinking that we should be experts in it.
And then eventually decided thatthat we're just not.
Now, of course there are parts of our business where we're
still responsible for mowing it and, and, or installing it and
as a part of a of a landscape project.
But selling it retail, we've gotten out of.
And it's really makes helps makeyour point that there's a lot
(06:20):
that goes on in this business and you cannot be an expert in
all of it. And if you think that you can
install sod, install trees, install irrigation, install
water features, install lighting, install pavers, and
you just can't be an expert in all of that stuff.
And what the result of that is, is a bunch of really talented
people that specialize in these different individual areas and
(06:44):
creates a ton of opportunity forpeople to have jobs, you know,
both now and I, I would imagine well into the future.
Oh absolutely, absolutely. I mean, for as long as there is
a design to maintain space, you know, there's going to be those
jobs in this careers because Andy, you're doing a lot of
design build with your company and kind of like what you
mentioned is there's so many people have their hands on it.
(07:06):
So Andy, you and yourself when you're working on a project,
you're bringing in a lot of, youknow, different contacts to help
complete a projects, not just you and your company, but you
have those different resources you reach out to.
Is that correct? Yes, you have to learn how to
collaborate with other people. Like Mike said, every You can't
be the guy that is doing everything right, So you have to
(07:27):
have a network. It's really important to.
I think it's cool that the greenindustry, one of the
misconceptions I feel like people has is they get into this
business and they feel like theycan't reach out and ask other
people for help. And for me, that's one thing
that I think has helped me to grow, is I'm just not afraid to
be a learner and ask people questions about things that I
(07:50):
don't know about. And so it's kind of helped me to
make all these great connectionsand connect with people that
know so much more than I do. Right.
And I've kind of come up with a team support network, basically.
Yeah. So when I get into a situation,
I may not have all the answers, but I can confidently tell a
client that I know somebody thathas the answers and we're going
(08:12):
to get it taken care of for you.That's fantastic.
I mean that's what happens in extension.
It's like, I may not know the answer, but I know somebody who
does. And I think having that comfort
in confidence to be able to say,I don't know, but I can find
those resources or we have thoseresources, I think is incredibly
valuable. Yeah, but that's not natural for
(08:34):
entrepreneurs. You know, we are we're wired to
say, hey, we're going to figure this out.
And, you know, the whole fake ittill you make it is a real
thing. And, and, and being vulnerable
enough to say, I don't know at all.
You know, before we started this, this recording today,
Taylor and I were talking about how I don't know nearly enough
about irrigation. And it's one of the most
(08:56):
critical components of, of, of what we do, especially when it
comes to long term management ofa landscape.
But being able to say, you know,look, I've got my area of
expertise, but it's not over here.
And so I need to bring in a partner and I need to bring in
someone else so I can trust. I used to get, I used to take it
real personally whenever we had to subcontract any workout and I
(09:17):
hated it. And I was like, well, why?
Why do we have to subcontract it?
We should be able to do this ourselves.
You just can't. There's just too many people
that are too good at different niche areas of the business.
And you know, kudos to them for for for having that expertise
because it ultimately makes the end product better for the
customer. Absolutely.
And then as being an entrepreneur, you all have that
capacity to be kind of be able to select who are they going to
(09:38):
be those subcontractors that youbring in because you have a
vision. And with that vision, you have
the ability to kind of select who are going to be these great
people to bring into this network that can accomplish our
goals that's while simultaneously accomplishing
theirs as well. So it's, I mean, it's always a
great partnership develop because you see how both
businesses can grow and be successful together.
(09:59):
Yeah, that's exactly right. And, and I think, you know,
staying in line with the sort ofthe theme for today, it creates
a ton of opportunities for people to have work in those
specialized areas, not just now,but well into the future and
make a lot of money doing it. You know, we talked a lot about
careers within the green industry.
(10:20):
We're thinking about specifically like the people
that are hands on the ground working irrigation, the
pesticide applicators, the designers, you know, people that
are working on their individual properties.
But there's more to the green industry careers than just that.
What are some of those careers that we see within the green
industry that may be atypical than what we typically?
(10:41):
Expect, Yeah, I think that a lotof people that might consider
entering our industry don't realize that just like any other
business or really like any other industry, there's a lot of
opportunities that aren't directly tied to mowing grass,
planting trees, digging ditches,whatever.
And for example, there are opportunities in HR, there's
(11:02):
opportunities in marketing, there's opportunities in
finance, procurement, logistics.There are opportunities in
really any area of business thatyou might find in any other
company. And I think what makes it really
fun for me and, and, and, and Andy as well as, as we build our
(11:23):
businesses, we're looking for those people.
And if they happen to have industry experience, there's a
much greater likelihood that they're going to fit, fit
quickly and help us take our companies to the next level.
So my first marketing person wasa was a what we call a sales
associate, you know, someone helping customers who said, hey,
can I help with social media? And we were able to develop that
(11:45):
person to a point where they were able to take on a lot more
from marketing. And then we start bringing
people in from the outside to help with marketing too.
And, and I think that as our companies grow, those
opportunities continue to increase for, for, for people
of, of all different shapes, sizes and backgrounds to make
(12:06):
really all different types of money.
And some of it is can be well into the six figures.
Yeah. Wow.
What was the moment that you allhad in your careers that made
you say hey, this could be a long term career oortunity for
yourselves within that business?So rewinding a little bit, I got
(12:27):
into this just kind of by accident.
It was my first job out of high or in high school, and I was
just doing the what you would think of in the green industry,
mowing lawns. And then first chance I got, I
got into corporate America because that's what I thought I
was supposed to do. That's what all my friends out
of high school were doing. And I was actually like a little
(12:48):
self-conscious to still be mowing lawns like I was in high
school and while all my friends were going to college to get
real jobs and stuff. Fast forward now, I, I did that,
did corporate America. And I've just realized that I
wasn't really built for that. I'm not made for a cubicle.
And so anyways, I, I found myself getting married and I was
(13:10):
like, you know, I'm going to go back to my roots and do the
landscaping, but I'm going to give it my all this time and see
what happens. Like before, I never really gave
it my everything. And so my goal was just to be
the best lawn care garden guy that I could be.
