An urban farm in Penarth, South Wales, launches to encourage the use of more sustainably grown, nutritious organic food.
A sustainable urban farm, the Micro Greengrocer started trading in January, after owner Amanda Wood decided to revive her old skills and start growing organic micro-greens. With support from the Welsh Government’s Business Wales service, Amanda managed to secure funding, including £1,980 from the Business Wales Barriers Grant, to launch the business successfully in early 2021.
- Successful start.
- 1 job created.
- £1,980 secured from the Business Wales Barriers Grant.
- £3,000 secured from Purple Shoots.
- Signed up to the Business Wales Green Growth Pledge to provide a sustainable, environmentally-conscious service.
Introduction to business
The Micro Greengrocer is a small, sustainable, urban farm that grows a range of nutritious micro greens using only organic seeds and local peat-free organic composts without fertilisers or pesticides.
Owner Amanda Wood shared her business journey with us – from a creative job in education to going back to her love and passion for growing food.
Why did you decide to set up your own business?
I decided to set up a business growing micro-greens during the first lockdown. I was working remotely from my partner’s home as we had decided to go into lockdown together, after a period of self-isolation when I caught the virus in March 2020. My contract at work was also about to end, so I was in a period of flux wondering what to do next. I knew I didn’t want to continue working in a similar role, and I had a yearning to do something completely different with my skill base, something more holistic and community focused. I just could not work out what!
One day, while working at my laptop looking out at the garden and missing being able to spend time outside, I realised what was lacking, and that was growing plants – especially those you can eat. This was a distant dream at the time as the garden was in the process of being demolished before a huge landscaping project, and it looked nothing more than a building site! But that wasn’t going to stop me!
I remembered I used to grow sprouting seeds on the windowsill years before, so I decided to transform every windowsill in my partner’s home into a micro-garden! I brought the outdoors inside and we had an endless supply of nutritious, fresh and delicious micro-greens, which was a real asset during those first months of lockdown, when supermarkets were a daunting place to be.
I liked that I was starting to remember some old skills. When I left school, I went on to study Horticulture and then Floristry and worked in that industry for many years until I went on to follow a creative career in education with my BA in Film Arts and my PCGE.
However, after having a successful time leading projects and programmes in the arts, it suddenly dawned on me that I wanted to get back to my roots and revive my horticulture skills and my love of growing food. I love cooking with fresh nutritious ingredients and while in lockdown, I also started studying Herbalism, so it all seemed to bare relevance to one another. I seemed to have gone full circle, yet the creative skills and knowledge I had gathered along the way would really help my business take shape. By the time my educational job ended in September 2020, I had the beginnings of a business plan underway.
What challenges did you face?
I immersed myself in research and experimenting to develop my techniques and operations and I knew that I had the determination, passion and belief at what I was doing. The main challenge I had to face was finding the capital to get the business up and running. I had spent quite a bit of my own savings on buying everything I needed to practice running a micro farm, but to take it to the next stage, I needed finance. Although I had the support of my partner, family and friends, I knew if I was going to take my business seriously and to the next level, I needed professional support.
Business Wales support
- Successful start.
- 1 job created.
- £1,980 secured from the Business Wales Barriers Grant.
- £3,000 secured from Purple Shoots.
- Signed up to the Business Wales Green Growth Pledge to provide a sustainable, environmentally-conscious service.
I saw a social media advert for Business Wales while doing research on the internet and I made contact. Suddenly, all the pieces of the jigsaw started to come together and I was able to start the journey of taking my business idea seriously with the advisers from Business Wales. After an initial webinar, which really set me up exploring my business ideas further, I was referred to my business adviser Alun Wade.
Alun was instrumental at helping me shape my business plan. We would have regular meetings where we discussed my progress, and we would set goals, so I had very clear targets to work towards before our next meeting. It was a relief to be able to talk to someone who was an expert in business start-up. Alun provided great links and information and he guided me through all the processes and practicalities I needed to consider getting my business whipped into shape. He helped with finding suitable lenders, so I could raise the finance I needed. Through his support, I quite quickly received a small business loan from Purple Shoots, whose ethics and operations really suit my values and that of my business.
Alun also supported me through my application for the Business Wales Barriers Grant. I have really appreciated his support, we never got to meet face-to-face due to restrictions, but I always felt his encouragement was there. It could have been a very different story for my fledgling business if the support from Business Wales wasn’t available – especially in current times where we can all feel quite easily isolated and alone. Alun also referred me to Superfast Business Wales to gain extra digital marketing support to help my website and online platforms reach the customer base I am targeting.
Future plans and ambitions
I am now trading and very excited about the future. One year ago, I was in a very different place, and now knowing I will have ongoing support from Alun and his team, adds great energy to my new business.
I have many goals for The Micro Greengrocer, but my immediate plans are to continue working hard to build a great reputation and service from my Penarth farm and to build a strong customer base that wants to buy local, fresh and nutritious food from a community focused business. I would like to bring in an apprentice when things really take shape, with the hope of creating a job for that person and hopefully others. Eventually, I would like to employ a manger so I can focus on growing another farm in another area and continue growing The Micro Greengrocer across Wales and the South West. From little seeds…
If you want to read more success stories of how Business Wales has helped other people like you to start or grow their businesses, visit https://businesswales.gov.wales/case-studies or follow @_businesswales / @_busnescymru on Twitter.