
有人很了解植物,有人則是植物的狂熱愛(ài)好者,。28歲的蒂芙尼·馬則更進(jìn)了一步,,把室內(nèi)植物陳列策劃以及為Zoom會(huì)議主背景搭建植物墻當(dāng)成了自己的工作,。
居住在多倫多的蒂芙尼是Plant Mahmah公司的室內(nèi)植物咨詢師和植物造型師,。她是這家公司的女老板,也是公司唯一的員工,。不過(guò)值得注意的是,,她稱自己想讓“室內(nèi)植物設(shè)計(jì)師”這一職業(yè)大放異彩。
《財(cái)富》雜志采訪了蒂芙尼,,詢問(wèn)了她從環(huán)境工程師成為企業(yè)家的心路歷程,,以及她的經(jīng)營(yíng)之道和她未來(lái)的目標(biāo)。
為便于理解,,對(duì)話略有刪減,。
什么是室內(nèi)植物咨詢師/造型師?
這個(gè)頭銜是我自己編的,,因?yàn)橛胁簧偃藦氖率覂?nèi)植物造景行業(yè),,然而,我只和室內(nèi)植物打交道,。在決定使用這個(gè)頭銜前,,我曾經(jīng)為之準(zhǔn)備過(guò)不少名字。
我與植物打交道的方式跟室內(nèi)設(shè)計(jì)師匹配家具與空間的方式?jīng)]有區(qū)別,。在進(jìn)入辦公室或家中之后,,我會(huì)評(píng)估光線、生活方式以及居住者的美學(xué)水平,,然后推薦能夠與其空間搭配并成長(zhǎng)的植物和裝飾物品,。
在我看來(lái),室內(nèi)植物不只是裝飾物,,它們是會(huì)呼吸的真正活物,,能夠幫助我們放慢腳步,變得更加專注,。此外,,它們還會(huì)給空間帶來(lái)綠意和凈化元素。
當(dāng)你告訴人們自己所從事的工作時(shí),,他們的反應(yīng)如何,?
大部分時(shí)候,人們會(huì)問(wèn)我到底是做什么的。如今,,我的大多數(shù)朋友都知道我所從事的工作,,而且已經(jīng)關(guān)注我的工作有一段時(shí)間了,不過(guò),,我相信我遇到的很多新朋友都會(huì)說(shuō):“我從來(lái)沒(méi)聽過(guò)這個(gè)職業(yè),,快說(shuō)來(lái)聽聽?!痹诮忉尩臅r(shí)候,,我會(huì)用最通俗易懂的語(yǔ)言告訴他們:其實(shí),我的工作就是用植物來(lái)填充空間,,并告訴人們?nèi)绾握疹欀参铩?/p>
白天的這個(gè)時(shí)間段你一般在做什么,?
每天都會(huì)變化,而且每年都會(huì)變化,。春季與夏季都是十分繁忙的季節(jié),,冬季則清閑一些。不過(guò)我依然發(fā)現(xiàn),,很多人都會(huì)遇到植物栽培問(wèn)題,。通常在周三,我不是在當(dāng)?shù)孛缙圆少?gòu)植物,,就是在找尋不同類型的花盆和陶盆,,或開展居家植物咨詢業(yè)務(wù)。
眼下,,植物進(jìn)入了生長(zhǎng)季,,因此大家都想用一顆美麗、暖心的植物來(lái)裝點(diǎn)空間,。很多人在一年的這個(gè)時(shí)候會(huì)詢問(wèn)移栽事宜,,或前來(lái)咨詢自己植物遇到的問(wèn)題。
你的工作背景是什么樣的,?
