Entrepreneurial journeys: Lizzie Munson

Lizzie's Journey

Lizzie graduated from the University of York in 2015 with a degree in Philosophy. After graduating she gained a place on a FTSE100 graduate scheme in marketing where she worked on some nationwide FMCG brands learning about marketing, sales, product development and business finance. 

A few years later, at 25, Lizzie had a ‘lightbulb’ moment and decided to start her own business. 

“I had a lightbulb moment in the garden, when I received an order of flower seeds in a boring white envelope with adverts for Velcro slippers, elasticated waist trousers and walk in baths, I wanted to scream ‘young people garden too!’ and from then on the idea of ‘The Rose Press Garden’ was born.”

The Rose Press Garden

The Rose Press Garden sells flower seeds, bulbs, plants and gardening accessories to help create a beautiful garden easily. You can order online, or you can sign up for a monthly gardening subscription box, which delivers something new to your garden each month, so you can learn how to grow new things, as well as creating a gorgeous garden in the process.

Lizzie shares gardening tips, advice and how to videos on social media (The Rose Press Garden has over 33k followers on Instagram), and has developed an app which can be downloaded for free. 

“We have an amazing community [on the app] of new gardeners so you can share your successes and also a few gardening failures with likeminded people and gain advice. Someone said ‘it’s like having a gardening best friend in your pocket’ and I loved that, we’re here to help and support new gardeners.”

The business is currently in its third year, and has grown rapidly. Since the pandemic, the horticultural industry has developed as more people want to create outdoor spaces. Lizzie now works full time in the business and employees two full time staff. The business recently scaled up and Lizzie now has a warehouse team who fulfil and post orders. 

Lizzie says “We’ve spent the last few years really listening to our customers and gaining feedback and are now learning what works and scaling this. It’s a very exciting time for TRPG ahead!”

Lizzie was named in the “Telegraph Natwest Top 100 Female Entrepreneur to Watch” list in 2023, a cohort of the UK’s brightest female founders.

Challenges

“I have loved growing TRPG but it hasn’t been without its challenges. At the start it was simply reaching new customers, now as I have grown a team the challenges are more about scaling, increasing profitability and managing cash flow. I’ve found networking with similar business owners really reassuring and helpful to share learnings and ideas.”

Words of advice

“I really think sharing your journey with customers has been fundamental in the growth of the business. Showing that you’re a real person who cares and having a personal connection with customers. Our customers always come first and that aligns in everything we do. If you’re looking to start or run a ‘direct to consumer’ brand then really make time to listen to your customers and their feedback.”

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