COMPANY SPOTLIGHT THE PEOPLE AND PRODUCTS BEHIND OUR INDUSTRY S WORLD LEADING COMPANIES

Size: px

Start display at page:

Download "COMPANY SPOTLIGHT THE PEOPLE AND PRODUCTS BEHIND OUR INDUSTRY S WORLD LEADING COMPANIES"

Delilah French
5 years ago
Views:

THE PEOPLE AND PRODUCTS BEHIND OUR INDUSTRY S WORLD LEADING COMPANIES Founded in 2010,

wholesalers in the home gardening industry.

News about the company s rapid growth and what s in store down the road.

different products, Benjamin Barker, CEO of Urban Agricultural, founded the company on

says. I knew combining the two would provide me with the ability to support my family

costeffective, easy-to-use and, most importantly, sustainable products to home

1 THE PEOPLE AND PRODUCTS BEHIND OUR INDUSTRY S WORLD LEADING COMPANIES Founded in 2010, Urban Agricultural has quickly become one of the most respected and reputable wholesalers in the home gardening industry. CEO Benjamin Barker and administrator Thaddeus Wesselman tell Maximum Yield s Industry News about the company s rapid growth and what s in store down the road. Now a well-known wholesale distribution company with a catalog containing about 50 different products, Benjamin Barker, CEO of Urban Agricultural, founded the company on his own almost four years ago in Seattle, Washington, with the support of family and friends. I ve always had a passion for gardening and I ve also always been self-employed, he says. I knew combining the two would provide me with the ability to support my family while looking forward to every day at work, as well as making a positive impact in my community and the world. I started Urban Ag from home in January of 2010 with a simple goal: to deliver quality, costeffective, easy-to-use and, most importantly, sustainable products to home gardeners across the nation. With so many companies carrying gimmicky products, I vowed to hold my organization to a higher standard. Urban Ag would only stock high-quality, research-backed products that have the potential to become staples in the gardening industry. 50 November 2013 Maximum Yield's Industry News

3 PASSING ON THIS KNOWLEDGE IS A WAY OF CREATING TOOLS FOR A STRONGER ECONOMY AND COMMUNITY. Ready to start the day at Urban Ag headquarters. At the time, the Pacific Northwest was missing a mid-level wholesale distribution company, one that local retailers would see and hear from on a regular basis, says administrator Thaddeus Wesselman, who has been with the company since the fall of Urban Agricultural started by distributing two or three products, but it wasn t long before the business gained a solid core of products to distribute. Business has at least doubled in terms of net sales every year since the company started, shares Thaddeus. Ben realized what was missing by going around and talking to local retail stores. He became a familiar face at every store in the Pacific Northwest region from the Canadian border down to southern Oregon. The area was missing that kind of a presence. Later in 2010, Urban Agricultural became the master distributor for the ExHale Homegrown CO 2 line of products and that s when things started to really pick up, says Thaddeus. ExHale products cultivate CO 2 24 hours a day with no need to refill bottles or use expensive CO 2 production units. The mycelial mass inside the vented cultivator cultivates CO 2 and the microporous breather patch releases CO 2 continually for up to six months. Thaddeus says once word got out about this product, people from all over the country were calling about it and demand for this unique item continues in full force. We ship full containers of it overseas, he says. It s being distributed all over the world. The company s philosophy is to educate people about using gardening as a means to feed themselves, says Ben. Passing on this knowledge is a way of creating tools for a stronger economy and community, he explains. It s all about distributing tried-and-true, quality products, many of which are local, rather than carrying the cheapest products on the market in a price towards the bottom mentality, adds Thaddeus. It s the quality over quantity type of philosophy. HE BECAME A FAMILIAR FACE AT EVERY STORE IN THE PACIFIC NORTHWEST REGION FROM THE CANADIAN BORDER DOWN TO SOUTHERN OREGON. THE AREA WAS MISSING THAT KIND OF A PRESENCE. The biggest challenge for the business at first was managing growth and ensuring the resources were in place to meet the demand, shares Thaddeus. There was such a void in this area, the demand was so high, he explains. As business grew, the company ended up operating out of three different warehouses in Seattle to keep on top of demand. 52 November 2013 Maximum Yield's Industry News

WE BRING OUR PRODUCT VENDORS TO THE SHOW AND THEN EVERYONE KNOWS THE DISTRIBUTOR IS URBAN AG. THE PRODUCT PHILOSOPHY BRINGS IN A LOT OF CALLS ON ITS OWN.

Yield organizes, says Thaddeus. I think the shows and advertising is what has brought us in the most market share, he reflects.