我通過(guò)學(xué)習(xí)成為了一名環(huán)境工程師,。然而,在我上學(xué)的最后一年,,我的頭部受了重傷,,出現(xiàn)了我人生中第二嚴(yán)重的腦震蕩。在受傷一個(gè)月后,,一場(chǎng)事故又奪走了我一位摯友的生命,。在如此短的時(shí)間內(nèi)應(yīng)對(duì)上面兩場(chǎng)災(zāi)難性的事件讓我開始重新思考,工程工作是否真的適合自己,。(編者注:蒂芙尼在畢業(yè)后開始學(xué)習(xí)工程學(xué),,但一直被腦震蕩后綜合征所困擾,。)
腦震蕩后綜合征的癥狀因人而異,但我只要受到外界刺激就會(huì)頭疼,。我不得不將自己從工作中剝離出來(lái),,也因此而進(jìn)入了園藝事業(yè),并喜歡上了植物,。我需要通過(guò)一種活動(dòng)來(lái)放慢自身的腳步,,用雙手工作,并與大自然重新相融,。
我清楚的記得:那時(shí)正值冬末,,我正在尋找與大自然相關(guān)的一些事物。我第一次走進(jìn)了當(dāng)?shù)氐臏厥?,并感覺(jué)被傳送到了一個(gè)綠洲,。我以一種非常平和,、安詳?shù)姆绞皆俣热谌肓舜笞匀?。在我?dāng)前的工作中,我真的在嘗試將植物療法融入我的日常工作,。
在家里和辦公室,,我們可以打造一種與綠植共生的關(guān)系。在我此前的工作中,,我是一名水資源工程師,,我的工作與綠色屋頂開發(fā)息息相關(guān)。
最終,,我希望讓Plant Mahmah公司更上一層樓,,而且我覺(jué)得為了實(shí)現(xiàn)這一目標(biāo),我必須辭去工程師工作,,然后在2022年2月便離職了,。
是否有任何人幫你或在你手下工作?
我獨(dú)自一人經(jīng)營(yíng)著公司,,因此要包攬了一切工作,,可謂是集眾多頭銜于一身。我不僅要干植物咨詢師的活,,同時(shí)還兼任內(nèi)容創(chuàng)作人,,社交媒體經(jīng)理,而且所有的行政工作也得由自己來(lái)做,。
是否會(huì)考慮聘請(qǐng)一支團(tuán)隊(duì),?
我認(rèn)為這是公司下一步要做的事情,其中既包括聘請(qǐng)其他的植物園藝師或造型師,,也涵蓋聘請(qǐng)專職會(huì)計(jì)或社交媒體經(jīng)理,。我知道,,有些工作并不需要我親力親為,而且我現(xiàn)在也并非是什么事都自己做,,因?yàn)槲以敢鈱⑵渫獍鋈ァ?/p>
植物造型是你賺錢的唯一方式嗎,?
在去年很長(zhǎng)一段時(shí)間里,我的收入源于與不同植物或家居裝飾品牌之間的付費(fèi)合作,,例如家得寶(Home Depot),。為不同品牌拍攝或創(chuàng)作內(nèi)容從一開始就是我工作的一部分。
我并沒(méi)有從事任何其他兼職工作,,但我依然通過(guò)參與不同的社交媒體宣傳活動(dòng)來(lái)維持生計(jì),。今年,我一心專注于全職植物造型工作,。我的大多數(shù)收入都來(lái)自于此,,還有一部分來(lái)自我通過(guò)Plant MahMah賬戶撰寫的付費(fèi)貼文。
最近,,90%的收入來(lái)自與植物相關(guān)的工作,。去年,植物相關(guān)工作與內(nèi)容創(chuàng)作的收入貢獻(xiàn)比達(dá)到了60∶40,。我還在Etsy和我的網(wǎng)店中出售一些植物用品,,而且我還圍繞提升傭金與我最喜愛(ài)的植物品牌進(jìn)行了協(xié)商。
自給自足是沒(méi)問(wèn)題了,。我在第一年只是達(dá)到了收支平衡,。今年是第二個(gè)年頭,到目前為止我的收入已經(jīng)趕上了去年全年的收入,,但還沒(méi)有達(dá)到此前的工程師工資水平,。(編者注:《財(cái)富》雜志拿到的文件顯示,蒂芙尼去年的收入近4萬(wàn)美元,,而今年到目前為止就已經(jīng)賺了4萬(wàn)美元,。)
工作中最具挑戰(zhàn)的事情是什么?
身兼數(shù)職,,我現(xiàn)在真的是分身乏術(shù),。
作為一名曾經(jīng)朝九晚五的工程師,我的職責(zé)是固定的,,而且在下午5點(diǎn)就可以下班,。然而,在成為企業(yè)家之后,,我沒(méi)有固定的工作時(shí)間,,感覺(jué)始終在工作,而且始終都得在線,。很難平衡這兩者之間的關(guān)系,,尤其考慮到Plant Mahmah是一個(gè)完完全全的個(gè)人品牌,,因此很難厘清。
工作中的哪些內(nèi)容讓你感到最舒心,?