(13:30):
And through that whole experience I learned about I
connect. I saw some landscape designers
that were doing some really coolstuff and at the more I learned
about it, the more fascinated I became about just creating these
gardens and the Nate the the same appreciation that I had for
nature that just seemed like a perfect fit for me and.
(13:53):
Yeah, that's really cool. That's really cool.
What about you, Mike? I took a corporate route as
well. It was sort of ingrained in me,
part of my my family history andwas in pharmaceutical sales
until 2007 and I hated it with every fiber in my body and
decided that I wanted to do something else and I got into
(14:13):
this to make money that was there's I'll make no bones about
that. A friend of mine introduced me
to a guy that wanted to sell hisbusiness and, and I thought,
this will be fun. I'll be outside.
You know, it comes with a coupleof dump trucks and a tractor and
you know, what else could I want?
It was 27 at the time, but that was also 2007, right before the
Great Recession. And so those first few years
(14:33):
were really tough. And as we were coming out of the
recession, I bought a, a sign company, which I later converted
to a fast signs franchise. And then I decided I had to make
a commitment if I was going to achieve my goals.
I either needed to be committed to the sign business or I needed
to be committed to the landscapesupply business.
And I knew that, that, that I couldn't do both, not, not the
(14:56):
way that I wanted to do it. And so I decided I'd sell the
sign business, which took about a year or so.
And then by the, let's say, the end of 2015, that's, that was my
moment where I was committed. And I said, I think there's
something here. This is a fun business.
I really enjoy it way more than I thought I would when I first
got into into it. I tried some other things that I
didn't like as much. And now I really want to, you
(15:17):
know, kind of double or even triple down on this.
We opened a second location in Jacksonville and then just
continue to grow and grow and grow from there.
But that moment when it was, youknow, really not too different
from your moment, Andy, where it's like, OK, I, I got to make
a decision here, You know, what,what, what, what direction am I
going to take my career? Because I can't just float
around, you know, trying to, youknow, trying a little bit of
(15:39):
this and a little bit of that. It requires a level of
commitment at least to do what Andy and I have done where
you're running the business. Right, right.
You know, I think that's kind ofI want to say I'm surprised if
I'm not surprised because when what I've talked to a lot of
people as part of this podcast, it always seems like there gets
this moment when they make that decision and whatever their
(16:00):
career choice might be where something kind of like falls
within a lap that's outside of what the norm and expected was.
And I think that's a really common thing that we might see a
lot with entrepreneurs, especially within green industry
is you found a need, a niche andmight feel like it's going
against the norm. And then you end up finding that
(16:22):
you have huge impacts even if you're going this different
route that was was tried to lay out in front of you.
And I think it's a really cool thing because as entrepreneurs,
you're seeing that ripple effectimpact as it relates to that
decision to why am I creating this company to reach out to the
community to serve this need. And it has a really big reach.
(16:44):
So because a lot of people when they're trying to create their
own business, I, you know, especially with the green
industry, there is this decisionthat you have to make is like,
how do I start? When do I start?
What are my needs? Who are my clients?
How do I create a business that can be sustainable and then how
can you then make it grow? So I mean, you shall.
You should both be proud of themand know you all.
(17:05):
Are well, we are I feel comfortable actually speaking
for Andy on this one. I know that we're proud of what
we've accomplished, but it's an everyday grind and you know,
that's that's part of being an entrepreneur.
I think you touched on a couple of the things that continue to
drive me and make me happy with this life decision that I've
made. And the first is you mentioned
(17:26):
it at the at the beginning, is this this interaction that we
have with our community in a very tangible way.
You know, I'm, I'm walking around outside on grass that we
lay down or I'm sitting next to a tree under shade.
You know that that that we planted some time ago and, and
I'm driving past landscapes thatwe installed and I'm watching
(17:48):
kids play in fields where we putthe sod down and and you know,
those are those are things that you can really be proud of.
You know, those are touch it, feel it kind of moments now
drives my wife crazy as we drivedown the road and I point out
every tree that we planted in the last 18 years.
The, the, the idea of her eyes rolling is just, you know,
beyond comprehension at this point, but there's obviously a
(18:11):
lot of pride there. And then the second part is
creating jobs. And I don't know how you feel
about that, Andy, but I love thefact that we've created a bunch
of jobs and opportunities for other people to also share in
the success and the pride that that that we feel in this
industry. There's this whole network
within the state of different organizations, groups,
(18:32):
certifications that you all can get to help make you be
successful. So I want to dive a little bit
into those because not only can we create this green industry,
but we can also kind of create an environment of networking
because that's one thing we've already hit on and that's where
like FNGLA is. The Florida Nursery Growers and
Landscape Association comes intoplay.
(18:53):
Tell us a little bit about Andy,because you're the
president-elect for Northeast Chapter 4 FNGLA.
Can you tell us a little bit about what FNGLA is?
Sure. FNGLA is just kind of a big
spider web of the green industryand it encompasses really it's a
(19:14):
very welcoming group. So anybody that has a business
that correlates to our industry is welcome to join.
You could have anybody from somebody that sells dirt to
somebody that sells landscaping jobs to somebody that sells sod,
somebody that grows the plants to somebody that delivers the
the plants, somebody that buildswebsites for people in the green
(19:37):
industry. It's just really a the green
industry is at the center and everything that kind of branches
out from there is welcome to be in that group.
And so it's just a place for us to all join up and network with
each other. And then there's a lot of
educational resources as well where you can be certified and
(20:02):
educate yourself. From being a horticulturalist to
a chemical applicator to a designer to an irrigation
specialist, there's something. There's resources for all of the
different trades that are involved with this tree care,
(20:23):
all of that stuff. So if somebody wants to to, to
learn, it's a great place for somebody that that wants to
learn. No matter what stage you're in,
whether or not you don't know anything and you're just
starting out, there's great resources and people to help
support you and share knowledge with you.
And then there's also, if you'remore of a class kind of person
(20:47):
and you want to get into the books and and stuff like that,
then there's resources, online courses for you to grow your
expertise that way as well. Absolutely.
