July 2021 - 36

FRESH PERSPECTIVES
Kait Barry
Retail Business Manager
Griffin Greenhouse Supply
Tewksbury, Massachusetts
Accomplishments:
* Helped company increase
retail department sales
60% in five years by
building strong vendor relationships, creating sales programs and
keeping up with market trends to stay relevant.
* Continually making an impact by participating on multiple
company committees such as ecommerce, technology
advancements, company culture and succession planning.
In Her Spare Time:
Kait loves to travel, try different foods and meet new people. " I also love
to create scrapbooks for the different places I have traveled to and for
special moments in my life. "
On Her Bucket List:
Running in the Boston Marathon. She recently completed her first
half-marathon and has set her sights on the world's oldest annual
marathon (all 26 miles and 385 yards of it).
Liz Hughes
Owner
Groovy Plants Ranch
Marengo, Ohio
Accomplishments:
* Created and manages garden
center's online store that over the
past five years has " become so
successful that we now have a small
army to manage the orders and ... are
shipping live plants to consumers in all 50 states! "
* Responsible for developing and presenting many different fun and
educational programs and classes to IGC's loyal following.
The Work of an Artist:
Liz has a master's degree in textile design and was an artist and art
teacher before entering the horticulture world. Her artwork has been
featured in international shows and she has been on a nationally
syndicated quilting TV show.
She Screams for Ice Cream:
" I love ice cream any time of the year! I don't even care what flavor, I just
LOVE ice cream. "
Kit Leider Pierri
Garden Center Manager/Communications Director
Leider Greenhouses
Buffalo Grove, Illinois
Accomplishments:
* Transitioned garden center from an outdated cash
register system to a fully digital POS system that
allows the company to generate reports and data to
better plan for the upcoming seasons.
* Oversaw the process of completely revamping
company's production planning software.
36 | LAWN & GARDEN RETAILER | JULY 2021
Ryan Glover
Operations Manager
Glover Nursery
West Jordan, Utah
Accomplishments:
* Helped implement
infrastructure
improvements over the last five years, including building new retail
buildings, cold frames for frost/winter protection and improved
layout and signage throughout the nursery.
* A graduate of the University of Utah, takes great pride in
continuing to learn and educate himself about the nursery
industry. " I enjoy finding information from different sources and
seeing how I can implement them in our business. "
What's for Dinner Tonight?
When it comes to mealtime, Ryan's favorite menu choice is " Anything
that I cook on the grill at home. "
Check out His Passport:
Ryan likes to travel and has visited more than 40 different countries. His
favorite vacation spot so far is Africa - " the wildlife was amazing and
the people were great. "
Susan Judd
Front End Manager
Heeman's
London, Ontario, Canada
Accomplishments:
* During the 2020 pandemic,
Susan helped lead a
team of 130 to safely and
efficiently serve customers
through IGC's busiest month of the year in a curbside environment,
filling 725 daily orders during peak season.
* Worked as co-lead in the development of IGC's Hard Cidery,
which launched seven new flavors of hard cider and mead, while
balancing her other business ventures and volunteer efforts.
She's a Song & Dance Person:
Susan says she can't live without singing and dancing at work. " Staff
sing-alongs and dance breaks always make the day better. "
She Enjoys a Different Kind of Day Off:
" Ferris Bueller's Day Off " starring Matthew Broderick is her favorite film.
" It has some great life moments for people of all ages. "
Family Biz:
Kit is the fifth generation of her family to work in the
business that was started in 1898. She also has an
identical twin sister.
There's Always Housework to Do:
Kit and her husband recently celebrated their one-year
homeowner anniversary. " I love working on home projects
and (slowly) decorating the place room by room. "
You Won't Find This Info on IMDB:
Part of the movie " Omen 2 " was filmed in the Leider
family greenhouse in 1978!
July 2021

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of July 2021