與綠植互動(dòng)并親眼目睹植物對(duì)空間以及人們生活的巨大影響,。我會(huì)定期進(jìn)行客戶回訪,了解其植物的生長(zhǎng)情況,。
從事這類工作需要什么學(xué)歷,,如果需要的話?
我建議去學(xué)學(xué)園藝學(xué),、植物學(xué)或環(huán)保學(xué),,但我并不認(rèn)為必須要學(xué)這些學(xué)科。對(duì)于室內(nèi)造景這一小眾市場(chǎng)來(lái)說(shuō),,準(zhǔn)入門檻并不高,。
客戶的生命周期有多長(zhǎng)?
一開始都是線上植物咨詢,,通常是通過(guò)Zoom視頻,。我的客戶遍布全世界,大多數(shù)都在美國(guó),。對(duì)于當(dāng)?shù)乜蛻魜?lái)說(shuō),,我會(huì)到訪其空間,,采購(gòu)并對(duì)盆栽室內(nèi)植物造型,,或開始搭建植物墻。對(duì)于距離遙遠(yuǎn)的客戶,,我會(huì)發(fā)給他們一張問(wèn)卷,,詢問(wèn)他們希望在植物照看方面花多少時(shí)間,從“甩手掌柜”一直到“事無(wú)巨細(xì)的照顧”,。此舉能夠讓我制定可供雙方將來(lái)共同執(zhí)行的行動(dòng)方案,。
你覺(jué)得自己在五年之后會(huì)是什么樣子?
公司的使命就是讓所有人享受到植物的福利,,并讓所有人都能接觸到植物,,因?yàn)槲覉?jiān)信植物有治愈作用。它們?yōu)槲規(guī)?lái)了如此多的歡樂(lè),,而且我希望繼續(xù)干下去,,不斷擴(kuò)大規(guī)模。我想擴(kuò)張業(yè)務(wù),,將植物療法推廣至全世界,,而不是僅滿足于服務(wù)多倫多本土市場(chǎng)。雖然我不知道該怎么做,,但首先得設(shè)定宏偉的目標(biāo),。
我還希望繼續(xù)增加Plant Mahmah的收入源,。公司已經(jīng)有了咨詢和造型業(yè)務(wù),但我希望提升植物墻產(chǎn)品以及網(wǎng)店的數(shù)量,。這也就回到了我之前所說(shuō)的——讓植物照料變得更加平易近人,。
我還希望Plant Mahmah的造型能夠進(jìn)駐不同的空間。我習(xí)慣于針對(duì)加拿大氣候?qū)χ参镞M(jìn)行造型,,我也希望在未來(lái)針對(duì)更溫暖地區(qū)的植物進(jìn)行造型,,例如佛羅里達(dá)。
植物反映了人們對(duì)自身的在意程度,。它們給我?guī)?lái)了大量的歡樂(lè),,同時(shí)也讓我能夠按下暫停鍵,花時(shí)間思考,,并留意我自己的感受以及每日所到之處,。(財(cái)富中文網(wǎng))
譯者:馮豐
審校:夏林
有人很了解植物,有人則是植物的狂熱愛(ài)好者,。28歲的蒂芙尼·馬則更進(jìn)了一步,,把室內(nèi)植物陳列策劃以及為Zoom會(huì)議主背景搭建植物墻當(dāng)成了自己的工作。
居住在多倫多的蒂芙尼是Plant Mahmah公司的室內(nèi)植物咨詢師和植物造型師,。她是這家公司的女老板,,也是公司唯一的員工。不過(guò)值得注意的是,,她稱自己想讓“室內(nèi)植物設(shè)計(jì)師”這一職業(yè)大放異彩,。
《財(cái)富》雜志采訪了蒂芙尼,詢問(wèn)了她從環(huán)境工程師成為企業(yè)家的心路歷程,,以及她的經(jīng)營(yíng)之道和她未來(lái)的目標(biāo),。
為便于理解,對(duì)話略有刪減,。
什么是室內(nèi)植物咨詢師/造型師,?