Evan, GLA is a great just like statewide networking
Association. But yeah, you mentioned it's
like there's training that's associated with it.
(21:09):
So like some of those like the irrigation training, there's a
horticulture certification. So there's a bunch of
certifications that are associated with the FNGLA and
they're fantastic training. So they're a great partner FNGLA
with the University of Florida and IFS Extension.
And because it allows us to engage with the green industry
really, really well and actuallysee like what are the needs of
the green industry and how can we make sure Extension is
(21:31):
working towards addressing thoseresults?
But if you're within the green industry, what are some of the
other certifications that you see as valuable that you all
have or that you see valuable that you're maybe some people
within your company have not necessarily you individually?
Yeah, I for us, any industry certification is a huge plus
(21:54):
when we're evaluating a candidate because it shows that
this someone has taken not just that they have the experience in
certain area, but then they've taken that extra step towards
getting themselves certified. And oftentimes can be more
valuable than an unrelated college degree because it, it
again, it shows that initiative and it shows that proficiency
(22:14):
in, in one area. But certainly irrigation
licensing, whether it's on the county or state level here in
Florida, there are best management practices,
certifications, being a certified arborist, an ISA
International Society of Arbor Culture, a certified arborist is
a very valuable certification. Pesticide, chemical application
(22:38):
licenses. You're showing there that you
have an understanding of really the power of those chemicals and
how they can be used safely and responsibly in the state to
protect not just our plants and,and, and trees and turf grass,
but also our water supply and, and managing, you know, how
those, how those things interactwith storm water and, and, and
(23:01):
storm water runoff. So there really are a lot of
opportunities, you know, sticking with the theme of what
I said earlier to specialize in our industry and, and, and you
know, help yourself stand out a little bit from, from some other
either companies or individuals if you're looking for a job.
Yeah, I think you're right. Because there's so many
businesses within the green industry, it's also highly
(23:24):
competitive. So you have these different
certifications that can allow you to be more competitive both
as an employee but also as an employer.
So, Andy, there's so much, there's so much room in our
industry to like for growth. Like if somebody wants to start
an irrigation company, like the American dream is in the green
industry, like you can go get certified to do irrigation and
(23:48):
you can start an irrigation company and me and Mike will
hire you to do our jobs right now.
Because it's so hard to find, you know, the qualified people
to do irrigation work or the tree work or all these different
things. There's like the amount of
people that actually know what they're doing compared to the
amount of work that's out there,right?
(24:09):
It's like just there's so much business out there for somebody
that's a self starter that wantsto learn these, you know,
trades. There's just so much opportunity
there for somebody that has that.
And from my perspective, if somebody goes and gets certified
and they want to work for my company, it just shows that
(24:30):
they're passionate about it justshows that they're a self
starter and shows that they're passionate about the industry
because they're they're not justtrying to make a quick check.
They're actually passionate about learning the insurance and
outs and trying to to see if there's anything that they don't
know out there, right. So I think that would be if I
was to see somebody that had oneof those certifications, it
(24:53):
would just speak volumes to me as to their character, what kind
of person they are, what they'regoing to be capable of in the
future. Yeah, you know.
Yeah, that's a really good pointbecause that make that makes me
think one of the hardest things within the green industry
honestly is retention because it's not easy work.
(25:15):
I mean, let alone think about ifyou're doing a landscape install
today, you know your heat index is already over 100°.
It can be a tough gig. It can be a tough gig, but it
can be incredibly rewarding as well.
So you're looking for people that have already invested
because they show a passion for that industry.
(25:35):
So you know you're going to get high quality.
You're you're much more likely to get high quality and there's
a much greater likelihood that those people are going to stick
around and that they're willing to work through the tough days.
I remind our management team sometimes that, you know, if you
had a 30 minute drive to work and working for 16 or 17 bucks
an hour and it's 112° outside and you're digging holes and
(26:01):
unloading plants and trees from a truck, it's just a rough day.
And then, you know, it pours that afternoon.
And so you go home hot, wet, tired, you know, with the long
commute because it's Jacksonville or Northeast
Florida and that just happens. But yeah, there's there's,
there's, there's going to be days like that.
And so you have to try your bestto hire people that have a
(26:22):
little bit of that grit that it takes to, you know, get back up
again the following morning and go back out and do it again.
So not every day is like that ofcourse, but but I think for a
lot of the entry level positions, there's definitely a
degree of toughness that it takes to get through that.
Yeah. I think one of the things that I
(26:44):
found like you might be able to speak to this too, that's
important for like getting through that hump is having a
culture where people are passionate.
Like if there's a bunch of plantpeople or just people that love
working together that have greatattitudes, it makes you look
forward. Even though it's going to be a
hard day, you look forward to going back out there because
(27:04):
you're going to be with your friends.
You're going to be building something or creating something
really cool together and it's like a whole vibe.
But if you go out with a bunch of people that have a bad
attitude, I would say if somebody's looking to get into
the green industry, be careful about where you go and work.
Make sure that the culture aligns with you know, your
personality because you might all be doing gardens and there
(27:25):
might be great work or you mightlove plants or whatever, but you
need to make sure that the culture is a good fit for you
because that'll determine your experience there.
And when such hard physical labor work, you have to be able
to have something that you enjoydoing, you know, conversations
with the people that work aroundyou.
(27:46):
And so if you do have those certifications and all kind of
narrows it down to kind of creating and filtering out that
group of people that all kind ofworked to be there.
Yeah. And.
I think you're 100% right is there's a social aspect that's
associated with it because you're kind of creating an
environment that makes people say I want to come here, I want
to be able to work here. And that's definitely makes
(28:10):
those green industry positions way more inviting for those that
are entering that career. 100% Ithink.
But that makes me, you know, want to ask is if we're thinking
about someone who wants to enterthis career, what's your biggest
advice that you would give somebody that's wanting to enter
the green industry for the firsttime?
(28:32):
I think that having a passion for the end product is
important. So if if, if you don't care at
all about being outside, you don't care at all about the
value of a landscape. And when we talk about the value
of a landscape, there's the environmental value, but there's
also the aesthetic value and there's the utility value.
