Today we’d like to introduce you to Anand Patel.
Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
I started Green Air Botanicals just over 3 years ago in 2019. I had recently won custody of my son, who was 4 at the time, while also losing my job in the restaurant industry due to the pandemic. So now I was a single father and unemployed. I knew I needed to figure out something quick and noticed the house plant craze online and in social media. So, I started a small nursery in my garage where I would store and sell my plants to the public. It was a pop-up in my garage basically. I started making posts on social media sites to get the word out, and that’s when things started to snowball. I initially started selling your common house plants that can be found at most major big box stores. My customers would constantly be messaging me and asking for plants that I had never heard of or seen, so I started to do some research into these rare exotic plants from around the world. I then started fixing the few greenhouses that we had on the property before I could start importing them from around the world. I took about 6 months of hard work working 10-15 hr. days to clean and fix everything. Once everything was complete, I started importing plants from around the world and started growing them. Now I have a successful nursery that’s open to the public. We offer wholesale and bulk pricing. It has truly been a blessing. Soon we will launch our online store and start shipping across the US
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
The road wasn’t always the smoothest. The cost of materials went through the roof during the pandemic. Wood and metal prices were very high. The cost of soil, pots, and fertilizer were all up, and there was a shortage also. This past winter was tough also due to the cost of propane going, which we use to heat the greenhouse in the winter.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about Green Air Botanicals?
We specialize in rare and exotic Aroids, Hoyas, succulents, and cacti from around the world. We try offer items not available at your local Big Box stores. We have a retail store here in Fallbrook on our property that is open from 9 am-5 pm 7 days a week. We offer wholesale and bulk discounts. We also offer import services to our clients who are interested in growing the plants themselves. We handle all the paperwork for the importing as well as duties and US customs clearance, so all our customers need to do pick up their product at our nursery. We are also launch our online store this summer and will start shipping across the US
Where do you see things going in the next 5-10 years?
Things are looking good for the industry in the next 5-10 yrs. The Pandemic had a huge impact on creating a whole new generation of plant lovers and collectors. Everyone was buying plants, and it has brought a new appreciation for the hobby that will have a lasting effect. The prices on some of these rare plants have also been coming down and becoming more accessible to the average consumer, which is expanding the market
Contact Info:
- Website: www.greenairbotanicals.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/greenairbotanicals/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/greenairbotanicals/