這個(gè)頭銜是我自己編的,因?yàn)橛胁簧偃藦氖率覂?nèi)植物造景行業(yè),,然而,,我只和室內(nèi)植物打交道。在決定使用這個(gè)頭銜前,,我曾經(jīng)為之準(zhǔn)備過(guò)不少名字,。
我與植物打交道的方式跟室內(nèi)設(shè)計(jì)師匹配家具與空間的方式?jīng)]有區(qū)別。在進(jìn)入辦公室或家中之后,,我會(huì)評(píng)估光線,、生活方式以及居住者的美學(xué)水平,然后推薦能夠與其空間搭配并成長(zhǎng)的植物和裝飾物品,。
在我看來(lái),,室內(nèi)植物不只是裝飾物,,它們是會(huì)呼吸的真正活物,能夠幫助我們放慢腳步,,變得更加專注,。此外,它們還會(huì)給空間帶來(lái)綠意和凈化元素,。
當(dāng)你告訴人們自己所從事的工作時(shí),,他們的反應(yīng)如何?
大部分時(shí)候,,人們會(huì)問(wèn)我到底是做什么的,。如今,我的大多數(shù)朋友都知道我所從事的工作,,而且已經(jīng)關(guān)注我的工作有一段時(shí)間了,,不過(guò),我相信我遇到的很多新朋友都會(huì)說(shuō):“我從來(lái)沒(méi)聽過(guò)這個(gè)職業(yè),,快說(shuō)來(lái)聽聽,。”在解釋的時(shí)候,,我會(huì)用最通俗易懂的語(yǔ)言告訴他們:其實(shí),,我的工作就是用植物來(lái)填充空間,并告訴人們?nèi)绾握疹欀参铩?/p>
白天的這個(gè)時(shí)間段你一般在做什么,?
每天都會(huì)變化,,而且每年都會(huì)變化。春季與夏季都是十分繁忙的季節(jié),,冬季則清閑一些,。不過(guò)我依然發(fā)現(xiàn),很多人都會(huì)遇到植物栽培問(wèn)題,。通常在周三,我不是在當(dāng)?shù)孛缙圆少?gòu)植物,,就是在找尋不同類型的花盆和陶盆,,或開展居家植物咨詢業(yè)務(wù)。
眼下,,植物進(jìn)入了生長(zhǎng)季,,因此大家都想用一顆美麗、暖心的植物來(lái)裝點(diǎn)空間,。很多人在一年的這個(gè)時(shí)候會(huì)詢問(wèn)移栽事宜,,或前來(lái)咨詢自己植物遇到的問(wèn)題。
你的工作背景是什么樣的,?
我通過(guò)學(xué)習(xí)成為了一名環(huán)境工程師,。然而,,在我上學(xué)的最后一年,我的頭部受了重傷,,出現(xiàn)了我人生中第二嚴(yán)重的腦震蕩,。在受傷一個(gè)月后,一場(chǎng)事故又奪走了我一位摯友的生命,。在如此短的時(shí)間內(nèi)應(yīng)對(duì)上面兩場(chǎng)災(zāi)難性的事件讓我開始重新思考,,工程工作是否真的適合自己。(編者注:蒂芙尼在畢業(yè)后開始學(xué)習(xí)工程學(xué),,但一直被腦震蕩后綜合征所困擾,。)
腦震蕩后綜合征的癥狀因人而異,但我只要受到外界刺激就會(huì)頭疼,。我不得不將自己從工作中剝離出來(lái),,也因此而進(jìn)入了園藝事業(yè),并喜歡上了植物,。我需要通過(guò)一種活動(dòng)來(lái)放慢自身的腳步,,用雙手工作,并與大自然重新相融,。
我清楚的記得:那時(shí)正值冬末,,我正在尋找與大自然相關(guān)的一些事物。我第一次走進(jìn)了當(dāng)?shù)氐臏厥?,并感覺(jué)被傳送到了一個(gè)綠洲,。我以一種非常平和、安詳?shù)姆绞皆俣热谌肓舜笞匀?。在我?dāng)前的工作中,,我真的在嘗試將植物療法融入我的日常工作。
在家里和辦公室,,我們可以打造一種與綠植共生的關(guān)系,。在我此前的工作中,我是一名水資源工程師,,我的工作與綠色屋頂開發(fā)息息相關(guān),。
最終,我希望讓Plant Mahmah公司更上一層樓,,而且我覺(jué)得為了實(shí)現(xiàn)這一目標(biāo),,我必須辭去工程師工作,然后在2022年2月便離職了,。
是否有任何人幫你或在你手下工作,?