(28:54):
And if, if those things don't matter to you at all, then you
know, this might not be the industry for you and you're
probably going to get burnt out either figuratively or literally
in a, in a, in a, in a relatively short period of time.
But if you like the idea of producing A tangible product,
something that you can be proud of, something you can tell your
(29:17):
friends, you know, we landscapedthat park or, you know, we
planted that tree. I think that that that there's,
there's good opportunities for you in it.
And you're, you're absolutely right.
When you are going into an interview scenario as the, as
the candidate, you should be asking questions about the
(29:38):
company culture. And you know, what are some of
the long term growth opportunities for me?
And it doesn't mean that you have to stay there if they're
not available there, but at least you're understanding that
because if you, if you love marketing, but your only
experience thus far in life is and landscaping, you could be a
very good candidate for, you know, working at my company and
(30:01):
you know, we have, I've got a three person marketing team and
it's not a thirty person marketing team, but it is a
three person marketing team. And, and, and those folks know
some stuff about our industry and they know some stuff about
marketing. And so I think I'm understanding
the company that you're going towork for, but also having, you
know, some degree of passion forthe industry are both probably
(30:22):
pretty important. Absolutely, Absolutely.
My advice for somebody getting into the green industry is what
are your strengths? Like what?
Where does that line up with what you might be good at?
I think figuring out where your strengths are and knowing about
the different positions that areout there like are great.
(30:43):
It's a good place to start. I think if you were to be
looking to get into this industry, you might want to you
go to FNGLA events and you can connect with all these different
people that are connected to this industry.
And you can see which people might be your your tribe and
(31:06):
just kind of talking to people and seeing and learning through
that way what seems like it willbe the best fit for you.
That's. Great.
You know, when we think about how the green industry is
growing, you know, we're seeing a lot of changes, but we're also
seeing a lot of new emerging news coming into the program.
And you know, there's there's a lot that we can see.
(31:29):
There's a lot that we can do. The green industry is going to
grow and change. It's very adaptable.
It's very dynamic space. So I want to thank you all so
much for taking time out of yourday to kind of represent the
green industry. Can I talk about it, its
breadth, its size and scale, andalso kind of give some of that
really cool perspective as beingan entrepreneur and business
(31:49):
owner within the green industry?And just providing some of that
insight because I think we're going to see a lot of growth and
change and seeing leaders like you all within the industry is
going to be incredibly impactfulto the industry in general.
So thank you all, Mike, Andy, for joining today.
I really appreciate you all taking the time out of your
incredibly busy schedules. Thanks for having.
Us, yeah, thanks for having us and I'm excited to see what you
(32:11):
guys end up doing with this mission that you guys are on to
bring more young people into theindustry because I know Mike can
attest to this, but it's hard tofind qualify or just people,
qualified people, meaning like people that are wanting to be
there. You know, a lot of people end up
here because they don't really have any other place to go.
(32:33):
And we'll take anybody, but we would love to have more people
come in that are passionate about it.
And I think all across the board, you know, there's no
short of demand for people in our industry to do this work.
So I'm excited to see what you end up doing and if you get some
good candidates coming along thepipe, send them our way, We'll
(32:55):
take them. Absolutely agreed.
Well, thank you all so much. You know, it's been a pleasure
and I know it's hot outside, butit's time for us to probably get
back to work, so. All right.
Thank you. Thank you.
Thanks, Taylor. Thank you for joining us today
on another special episode of Cultivating Curiosity.
Join us each month as we explorethe fascinating world of plants.
(33:16):
For more information on today's topic, check out our web page
and subscribe on your favorite podcast platform.
My name is Taylor. Stay curious with us.
(34:00):
Music.
Thank you for joining us today for another episode of
Cultivating Curiosity. This is Doctor Taylor Clem.
And for this month's summer Sobering to jump right into the
program and explore green industry and green industry
careers with two leaders in Northeast Florida, Andy Turner
and Mike Zaffrani. Thank you for joining us today.
How are y'all doing? I'm doing great, Andy.
How about you? I'm excited to be here.
(00:31):
I want to thank you both for coming.
So today we have Andy Turner andMike Zafferoni.
So can you both take a second and kind of introduce what you
all do? Happy to Yeah.
My name is Mike Zafferoni. I own a company called Liberty
Landscape Supply. We are a Jacksonville and
Northeast Florida based supplierof landscape materials and a
(00:51):
surprise there. We also do some installation
work, residential commercials, some government work as well.
The core of our business though is, is supplying materials.
So we have 4 locations that thatthat do that and about 180
people. Oh wow, wonderful.
So, Andy, tell us a little aboutyour company and what you do.
(01:11):
My name is Andy Turner. My company is Sarah Noah
Landscape Design and I am a Florida native, father of three.
We have one on the way. Oh.
Nice. Congratulations.
Thank you. So I love nature, I enjoy being
a small business owner and I'm really passionate about gardens,
(01:34):
both creating them and experiencing them and just
talking about them. I'm I really enjoy the space.
Overall, absolutely, I really appreciate you all taking the
time to come here today. But what I want us to talk about
is, you know for people listening to this is how can it
be a part of the green industry?What is it?
How can the industry grow and change etcetera?
(01:55):
So I want to ask you all, when you hear the term green
industry, what does that mean toyou?
That's a big broad question, butwhat to you?
What is the green industry? Yeah.
I'll, I'll start. Andy.
I think the green industry is infact a very broad industry and,
(02:15):
and, and for me and for my company and my employees, I
think it means anywhere that landscaping is touching the
lives of the citizens of the state of Florida.
And so it can be a grass or turf, it can be a golf course.
It's certainly, and we think that it is the woods and trees
(02:36):
and, and whether they're decorative ornamental landscapes
or, you know, natural areas thatwe're trying to help rebuild.
It's really, as you stated, incredibly broad.
And it almost seems as every year passes, I'm learning new
ways that the green industry, asI just defined it, at least
(02:58):
touches our customers and even our customers customers in
different ways. So I, I, I, I think you're
exactly right. It's a lot more and it's there's
a lot more to it than probably the average person realizes.
