BBC Gardener of the Year sets up own business

Aug 17 2009 by Karen Dent, The Journal

A FORMER biochemist has turned his attention from people to plants after winning a prestigious competition persuaded him to set up his own gardening business when he was made redundant.

Bob Tridgett scooped the BBC Gardener of the Year competition in 2007, a few months before his job finished at Cambridge Laboratories, on North Tyneside, in January last year.

His success in the competition persuaded him to try to make a career from his life-long love of gardening and he set up design and landscaping business Garden Sanctuaries. The business’s turnover has increased by 70% in its first year. Mr Tridgett, who is based at Rowley, near Consett, said: “If I hadn’t won, I wouldn’t have started my own business. It gave me the confidence that perhaps I do know what I’m talking about.

“I’ve always gardened, even before I went to school, I was growing things with my dad.”

He is now planning to take on staff as the garden design and building business grows to keep pace with demand – despite starting up during the economic downturn.

“It’s grown quarter on quarter. Turnover is up by 70% on the same time last year. I’ve got potentially six big jobs and if I get half of them, my turnover will double,” he said.

“I’m really quite pleased. I work virtually – I co-opt people in as and when I need them and I manage the whole process. But it’s going to be more cost-effective to employ people – two to start with and hopefully more next year.” Although he mainly works in the North East, Mr Tridgett has also worked on gardens in London and Manchester. In addition to garden design and building, he takes on major garden reclamation jobs.

“If it’s got out of hand, I go in and put it back to its former glory. I’m doing a complete rebuild of a garden next week,” he said.

“I am trying to position my business to the ABC1s, who have some disposable income.”

And working to create beautiful gardens for other people hasn’t made him neglect his own acre and a half, which is currently being made over with a circular patio.

Mr Tridgett said: “It’s spurred me on to do better things in my own garden. It also inspired me to open up my garden this year. The National Gardens Scheme come in and inspect your garden and you open up for charity.”