我獨(dú)自一人經(jīng)營(yíng)著公司,因此要包攬了一切工作,可謂是集眾多頭銜于一身,。我不僅要干植物咨詢師的活,,同時(shí)還兼任內(nèi)容創(chuàng)作人,社交媒體經(jīng)理,,而且所有的行政工作也得由自己來(lái)做,。
是否會(huì)考慮聘請(qǐng)一支團(tuán)隊(duì)?
我認(rèn)為這是公司下一步要做的事情,,其中既包括聘請(qǐng)其他的植物園藝師或造型師,,也涵蓋聘請(qǐng)專職會(huì)計(jì)或社交媒體經(jīng)理。我知道,,有些工作并不需要我親力親為,,而且我現(xiàn)在也并非是什么事都自己做,因?yàn)槲以敢鈱⑵渫獍鋈ァ?/p>
植物造型是你賺錢的唯一方式嗎,?
在去年很長(zhǎng)一段時(shí)間里,,我的收入源于與不同植物或家居裝飾品牌之間的付費(fèi)合作,例如家得寶(Home Depot),。為不同品牌拍攝或創(chuàng)作內(nèi)容從一開始就是我工作的一部分,。
我并沒(méi)有從事任何其他兼職工作,但我依然通過(guò)參與不同的社交媒體宣傳活動(dòng)來(lái)維持生計(jì),。今年,,我一心專注于全職植物造型工作。我的大多數(shù)收入都來(lái)自于此,,還有一部分來(lái)自我通過(guò)Plant MahMah賬戶撰寫的付費(fèi)貼文,。
最近,90%的收入來(lái)自與植物相關(guān)的工作,。去年,,植物相關(guān)工作與內(nèi)容創(chuàng)作的收入貢獻(xiàn)比達(dá)到了60∶40。我還在Etsy和我的網(wǎng)店中出售一些植物用品,,而且我還圍繞提升傭金與我最喜愛(ài)的植物品牌進(jìn)行了協(xié)商,。
自給自足是沒(méi)問(wèn)題了。我在第一年只是達(dá)到了收支平衡,。今年是第二個(gè)年頭,,到目前為止我的收入已經(jīng)趕上了去年全年的收入,但還沒(méi)有達(dá)到此前的工程師工資水平,。(編者注:《財(cái)富》雜志拿到的文件顯示,蒂芙尼去年的收入近4萬(wàn)美元,,而今年到目前為止就已經(jīng)賺了4萬(wàn)美元,。)
工作中最具挑戰(zhàn)的事情是什么?
身兼數(shù)職,我現(xiàn)在真的是分身乏術(shù),。
作為一名曾經(jīng)朝九晚五的工程師,,我的職責(zé)是固定的,而且在下午5點(diǎn)就可以下班,。然而,,在成為企業(yè)家之后,我沒(méi)有固定的工作時(shí)間,,感覺(jué)始終在工作,,而且始終都得在線。很難平衡這兩者之間的關(guān)系,,尤其考慮到Plant Mahmah是一個(gè)完完全全的個(gè)人品牌,,因此很難厘清。
工作中的哪些內(nèi)容讓你感到最舒心,?
與綠植互動(dòng)并親眼目睹植物對(duì)空間以及人們生活的巨大影響,。我會(huì)定期進(jìn)行客戶回訪,了解其植物的生長(zhǎng)情況,。
從事這類工作需要什么學(xué)歷,,如果需要的話?
我建議去學(xué)學(xué)園藝學(xué),、植物學(xué)或環(huán)保學(xué),,但我并不認(rèn)為必須要學(xué)這些學(xué)科。對(duì)于室內(nèi)造景這一小眾市場(chǎng)來(lái)說(shuō),,準(zhǔn)入門檻并不高,。
客戶的生命周期有多長(zhǎng)?