What makes the company unique is the determination not to fill the catalog with anything and everything, but choosing original products management feels the company can really stand behind and that

The feedback he most commonly receives from people is that they are grateful Urban Agricultural is staying as a mid-level business that continues to carry proven, high-quality products.

Homegrown CO 2 products and Mills Nutrients. We work with small businesses with great new ideas, as well as large manufacturers, to bring these products to market, shares Ben.

4 WE BRING OUR PRODUCT VENDORS TO THE SHOW AND THEN EVERYONE KNOWS THE DISTRIBUTOR IS URBAN AG. THE PRODUCT PHILOSOPHY BRINGS IN A LOT OF CALLS ON ITS OWN. Market share and recognition were gained through word of mouth and a comprehensive advertising campaign with Maximum Yield Publications, as well as attending the indoor gardening expos that Maximum Yield organizes, says Thaddeus. I think the shows and advertising is what has brought us in the most market share, he reflects. We bring our product vendors to the show and then everyone knows the distributor is Urban Ag. The product philosophy brings in a lot of calls on its own. What makes the company unique is the determination not to fill the catalog with anything and everything, but choosing original products management feels the company can really stand behind and that will be of true benefit to the industry. It s not just a giant company off somewhere with a massive catalog, says Thaddeus. We have a very close relationship with a lot of our stores. The feedback he most commonly receives from people is that they are grateful Urban Agricultural is staying as a mid-level business that continues to carry proven, high-quality products. Today, Urban Agricultural is still based out of Seattle the company recently consolidated the three warehouses in one larger warehouse in the city and distributes about 50 products, including ExHale Homegrown CO 2 products and Mills Nutrients. We work with small businesses with great new ideas, as well as large manufacturers, to bring these products to market, shares Ben. Our goal is to provide value to the customer rather than preying on the many new gardeners that have emerged over the last several years. The company distributes all over the United States, Canada and Europe. To stay on top of growth, the company plans to add hubs in other cities across the United States. Besides its focus on proven, high-quality products, Urban Agricultural strives to work with products made in the United States where feasible and the company also tries to make as many organic items available as possible. 54 November 2013 Maximum Yield's Industry News

WE HAVE A POLICY TO GO OUT OF OUR WAY TO HELP SCHOOLS START AND SUSTAIN GARDENING EDUCATION PROGRAMS.

and hydroponics to many different community sources, such as schools, shelters and rehabilitation centers.

The latest charity project, in collaboration with ExHale Homegrown CO 2, is collecting donations at Maximum Yield s indoor gardening expos to give to Feed the D, a group that grows food to help fill

At every expo, the two businesses give away sample products, and staff are simply encouraging people to donate what they can in exchange for these items, explains Thaddeus, adding that so far, the

5 WE HAVE A POLICY TO GO OUT OF OUR WAY TO HELP SCHOOLS START AND SUSTAIN GARDENING EDUCATION PROGRAMS. 2 2 bag Educating the community about indoor gardening is important to Ben and the staff at Urban Agricultural, and as such the company donates products and provides education about basic gardening and hydroponics to many different community sources, such as schools, shelters and rehabilitation centers. We have a policy to go out of our way to help schools start and sustain gardening education programs, says Ben. The latest charity project, in collaboration with ExHale Homegrown CO 2, is collecting donations at Maximum Yield s indoor gardening expos to give to Feed the D, a group that grows food to help fill the bellies of the needy in Detroit. At every expo, the two businesses give away sample products, and staff are simply encouraging people to donate what they can in exchange for these items, explains Thaddeus, adding that so far, the campaign has been extremely well received in the industry. At the Maximum Yield show in Long Beach, California, Urban Agricultural, Exhale CO 2, Santiam Organics, Mills Nutrients and Ostberg Fans will all be raising money for Feed the D. Thaddeus believes the trend of doubling growth every year will continue, at the least in the near future, and the company plans to continue being a success story by sticking to its core philosophies, including only adding products management feel are unique, fresh and add value to the industry. For more information, visit urbanagws.com or call URBANAG. IN 56 November 2013 Maximum Yield's Industry News

Evaluation Summary. Years Gardening 20% 19.3% 5.0% 10.0% 15.0% 20.0% 25.0% 30.0% 35.0% 40.0% 45.0% 50.0% 2016 (n=55) (n=254)

Evaluation Summary. Years Gardening 20% 19.3% 5.0% 10.0% 15.0% 20.0% 25.0% 30.0% 35.0% 40.0% 45.0% 50.0% 2016 (n=55) (n=254) 2016 Grow Well Missouri Gardening Program Evaluation Summary MFH Project: Collaborating with Missouri Food Pantries for Better Health University of Missouri Interdisciplinary Center for Food Security December