March 2023 - 58

5 MINUTES WITH ...
What keeps you up at night?
Being responsible for so many people, from our owner
5
MINUTES
-WITH-
LAURA GIRBACH
Laura Girbach is general manager of
KBK Garden Center in Saline, Michigan.
By Teresa McPherson
What brought you to the garden
center business?
As a child, my mom was a huge influence in my
interest in plants. When we moved to Michigan from
Chicago, we had - what seemed to us - a large yard.
My mom was excited to be able to create beautiful
gardens, build fountains and just plain dig in the dirt. At
age 16, my first paycheck job was at one of these garden
centers she and I often visited. That led to me spending
much of my adult life in this industry; her passion has
created my passion.
What do you love about your job?
The people - sharing the beauty, helping them be
successful gardeners and getting to know not just our
customers, but our team members. Being the person to
hire a teenager for their first " real job " and watch them
grow and learn. Also our semi-retired team members -
people who have spent their lives working and are just
ready to be somewhere they can play outside, meet new
people, and feel as if they are a part of a great team.
58 | LAWN & GARDEN RETAILER | MARCH 2023
to our team members. I know that, in the end, it's my
responsibility to keep up on trends, be a conscientious
purchaser and keep costs to a place where we are
profitable yet affordable. I want customers to feel they
are fiscally able to participate in their gardening passion,
but we've also got to be profitable so we can employ
great team members and enable them to take care of
themselves and their families.
Another thing is thinking of ways to set us apart
from the big-box stores and how to get that out to the
community. We do this through both advertising and
hosting a number of free family events each season -
crafts for kids and even things like an exotic zoo or our
live reindeer event during Christmas. It is a lot of energy
keeping all these balls in the air, but if you love what
you do, it is well worth it.
If you weren't in this profession, what would
you be doing?
It would have to be in the food industry. As an Italian
from Chicago, some of my greatest memories were
Sunday meals at grandma and grandpa's house. In
an Italian family, most community happens around
sharing a meal. I love the simple way a meal can put
people at ease and open up conversation. Even now, it
is not unheard of for me to cook a meal for 200 people
at church and just sit back and watch everyone enjoy,
laugh, talk and get to know each other.
Favorite plant to grow? Why?
This is like asking which is my favorite child - it
depends on the day and what area I'm focusing on.
This past season I really got into creating container
landscapes. I had a beautiful fountain topper my mom
had in one of her fountains and really wanted to get it
going on my deck.
Some of my favorites are the many hydrangeas on the
market. I still can't seem to get the macrophyllas figured
out, but having so many panicle options is exciting. I
have two large dogs and a fairly small yard, so raised
beds have become a must. Each year I'm just excited to
see new varieties and colors!
March 2023

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of March 2023