一開始都是線上植物咨詢,,通常是通過(guò)Zoom視頻,。我的客戶遍布全世界,大多數(shù)都在美國(guó),。對(duì)于當(dāng)?shù)乜蛻魜?lái)說(shuō),,我會(huì)到訪其空間,采購(gòu)并對(duì)盆栽室內(nèi)植物造型,,或開始搭建植物墻,。對(duì)于距離遙遠(yuǎn)的客戶,我會(huì)發(fā)給他們一張問(wèn)卷,,詢問(wèn)他們希望在植物照看方面花多少時(shí)間,,從“甩手掌柜”一直到“事無(wú)巨細(xì)的照顧”。此舉能夠讓我制定可供雙方將來(lái)共同執(zhí)行的行動(dòng)方案,。
你覺(jué)得自己在五年之后會(huì)是什么樣子,?
公司的使命就是讓所有人享受到植物的福利,并讓所有人都能接觸到植物,因?yàn)槲覉?jiān)信植物有治愈作用,。它們?yōu)槲規(guī)?lái)了如此多的歡樂(lè),,而且我希望繼續(xù)干下去,不斷擴(kuò)大規(guī)模,。我想擴(kuò)張業(yè)務(wù),,將植物療法推廣至全世界,而不是僅滿足于服務(wù)多倫多本土市場(chǎng),。雖然我不知道該怎么做,,但首先得設(shè)定宏偉的目標(biāo)。
我還希望繼續(xù)增加Plant Mahmah的收入源,。公司已經(jīng)有了咨詢和造型業(yè)務(wù),,但我希望提升植物墻產(chǎn)品以及網(wǎng)店的數(shù)量。這也就回到了我之前所說(shuō)的——讓植物照料變得更加平易近人,。
我還希望Plant Mahmah的造型能夠進(jìn)駐不同的空間,。我習(xí)慣于針對(duì)加拿大氣候?qū)χ参镞M(jìn)行造型,我也希望在未來(lái)針對(duì)更溫暖地區(qū)的植物進(jìn)行造型,,例如佛羅里達(dá),。
植物反映了人們對(duì)自身的在意程度。它們給我?guī)?lái)了大量的歡樂(lè),,同時(shí)也讓我能夠按下暫停鍵,,花時(shí)間思考,并留意我自己的感受以及每日所到之處,。(財(cái)富中文網(wǎng))
譯者:馮豐
審校:夏林
There are plant people, and then there are plant enthusiasts. Tiffany Mah, 28, is a step beyond: Curating houseplants and assembling plant walls for prime Zoom backgrounds is her job.
Mah, who lives in Toronto, is the houseplant consultant and plant stylist behind Plant Mahmah, her one-woman-owned-and-operated LLC. But stay tuned—she says she’s hoping to make “planterior designer” a thing.
Fortune spoke with her about her about how she went from environmental engineer to entrepreneur, how she’s built her business, and what she’s angling to do in the future.
This conversation has been lightly condensed for clarity.
What is a houseplant consultant/stylist?
I made the title up because there are many other plant interior landscapers out there, but I specifically work with houseplants. I’ve called myself all kinds of things before landing on this.
I do with plants what an interior designer does with furniture and space. I enter an office or a home and assess the lighting, the lifestyle, and aesthetic of the people who live there, and I recommend plants and decor pieces I think would fit with and thrive in their space.
I don’t just see houseplants as decor pieces. They really are a living, breathing thing that helps us slow down and be more mindful. Also, they add greenery and purifying elements to our spaces.
How do most people react when you tell them what you do?
Most of the time people just ask what it is. Most of my friends now know what I do and have been following my career for a while, but I know a lot of new people I meet will be like, “I’ve never heard of that, tell me everything.” The simplest term I use to explain it is, basically, I plantify people’s spaces and teach them how to take care of plants.
What would you normally be doing at this time of the day?
It changes every day—and by time of year. Spring and summer are busy season, and the winter is slower, but I still find a lot of people running into plant problems. On a typical Wednesday, I’m either sourcing plants at local nurseries, looking for different types of pots and ceramics, or doing in-home plant consultations.
It’s growing season right now, so everyone wants a nice, warm plant in their space. Many people, this time of year, are asking for repotting or are coming in for consults to diagnose what’s wrong with their plants.
What’s your job background?
I studied to become an environmental engineer. But during my last year of school, I had a bad brain injury—my second serious concussion. A month after that, I lost one of my best friends to an accident. Dealing with two really traumatic events in a short period of time made me reassess whether engineering was the path for me. (Editor’s note: Mah ended up going into engineering after graduating, but continued to suffer from Post-Concussion Syndrome.)
