Meet our investors…
Palmer Nurseries recently secured investment from Richard and Rachel Kay, ex founders of Green-tech, a leading landscaping and forestry supplier and Rabbit Holdings, a property development firm to form a horticultural hub throughout Yorkshire. We sat down with them both to ask why they chose to invest in Palmer Nurseries and what their big plans are for our customers and the community. Here’s what they had to say…
What made you want to invest in Palmer Nurseries?
There were many factors which influenced our decision to invest in Palmer Nurseries… We have known the Palmer Family for 30 years. Kelly, Sam, Ben & Adam were really up for the challenge and recognised that external skill sets were required to bring the various income streams together to create a long term sustainable income from the site.
The business has many attributes; its great location, they’ve been trading for 25 years so have bags of experience, and the multiple income streams which are all intrinsically linked - rental spaces for landscapers, a recycling centre, a Fibo click and collect concrete plant as well as a horticultural trade supplies counter.
We could see that with a motivated team, the right systems in place and a great sales and marketing plan we could modernise and really move the business forward offering a unique service to the landscape and construction sectors throughout West Yorkshire.
What qualities from our company and our team influenced your decision to invest?
The team are a young team with vision to create a legacy business for themselves and the next generation. They are a breath of fresh air who all have different skill sets which makes the whole team dynamic. At the same time they are not afraid to ask for help or share their vulnerabilities.
What makes Palmer Nurseries better than others in our industry?
Nurseries is really quite unique in terms of the site and what they offer now; plants, concrete, recycling, but in many respects, I view it as a sleeping giant. The opportunities to expand the offerings on the site are huge and one which I am enjoying getting to explore.
What areas of the business do you plan to grow?
We intend to grow all areas of the existing business, including plant sales, recycling, and the click and collect concrete plant as well as add on ancillary businesses such as turf sales, bagged and bulk composts, barks and aggregates. It’s an exciting development!
What goals do you hope that we achieve?
We have big ambitions to achieve £1m turnover in year one, with a goal to get to £5m in 5 years. Our vision is for the site to become the go-to destination for all tradesmen and horticulturists for key component items. We call it the horticultural hub.
How do you think this investment will make things better for us, our employees, our customers, and the community?
We want to create a real community feel to the hub, for customers, suppliers, employees or first-time visitors. We’d love increased involvement in things that matter to local people, employing and developing local people and educating local people about what is available on the site for them. We hope to continue what the Palmer family started and be a valuable asset to the Yorkshire region at large.
We’re excited to have Richard and Rachel as part of the team and hope you’ll join us on our exciting journey.
