Julie White is "absolutely, grotesquely passionate about plants". Her passion for plants and the retail industry combined with her love for learning have led her to Conestoga’s Retail Garden Centre program.
The Retail Garden Centre program is a unique part-time program offered at Conestoga that combines theoretical and practical knowledge surrounding the field of horticulture, specifically focused on employment in the retail garden centre industry. "I like the program because it entails a wide variety of courses that cover all of the bases. For example, the program includes a marketing course that is very helpful for working in the retail industry."
Julie has been working in the retail garden industry for close to 10 years. She says that working in the industry is a great way to stay in the workforce but also maintain some down-time because of its seasonality. The reduced work hours in the winter have allowed her to go back to school and enrol in the Retail Garden Centre program at Conestoga.
One of the reasons Julie enrolled in the program was to use it as a stepping stone to writing her Certified Horticulture Technician exam with Landscape Ontario and earn her CHT designation. The CHT designation is a professional designation in the field of horticulture that is recognized Canada-wide. "I really believe that I have to be passionate about what I do to be away from my children."
While looking for a new job in the retail garden industry, Julie said that employers were impressed and interested about the Retail Garden Centre program on her resume. Currently she is working for Waterloo Flowers, a local greenhouse that grows annuals, and "they are very supportive of my part-time studies at Conestoga."
One day, Julie dreams to open a retail garden centre of her own. "The retail garden industry is like none other. Nobody buys plants in a bad mood. At the end of the day, I want to love what I do."
Written By Jessica Voin