Right, right. I don't think I could say it any
better than that, but I'll just add on to it slightly that
(03:19):
there's actually a lot of this web that's the green industry
with the landscaping and all theplants that you see on the side
of the highway to golf courses and all of that.
There's an extension of that that ties into all the people
that support that too. There's a lot of truck drivers
that drive the plants from SouthFlorida up here to a lot of our
(03:41):
job sites. And there's just like the the
heavy equipment rental companiesthat support the green industry.
There's tons of, you know there's the green industry
itself is huge, but then there'sall these other like ancillary
support services where there youhave got the drivers and the
heavy equipment and all of thosekinds of correlating people that
(04:06):
are working that are kind of behind the scenes in our
industry too. Yeah.
I, I think you're right, becauseI think that's commonly missed
is, you know, you think the whole logistic network supply
chain that goes within the greenindustry.
I mean, just mentioning the truck drivers is you have the
guys that are, you know, drivingwholesale to like our commercial
nurseries and you know, sometimes we're pulling stuff in
across state lines, we're bringing things from South
(04:28):
Florida, North Florida or vice versa.
So because a lot of times it seems like people have the
perspective of it's just like those, you know, the we call
that, we say the MO blow go guys, the guys that are just
like mowing lawns, you know, basic fertilizer maintenance for
landscapes. But it goes from original idea
of what a landscape should be oran environment can look like.
(04:50):
So you're thinking about design all the way to installation,
maintenance and management. So the entire lifeline of that
landscape, somebody has a hand on it.
And that's like green industriesand sometimes might change hands
within that green industry, you know, But nonetheless, you know,
that all falls within that realm.
So it's incredibly broad. Is in, in within our business,
(05:12):
I've made the mistake. I've been doing this for 18
years and I've made a mistake numerous times of thinking that
something was going to be easy because it was adjacent to what
we were already doing or it was similar.
It was a product. For example, we went five or six
years where we sold sod and our retail stores.
And you think, OK, well, of course that makes sense.
It's landscape business and you're, you've got landscape
(05:34):
supply stores, you have customers coming in every day
turns out. So it's really, really
difficult. It's difficult to manage the
logistics behind it. It's difficult to manage the the
initial phases of getting it established.
It's difficult to manage it longterm.
And so we had taken on this product that was, you know,
(05:55):
seemingly a no brainer and for five years beat our head up
against the wall thinking that we should be experts in it.
And then eventually decided thatthat we're just not.
Now, of course there are parts of our business where we're
still responsible for mowing it and, and, or installing it and
as a part of a of a landscape project.
But selling it retail, we've gotten out of.
And it's really makes helps makeyour point that there's a lot
(06:20):
that goes on in this business and you cannot be an expert in
all of it. And if you think that you can
install sod, install trees, install irrigation, install
water features, install lighting, install pavers, and
you just can't be an expert in all of that stuff.
And what the result of that is, is a bunch of really talented
people that specialize in these different individual areas and
(06:44):
creates a ton of opportunity forpeople to have jobs, you know,
both now and I, I would imagine well into the future.
Oh absolutely, absolutely. I mean, for as long as there is
a design to maintain space, you know, there's going to be those
jobs in this careers because Andy, you're doing a lot of
design build with your company and kind of like what you
mentioned is there's so many people have their hands on it.
(07:06):
So Andy, you and yourself when you're working on a project,
you're bringing in a lot of, youknow, different contacts to help
complete a projects, not just you and your company, but you
have those different resources you reach out to.
Is that correct? Yes, you have to learn how to
collaborate with other people. Like Mike said, every You can't
be the guy that is doing everything right, So you have to
(07:27):
have a network. It's really important to.
I think it's cool that the greenindustry, one of the
misconceptions I feel like people has is they get into this
business and they feel like theycan't reach out and ask other
people for help. And for me, that's one thing
that I think has helped me to grow, is I'm just not afraid to
be a learner and ask people questions about things that I
(07:50):
don't know about. And so it's kind of helped me to
make all these great connectionsand connect with people that
know so much more than I do. Right.
And I've kind of come up with a team support network, basically.
Yeah. So when I get into a situation,
I may not have all the answers, but I can confidently tell a
client that I know somebody thathas the answers and we're going
(08:12):
to get it taken care of for you.That's fantastic.
I mean that's what happens in extension.
It's like, I may not know the answer, but I know somebody who
does. And I think having that comfort
in confidence to be able to say,I don't know, but I can find
those resources or we have thoseresources, I think is incredibly
valuable. Yeah, but that's not natural for
(08:34):
entrepreneurs. You know, we are we're wired to
say, hey, we're going to figure this out.
And, you know, the whole fake ittill you make it is a real
thing. And, and, and being vulnerable
enough to say, I don't know at all.
You know, before we started this, this recording today,
Taylor and I were talking about how I don't know nearly enough
about irrigation. And it's one of the most
(08:56):
critical components of, of, of what we do, especially when it
comes to long term management ofa landscape.
But being able to say, you know,look, I've got my area of
expertise, but it's not over here.
And so I need to bring in a partner and I need to bring in
someone else so I can trust. I used to get, I used to take it
real personally whenever we had to subcontract any workout and I
(09:17):
hated it. And I was like, well, why?
Why do we have to subcontract it?
We should be able to do this ourselves.
You just can't. There's just too many people
that are too good at different niche areas of the business.
And you know, kudos to them for for for having that expertise
because it ultimately makes the end product better for the
customer. Absolutely.
And then as being an entrepreneur, you all have that
capacity to be kind of be able to select who are they going to
(09:38):
be those subcontractors that youbring in because you have a
vision. And with that vision, you have
the ability to kind of select who are going to be these great
people to bring into this network that can accomplish our
goals that's while simultaneously accomplishing
theirs as well. So it's, I mean, it's always a
great partnership develop because you see how both
businesses can grow and be successful together.
(09:59):
Yeah, that's exactly right. And, and I think, you know,
staying in line with the sort ofthe theme for today, it creates
a ton of opportunities for people to have work in those
specialized areas, not just now,but well into the future and
make a lot of money doing it. You know, we talked a lot about
careers within the green industry.