Concussion symptoms vary from person to person, but I was getting headaches from any type of stimulus. Everything became such exacerbations of my symptoms. I really had to isolate myself from what I was doing. That led me to gardening and developing a plant hobby. I needed an activity that would allow me to slow down, work with my hands, and reconnect with nature.
I remember vividly: It was dead of winter. I was looking for something to do with nature. I walked into my local greenhouse for the first time and felt transported into an oasis. I was connected with nature in such a peaceful and serene way. In my current position, I really try to incorporate plant therapy into what I do daily.
We can have such a symbiotic relationship with plants and greenery in our homes and offices. In my previous job, I was a water resources engineer. I had a lot to do with green roof development.
Eventually, I wanted to take Plant Mahmah to the next level, and I felt I couldn’t do it without quitting my engineering job, which I did February 2022.
Do you have anyone helping you or working under you?
Because I’m a one-woman business right now, I do it all. I wear every hat under the sun. Not only am I the plant consultant, I’m also the content creator, social media manager, book manager, and I do all the administrative tasks.
Would you consider hiring a team?
I think that’s the next step, whether that’s hiring other plant technicians or stylists or having on-staff bookkeepers or social media managers. There are tasks I know I don’t have to do myself anymore, and I’ve gotten to a point where I don’t have to do everything myself, and I’d like to outsource those things.
Is plant styling the only way you make money?
For a lot of last year, my income came from paid partnerships with different plant or home decor brands like Home Depot. Shooting and creating content for different brands has been part of my job from the start as well.
I’m not working any other part-time jobs, but I still pick up different social media campaigns to pay the bills. This year, I really have focused on going full-time with just plant styling. Most of my income has come from that, and some has come from sponsored posts on my Plant MahMah accounts.
Lately, 90% of my income comes from plant-related jobs. Last year, it was more of a 60:40 split between that and content creation. I also sell some plant products on Etsy and my online shop, and I negotiate with my favorite plant product brands for higher commissions.
I’m able to support myself. My first year, I only broke even. Now, in my second year, I’ve already made as much as I made all of last year, but I still haven’t replaced my engineer salary—yet. (Editor’s note: Documents provided to Fortune show Mah made nearly $40,000 last year, and $40,000 so far this year.)
What’s the most challenging part of your job?
Managing and wearing all the hats. I’m really in the thick of it now.
As a 9-to-5 engineer, I had a set list of tasks to do and could call it quits at 5 p.m. Whereas, being an entrepreneur, I don’t have set hours, and I feel like I’m always working, and have to always be on. It’s been difficult to find that balance, especially because Plant Mahmah is such a personal brand, it’s hard to separate.
What do you like best about your job?
Interacting with the plants and greenery and being able to see how big an impact plants can have on spaces—and people’s lives. I check back in with clients periodically to see how their plants are settling in.
What are the typical education requirements for a job like this, if any?
I’d recommend going to school for horticulture, botany, or environmental studies, but I don’t think it’s absolutely necessary. There’s a low barrier to entry for the interior landscaping niche.
What’s the life cycle of a client?
We start with a virtual plant consultation, usually over Zoom. I have clients all over the world, mostly in the U.S. For local customers, I can come in, source and style potted houseplants or start to assemble a plant wall. I give long-distance clients an intake form where I’ll ask how much time they want to spend caring for their plants, from “very hands off” to “helicopter parent.” That allows me to curate my plan of action for what we’re going to do together.
Where do you see yourself in five years?
My mission statement is really to bring the benefit of plants to everyone and make plants accessible to everyone, because I truly do believe plants are the gateway to healing. They’ve brought me so much joy, and I want to continue that on a larger scale. I’d like to expand beyond just doing local installations in Toronto; I want to bring plant therapy worldwide. I don’t know how, but I’ve got to dream big.
I also want to continue growing Plant Mahmah’s revenue streams. I have the consultations and stylings, but I want to grow the plant wall product and my online workshops. That goes back to making plant care more accessible to everybody.
I also would love to see Plant Mahmah styling in different spaces too. I’m used to styling for my Canadian climate, but I’d love to be able to style one day for a warmer region, like Florida.
Plants are a reflection of how much I care for myself. They’ve brought me a lot of joy, but also allowed me to pause, take a moment, and be mindful of how I’m feeling and where I’m at daily.