We recently had the chance to connect with Claudia Lopez and have shared our conversation below.
Hi Claudia, thank you so much for joining us today. We’re thrilled to learn more about your journey, values and what you are currently working on. Let’s start with an ice breaker: What do you think is misunderstood about your business?
Most of my job is reading a customer’s thoughts and visions for their garden, and turning it into a viable plan for their garden. The difficult part is that plants also have their own requirements to flourish. They need the right amount of shade, space, water, etc. And so I have to thread the needle between what the client wants and what plants want. Sometimes the amount of say sunlight or space a property receives really limits the plant options we have, so I have to take on the role of botanist and designer to reach a middle ground that works.
Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
I fell in love with plants as a child and started making plant arrangements with my mom’s pots on my own. I eventually became a researcher in plant pathology in Colombia, but when I moved to Miami started working in a plant nursery. There I continued to work around with the plants and make pretty arrangements, and my boss noticed my talent and gave me the opportunity to design gardens, something I did not know beforehand was its. own industry. I really grew in my role and fell in love with designing landscapes, but I wanted to have more control over my schedule and projects. I started the company in 2011, and have continue as the lead designer for the company. We now have an install crew and site supervisor, so I focus on site meetings, designs, and brand management. Recently we have taken on more commercial and new construction projects, as these give me a blank slate to work with, which allows me to be as creative as I want to be.
Appreciate your sharing that. Let’s talk about your life, growing up and some of topics and learnings around that. Who saw you clearly before you could see yourself?
My previous boss, Jose at Santa Barbara Nursery, was the one who gave me the opportunity to shine. One time I showed him a picture of plant arrangements I had done in my old home in Colombia. I had done them at the time just for fun, but he told me I had real talent and could design. Nothing came of that conversation for a while, until one day a client at the nursery showed up and bought a truckload full of plants. That same morning the designer at the nursery had quit, so Jose, scrambling, told me to go with the truck to layout out the plants at the client’s home. I felt scared on my way there, but once I arrived it felt natural to arrange the plants. and design the garden. After that day I designed all the gardens for the nursery for 7 years. Without Jose’s faith in my design abilities, I am sure I would be a landscape designer.
What did suffering teach you that success never could?
That times, both good and bad, always come to an end. In hard times I always try to have a positive attitude to get through them. And eventually they pass. But that also gave me more appreciation for the good moments in life, as they too will pass.
Alright, so if you are open to it, let’s explore some philosophical questions that touch on your values and worldview. Where are smart people getting it totally wrong today?
There is such an empahsis on money today, that many smart people believe success equals wealth. But I believe true success is finding meaning in every day; appreciating where you are, with whom, doing what. My happiest moments are not the ones in which the business is making the most money, it is those where I have people I love waiting for me at home while getting to fulfill my passion of designing gardens during the day.
Okay, so before we go, let’s tackle one more area. When do you feel most at peace?
When I am outside in nature. I love going for walks in mountains, forests, or beautiful gardens. Seeing greenery has always brought me an overwhelming sense of belonging.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.sugargreengardens.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sugargreengardens/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@SugarGreenGardens
Image Credits
Claudia Lopez