(10:20):
We're thinking about specifically like the people
that are hands on the ground working irrigation, the
pesticide applicators, the designers, you know, people that
are working on their individual properties.
But there's more to the green industry careers than just that.
What are some of those careers that we see within the green
industry that may be atypical than what we typically?
(10:41):
Expect, Yeah, I think that a lotof people that might consider
entering our industry don't realize that just like any other
business or really like any other industry, there's a lot of
opportunities that aren't directly tied to mowing grass,
planting trees, digging ditches,whatever.
And for example, there are opportunities in HR, there's
(11:02):
opportunities in marketing, there's opportunities in
finance, procurement, logistics.There are opportunities in
really any area of business thatyou might find in any other
company. And I think what makes it really
fun for me and, and, and, and Andy as well as, as we build our
(11:23):
businesses, we're looking for those people.
And if they happen to have industry experience, there's a
much greater likelihood that they're going to fit, fit
quickly and help us take our companies to the next level.
So my first marketing person wasa was a what we call a sales
associate, you know, someone helping customers who said, hey,
can I help with social media? And we were able to develop that
(11:45):
person to a point where they were able to take on a lot more
from marketing. And then we start bringing
people in from the outside to help with marketing too.
And, and I think that as our companies grow, those
opportunities continue to increase for, for, for people
of, of all different shapes, sizes and backgrounds to make
(12:06):
really all different types of money.
And some of it is can be well into the six figures.
Yeah. Wow.
What was the moment that you allhad in your careers that made
you say hey, this could be a long term career oortunity for
yourselves within that business?So rewinding a little bit, I got
(12:27):
into this just kind of by accident.
It was my first job out of high or in high school, and I was
just doing the what you would think of in the green industry,
mowing lawns. And then first chance I got, I
got into corporate America because that's what I thought I
was supposed to do. That's what all my friends out
of high school were doing. And I was actually like a little
(12:48):
self-conscious to still be mowing lawns like I was in high
school and while all my friends were going to college to get
real jobs and stuff. Fast forward now, I, I did that,
did corporate America. And I've just realized that I
wasn't really built for that. I'm not made for a cubicle.
And so anyways, I, I found myself getting married and I was
(13:10):
like, you know, I'm going to go back to my roots and do the
landscaping, but I'm going to give it my all this time and see
what happens. Like before, I never really gave
it my everything. And so my goal was just to be
the best lawn care garden guy that I could be.
(13:30):
And through that whole experience I learned about I
connect. I saw some landscape designers
that were doing some really coolstuff and at the more I learned
about it, the more fascinated I became about just creating these
gardens and the Nate the the same appreciation that I had for
nature that just seemed like a perfect fit for me and.
(13:53):
Yeah, that's really cool. That's really cool.
What about you, Mike? I took a corporate route as
well. It was sort of ingrained in me,
part of my my family history andwas in pharmaceutical sales
until 2007 and I hated it with every fiber in my body and
decided that I wanted to do something else and I got into
(14:13):
this to make money that was there's I'll make no bones about
that. A friend of mine introduced me
to a guy that wanted to sell hisbusiness and, and I thought,
this will be fun. I'll be outside.
You know, it comes with a coupleof dump trucks and a tractor and
you know, what else could I want?
It was 27 at the time, but that was also 2007, right before the
Great Recession. And so those first few years
(14:33):
were really tough. And as we were coming out of the
recession, I bought a, a sign company, which I later converted
to a fast signs franchise. And then I decided I had to make
a commitment if I was going to achieve my goals.
I either needed to be committed to the sign business or I needed
to be committed to the landscapesupply business.
And I knew that, that, that I couldn't do both, not, not the
(14:56):
way that I wanted to do it. And so I decided I'd sell the
sign business, which took about a year or so.
And then by the, let's say, the end of 2015, that's, that was my
moment where I was committed. And I said, I think there's
something here. This is a fun business.
I really enjoy it way more than I thought I would when I first
got into into it. I tried some other things that I
didn't like as much. And now I really want to, you
(15:17):
know, kind of double or even triple down on this.
We opened a second location in Jacksonville and then just
continue to grow and grow and grow from there.
But that moment when it was, youknow, really not too different
from your moment, Andy, where it's like, OK, I, I got to make
a decision here, You know, what,what, what, what direction am I
going to take my career? Because I can't just float
around, you know, trying to, youknow, trying a little bit of
(15:39):
this and a little bit of that. It requires a level of
commitment at least to do what Andy and I have done where
you're running the business. Right, right.
You know, I think that's kind ofI want to say I'm surprised if
I'm not surprised because when what I've talked to a lot of
people as part of this podcast, it always seems like there gets
this moment when they make that decision and whatever their
(16:00):
career choice might be where something kind of like falls
within a lap that's outside of what the norm and expected was.
And I think that's a really common thing that we might see a
lot with entrepreneurs, especially within green industry
is you found a need, a niche andmight feel like it's going
against the norm. And then you end up finding that
(16:22):
you have huge impacts even if you're going this different
route that was was tried to lay out in front of you.
And I think it's a really cool thing because as entrepreneurs,
you're seeing that ripple effectimpact as it relates to that
decision to why am I creating this company to reach out to the
community to serve this need. And it has a really big reach.
(16:44):
So because a lot of people when they're trying to create their
own business, I, you know, especially with the green
industry, there is this decisionthat you have to make is like,
how do I start? When do I start?
What are my needs? Who are my clients?
How do I create a business that can be sustainable and then how
can you then make it grow? So I mean, you shall.
You should both be proud of themand know you all.
(17:05):
Are well, we are I feel comfortable actually speaking
for Andy on this one. I know that we're proud of what
we've accomplished, but it's an everyday grind and you know,
that's that's part of being an entrepreneur.
I think you touched on a couple of the things that continue to
drive me and make me happy with this life decision that I've
made. And the first is you mentioned
(17:26):
it at the at the beginning, is this this interaction that we
have with our community in a very tangible way.
You know, I'm, I'm walking around outside on grass that we
lay down or I'm sitting next to a tree under shade.
