TALK: Garden Centers as Community Hubs

Garden Centers as Community Hubs
The global pandemic has disrupted everything about the way we live, work, and socialize. These changes have been catastrophic and have accelerated the availability of opportunities that seemed 5-10 years away prior to March 2020. In 2022 and beyond, Garden Retail businesses have the chance to grow and evolve into more sustainable ventures — when it comes to increasing profits, finding and keeping talented staff, and preventing burnout in owners and managers.
Learn how to can finally integrate in-store and virtual customer experiences without losing your mind, and how to get your customers to do the heavy lifting of marketing for you.
About Katie Elzer-Peters
Horticulture Digital Marketing
Katie Elzer-Peters is the founder and CEO of The Garden of Words, LLC, a digital marketing firm that specializes in email marketing, web development, web strategy, and business development for green industry clients. For 13 years she has helped green industry businesses of every size (from individuals to small, family-owned businesses and large corporations) grow and thrive in the digital age.
From Planning to Development & Implementation
The Garden of Words takes a broad approach to marketing plan development and implementation, blending tried and true traditional marketing techniques with new and emerging solutions. Katie and her team specialize in making digital marketing tools and tips accessible to everyone, regardless of their background or experience.
Contributions and Personal Profile
Katie is a frequent contributor to Green Profit Magazine and a frequent speaker at green industry conferences. In her spare time she enjoys reading, cycling, and urban sketching.
Learn more about Katie at thegardenofwords.com. Definitely don’t miss her blog!
Education & Experience
Elzer-Peters has a B.S. in horticulture from Purdue University and a M.S. in Public Garden Management from the University of Delaware and Longwood Gardens and is a member of the Society of Fellows of Longwood Gardens. Prior to opening her marketing firm, Elzer-Peters served as the Assistant Director at Airlie Gardens, Curator of Landscape at Fort Ticonderoga, and managed educational programs, marketing programs, and horticultural staff at public gardens around the United States.