Community Highlights: Meet Jo Ann Dewar of Fairview Greenhouses and Garden Center

Today we’d like to introduce you to Jo Ann Dewar.

Hi Jo Ann, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers?
I grew up on a tobacco farm in Harnett County, born there in 1931. I worked the farm with my mother, father and five siblings (not a drop of running water or electricity until I was a teenager). That’s where my love of plants began.

I moved to Raleigh, NC in the late 1960’s where my husband and I made a homemade greenhouse as a hobby. We purchased land and an old farmhouse off of Holly Springs Rd in the rural community of Fairview in southwest Raleigh. I learned to grow flowering plants in that greenhouse like geraniums, poinsettias, petunias and marigolds. I also enjoyed making dish gardens and began selling them and delivering them to local hospitals.

From there, we began selling my plants to local grocery chains, like Winn Dixie. Once plants began selling out of our homemade greenhouse, we built three more greenhouses. We poured the concrete ourselves, bent conduit, put up plastic, did the electrical and plumbing – all by hand. We didn’t even know what a business plan was – it was just a hobby – but people wanted plants. We only sold wholesale in the beginning – not to the public. Fairview Greenhouses was formally started in 1974. We made plenty of mistakes in the beginning, but we learned from them.

All of my family helped in those first few years. My sister drove a delivery truck. My mother and father came from the farm to help plant, propagate and clean plants. Eventually, we found employees who had formal education in horticulture and business. We found friends that became employees and employees that became like family – many of whom are still working here (over 30-40 years). Those employees helped us create a business and make us what we are today.

As the area around our farm grew, people from the community began to want our plants too. In the 1980’s we began our retail garden center business – growing plants and selling to the public.

Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
As said, there were many mistakes made in the beginning. Growing and selling plants is much different from other retail businesses – we are farmers under plastic.

We found that all these greenhouses that we built by hand were basically built in the wrong direction. Our greenhouses (which are the same ones used and shopped today) are built facing east to west but would have better for sun exposure north to south. It continues to be a struggle to move plants and ensure they grow with the correct amount of sun. This is the result of a hobby that turned into a business before we really knew what we were doing.

My passion consumed my life in the early days – working full time to grow plants during the day and keep the books at night. I had a husband and four children at home. We couldn’t afford all of the infrastructures we really needed – from heating the greenhouse to insurance to protect the business. We didn’t want to borrow money – had no business plan. We soon found out that we needed to talk to the banks, come up with a concrete business plan – get loans for operating money and not try to do it all on our own. As my children grew older, they all began to help in the business as well.

As you know, we’re big fans of Fairview Greenhouses and Garden Center, Inc. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about the brand?
Fairview Greenhouses and Garden Center is a retail greenhouse and garden center. We grow and propagate over 95% of the annuals in our now 64,000 feet of greenhouse space. I am 89 years young and I come to work every day. I still live right next door on the property – I drive my golf cart to the greenhouse door every day. My favorite thing to do is propagation. I love to see a plant grow from beginning to end. I enjoy watering and fertilizing. I basically enjoy every bit of the greenhouse process. I also enjoy seeing a happy customers when they find something new. And I love to see a new customers when they walk in the greenhouse and look around with wide eyes in amazement.

I think my strong passion – for plants and life in general – and enjoying growing a quality plant – that’s what sets me (and us apart).

I am most proud of my family business and faithful employees. We are now in our third generation. I work each day alongside my oldest daughter, Susan and grandson, Brad – with many other family members involved and employees who have worked here over 40 years.

I think our experience and passion is evident in every plant we grow and every customer/employee interaction. We all love it here. We all love plants.

Who else deserves credit in your story?
My family deserves the credit and all of our employees through the decades.

My husband, siblings and parents in the beginning.

My oldest daughter, Susan began working in the greenhouse when she was young. It sparked a passion in her. She started in the FFA in high school and eventually went to NC State for a degree in Horticulture.

The Horticulture Department at NCSU helped me immensely. We developed great relationships with professors and researchers who still help us with growing and education to this day.

All of my “helpers” in the greenhouse who have worked with me for decades. Carol Calloway began working here straight out of college with a degree from NCSU. She’s been here over 35 years. Today, she’s our official production grower. Marie Pleasants began working with us when we had just three greenhouses, she’s been with us over 40 years – still here every day. Now we have a younger group with renewed passion who are learning from our many years of experience. From Chance Smith to my grandson Brad Rollins (he’s been here since he was a week old – his mom put him in a cardboard box beside her – and hung him in a bouncer over the metal of the greenhouse so she could work). Somebody’s got to keep this going when we’re all gone.

Contact Info:

• Email: [email protected]
• Website: fairviewgardencenter.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/fairviewgardencenter/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/fairviewgardencenter
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/fairviewgardenc
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/user/FairviewGardenCenter
• Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/fairview-garden-center-raleigh
• Other: https://www.pinterest.com/fairviewgc/