You know that that that we planted some time ago and, and
I'm driving past landscapes thatwe installed and I'm watching
(17:48):
kids play in fields where we putthe sod down and and you know,
those are those are things that you can really be proud of.
You know, those are touch it, feel it kind of moments now
drives my wife crazy as we drivedown the road and I point out
every tree that we planted in the last 18 years.
The, the, the idea of her eyes rolling is just, you know,
beyond comprehension at this point, but there's obviously a
(18:11):
lot of pride there. And then the second part is
creating jobs. And I don't know how you feel
about that, Andy, but I love thefact that we've created a bunch
of jobs and opportunities for other people to also share in
the success and the pride that that that we feel in this
industry. There's this whole network
within the state of different organizations, groups,
(18:32):
certifications that you all can get to help make you be
successful. So I want to dive a little bit
into those because not only can we create this green industry,
but we can also kind of create an environment of networking
because that's one thing we've already hit on and that's where
like FNGLA is. The Florida Nursery Growers and
Landscape Association comes intoplay.
(18:53):
Tell us a little bit about Andy,because you're the
president-elect for Northeast Chapter 4 FNGLA.
Can you tell us a little bit about what FNGLA is?
Sure. FNGLA is just kind of a big
spider web of the green industryand it encompasses really it's a
(19:14):
very welcoming group. So anybody that has a business
that correlates to our industry is welcome to join.
You could have anybody from somebody that sells dirt to
somebody that sells landscaping jobs to somebody that sells sod,
somebody that grows the plants to somebody that delivers the
the plants, somebody that buildswebsites for people in the green
(19:37):
industry. It's just really a the green
industry is at the center and everything that kind of branches
out from there is welcome to be in that group.
And so it's just a place for us to all join up and network with
each other. And then there's a lot of
educational resources as well where you can be certified and
(20:02):
educate yourself. From being a horticulturalist to
a chemical applicator to a designer to an irrigation
specialist, there's something. There's resources for all of the
different trades that are involved with this tree care,
(20:23):
all of that stuff. So if somebody wants to to, to
learn, it's a great place for somebody that that wants to
learn. No matter what stage you're in,
whether or not you don't know anything and you're just
starting out, there's great resources and people to help
support you and share knowledge with you.
And then there's also, if you'remore of a class kind of person
(20:47):
and you want to get into the books and and stuff like that,
then there's resources, online courses for you to grow your
expertise that way as well. Absolutely.
Evan, GLA is a great just like statewide networking
Association. But yeah, you mentioned it's
like there's training that's associated with it.
(21:09):
So like some of those like the irrigation training, there's a
horticulture certification. So there's a bunch of
certifications that are associated with the FNGLA and
they're fantastic training. So they're a great partner FNGLA
with the University of Florida and IFS Extension.
And because it allows us to engage with the green industry
really, really well and actuallysee like what are the needs of
the green industry and how can we make sure Extension is
(21:31):
working towards addressing thoseresults?
But if you're within the green industry, what are some of the
other certifications that you see as valuable that you all
have or that you see valuable that you're maybe some people
within your company have not necessarily you individually?
Yeah, I for us, any industry certification is a huge plus
(21:54):
when we're evaluating a candidate because it shows that
this someone has taken not just that they have the experience in
certain area, but then they've taken that extra step towards
getting themselves certified. And oftentimes can be more
valuable than an unrelated college degree because it, it
again, it shows that initiative and it shows that proficiency
(22:14):
in, in one area. But certainly irrigation
licensing, whether it's on the county or state level here in
Florida, there are best management practices,
certifications, being a certified arborist, an ISA
International Society of Arbor Culture, a certified arborist is
a very valuable certification. Pesticide, chemical application
(22:38):
licenses. You're showing there that you
have an understanding of really the power of those chemicals and
how they can be used safely and responsibly in the state to
protect not just our plants and,and, and trees and turf grass,
but also our water supply and, and managing, you know, how
those, how those things interactwith storm water and, and, and
(23:01):
storm water runoff. So there really are a lot of
opportunities, you know, sticking with the theme of what
I said earlier to specialize in our industry and, and, and you
know, help yourself stand out a little bit from, from some other
either companies or individuals if you're looking for a job.
Yeah, I think you're right. Because there's so many
businesses within the green industry, it's also highly
(23:24):
competitive. So you have these different
certifications that can allow you to be more competitive both
as an employee but also as an employer.
So, Andy, there's so much, there's so much room in our
industry to like for growth. Like if somebody wants to start
an irrigation company, like the American dream is in the green
industry, like you can go get certified to do irrigation and
(23:48):
you can start an irrigation company and me and Mike will
hire you to do our jobs right now.
Because it's so hard to find, you know, the qualified people
to do irrigation work or the tree work or all these different
things. There's like the amount of
people that actually know what they're doing compared to the
amount of work that's out there,right?
(24:09):
It's like just there's so much business out there for somebody
that's a self starter that wantsto learn these, you know,
trades. There's just so much opportunity
there for somebody that has that.
And from my perspective, if somebody goes and gets certified
and they want to work for my company, it just shows that
(24:30):
they're passionate about it justshows that they're a self
starter and shows that they're passionate about the industry
because they're they're not justtrying to make a quick check.
They're actually passionate about learning the insurance and
outs and trying to to see if there's anything that they don't
know out there, right. So I think that would be if I
was to see somebody that had oneof those certifications, it
(24:53):
would just speak volumes to me as to their character, what kind
of person they are, what they'regoing to be capable of in the
future. Yeah, you know.
Yeah, that's a really good pointbecause that make that makes me
think one of the hardest things within the green industry
honestly is retention because it's not easy work.
(25:15):
I mean, let alone think about ifyou're doing a landscape install
today, you know your heat index is already over 100°.
It can be a tough gig. It can be a tough gig, but it
can be incredibly rewarding as well.
So you're looking for people that have already invested
because they show a passion for that industry.
(25:35):
So you know you're going to get high quality.
You're you're much more likely to get high quality and there's
a much greater likelihood that those people are going to stick
around and that they're willing to work through the tough days.
I remind our management team sometimes that, you know, if you
had a 30 minute drive to work and working for 16 or 17 bucks
an hour and it's 112° outside and you're digging holes and
(26:01):
unloading plants and trees from a truck, it's just a rough day.
And then, you know, it pours that afternoon.
And so you go home hot, wet, tired, you know, with the long
commute because it's Jacksonville or Northeast
Florida and that just happens. But yeah, there's there's,
there's, there's going to be days like that.
And so you have to try your bestto hire people that have a
(26:22):
little bit of that grit that it takes to, you know, get back up
again the following morning and go back out and do it again.
So not every day is like that ofcourse, but but I think for a
lot of the entry level positions, there's definitely a
degree of toughness that it takes to get through that.
Yeah. I think one of the things that I
(26:44):
found like you might be able to speak to this too, that's
important for like getting through that hump is having a
culture where people are passionate.
Like if there's a bunch of plantpeople or just people that love
working together that have greatattitudes, it makes you look
forward. Even though it's going to be a
hard day, you look forward to going back out there because
(27:04):
you're going to be with your friends.
You're going to be building something or creating something
really cool together and it's like a whole vibe.
But if you go out with a bunch of people that have a bad
attitude, I would say if somebody's looking to get into
the green industry, be careful about where you go and work.
Make sure that the culture aligns with you know, your
personality because you might all be doing gardens and there
(27:25):
might be great work or you mightlove plants or whatever, but you
need to make sure that the culture is a good fit for you
because that'll determine your experience there.
And when such hard physical labor work, you have to be able
to have something that you enjoydoing, you know, conversations
with the people that work aroundyou.
(27:46):
And so if you do have those certifications and all kind of
narrows it down to kind of creating and filtering out that
group of people that all kind ofworked to be there.
Yeah. And.
I think you're 100% right is there's a social aspect that's
associated with it because you're kind of creating an
environment that makes people say I want to come here, I want
to be able to work here. And that's definitely makes
(28:10):
those green industry positions way more inviting for those that
are entering that career. 100% Ithink.
But that makes me, you know, want to ask is if we're thinking
about someone who wants to enterthis career, what's your biggest
advice that you would give somebody that's wanting to enter
the green industry for the firsttime?
(28:32):
I think that having a passion for the end product is
important. So if if, if you don't care at
all about being outside, you don't care at all about the
value of a landscape. And when we talk about the value
of a landscape, there's the environmental value, but there's
also the aesthetic value and there's the utility value.
(28:54):
And if, if those things don't matter to you at all, then you
know, this might not be the industry for you and you're
probably going to get burnt out either figuratively or literally
in a, in a, in a, in a relatively short period of time.
But if you like the idea of producing A tangible product,
something that you can be proud of, something you can tell your
(29:17):
friends, you know, we landscapedthat park or, you know, we
planted that tree. I think that that that there's,
there's good opportunities for you in it.
And you're, you're absolutely right.
When you are going into an interview scenario as the, as
the candidate, you should be asking questions about the
(29:38):
company culture. And you know, what are some of
the long term growth opportunities for me?
And it doesn't mean that you have to stay there if they're
not available there, but at least you're understanding that
because if you, if you love marketing, but your only
experience thus far in life is and landscaping, you could be a
very good candidate for, you know, working at my company and
(30:01):
you know, we have, I've got a three person marketing team and
it's not a thirty person marketing team, but it is a
three person marketing team. And, and, and those folks know
some stuff about our industry and they know some stuff about
marketing. And so I think I'm understanding
the company that you're going towork for, but also having, you
know, some degree of passion forthe industry are both probably
(30:22):
pretty important. Absolutely, Absolutely.
My advice for somebody getting into the green industry is what
are your strengths? Like what?
Where does that line up with what you might be good at?
I think figuring out where your strengths are and knowing about
the different positions that areout there like are great.
(30:43):
It's a good place to start. I think if you were to be
looking to get into this industry, you might want to you
go to FNGLA events and you can connect with all these different
people that are connected to this industry.
And you can see which people might be your your tribe and
(31:06):
just kind of talking to people and seeing and learning through
that way what seems like it willbe the best fit for you.
That's. Great.
You know, when we think about how the green industry is
growing, you know, we're seeing a lot of changes, but we're also
seeing a lot of new emerging news coming into the program.
And you know, there's there's a lot that we can see.
(31:29):
There's a lot that we can do. The green industry is going to
grow and change. It's very adaptable.
It's very dynamic space. So I want to thank you all so
much for taking time out of yourday to kind of represent the
green industry. Can I talk about it, its
breadth, its size and scale, andalso kind of give some of that
really cool perspective as beingan entrepreneur and business
(31:49):
owner within the green industry?And just providing some of that
insight because I think we're going to see a lot of growth and
change and seeing leaders like you all within the industry is
going to be incredibly impactfulto the industry in general.
So thank you all, Mike, Andy, for joining today.
I really appreciate you all taking the time out of your
incredibly busy schedules. Thanks for having.
Us, yeah, thanks for having us and I'm excited to see what you
(32:11):
guys end up doing with this mission that you guys are on to
bring more young people into theindustry because I know Mike can
attest to this, but it's hard tofind qualify or just people,
qualified people, meaning like people that are wanting to be
there. You know, a lot of people end up
here because they don't really have any other place to go.
(32:33):
And we'll take anybody, but we would love to have more people
come in that are passionate about it.
And I think all across the board, you know, there's no
short of demand for people in our industry to do this work.
So I'm excited to see what you end up doing and if you get some
good candidates coming along thepipe, send them our way, We'll
(32:55):
take them. Absolutely agreed.
Well, thank you all so much. You know, it's been a pleasure
and I know it's hot outside, butit's time for us to probably get
back to work, so. All right.
Thank you. Thank you.
Thanks, Taylor. Thank you for joining us today
on another special episode of Cultivating Curiosity.
Join us each month as we explorethe fascinating world of plants.
(33:16):
For more information on today's topic, check out our web page
and subscribe on your favorite podcast platform.
My name is Taylor. Stay curious with us.
(34:00):
Music.
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