HILA Class of 2025 member Susie Raker's leadership transcends horticulture

Photography by Aaron McGrane

Spend even a few moments talking with Susie Raker, and a few things are immediately clear: She lives to make a difference, but she’d much rather do it from “behind the curtain.” She acknowledges her role as a leader, “no ifs, ands or buts about that.” And ask a question — any question — and you’ll get a genuine, authentic and largely unfiltered reply.

Today, Susie leads four companies: Raker-Roberta’s Young Plants; Central Coast Horticultural, a state-licensed Michigan cannabis production facility; a consulting business for opportunities that fall outside her other ventures; and last but not least, Rooted in Solutions, which owns the licensing and distribution rights to the world’s first bioluminescent plant, the Firefly petunia.

Even those who know Susie well find her energy and drive astonishing. But the path to where she is today hasn’t been easy, as any horticulture industry veteran can attest. As a businessperson, an entrepreneur and a community and industry leader, Susie wasn’t handed her success.

From no plan to ‘Watch out!’

Like a lot of horticulture industry kids, Susie grew up riding her bike in the family greenhouse on weekends while her dad worked on whatever needed to be done. There’s no question that horticulture is in her blood. But she didn’t expect to join the family business, C. Raker & Sons.

“I was raised in a farming family. I’m used to getting my hands dirty. I love the smell of spring. I love the smell of dirt. I like dirt under my fingernails,” she says.

By the time she was in high school, her life revolved around school sports — and she played them all. But multiple serious injuries left her on the sidelines for much of her high school sports career. Between the ages of 13 and 16, she had six major surgeries and spent a lot of time on the bench.

The experience helped build and shape who she is today. “What that did was teach me determination and perseverance. I think it gave me a lot of my mental toughness as well,” she says.

When college drew near, she was drawn to medicine. Orthopedic surgeons, physical therapists and sports trainers were among the most influential people in her life.

So why, when she entered Michigan State University, did she end up as a horticulture major instead? Even now, she’s not sure why. But she is sure she has no regrets.

“I’ve been on an amazing career journey that sometimes I look back at some of the places I’ve been in, some of the things I’ve been able to do professionally, and I’ve just been very blessed. And it’s all kind of been done without a plan,” she says. “The crazy part though is, over the last five to six years, I have a plan now. So watch out.”

Business and career transformed

While many events helped shape Susie as a leader, one stands out above the rest. Horticulture insiders will remember eight years ago, when news of serious financial problems at C. Raker shocked the industry.

Ultimately, an honest, straightforward call from Susie, then C. Raker’s director of sales and marketing, to Eric Wallien of Roberta’s Unique Gardens changed the company’s trajectory and her own. A long-time Raker customer, Wallien bought the company and put Susie at the helm as Raker-Roberta’s Young Plants was born.

She recalls, “Going through that and figuring out the best way to take care of my employees, because they’re family, and to keep this company moving forward and having to kind of stand and take it — even though I didn’t build the issue and I wasn’t a part of the problem, I was a part of the solution. And so just learning to be strong enough to take that and be open enough to hear what people are saying to you. I learned a lot through that.”

Susie’s colleague and friend Jim Devereux, now CEO of Green Fuse Botanicals and a partner in Rooted in Solutions, remembers being at Cultivate the day after C. Raker’s financial news hit.

“The height of my respect for Susie was she took the bad news, took 30 seconds to absorb the bad news and then began to organize how to turn that into a winning opportunity,” Devereux says.

Noting he took lessons from the experience himself, he adds, “A true leader knows what they don’t know. And she went around looking for advice, bouncing ideas off people, and took everyone’s comments to heart — and then broke them down into what became one of the greatest success stories in the industry, I think.”

Team-based servant leadership

Whether Susie chose horticulture or it chose her, it hasn’t defined the way she leads others or leads her life.

“At the end of the day, horticulture is just the vehicle that I ride,” she says. “I gain a lot of joy from relationships with people and mentoring people and being mentored myself. I always say that my superpower is relationships.”

Bringing the Firefly petunia to market, Devereux is in meetings with Susie and her team multiple times a week.

“The way she treats her staff and elevates them is something that I’ve never seen before in this industry. … Susie requests opinions, how other people will do it, and she supports them in their decisions,” he says.

“It’s a very rare thing, as simple as it sounds, for someone to be humble and to really surround themselves with people that she can not only empower but also empower her. And that’s leadership,” he says, adding that she’s also fun.

Susie notes it takes all kinds of people to “make this world go round,” and everyone has value.

“I really value what individuals can bring to the table to make us all better. So, I would say I’m probably a servant leader in that style. At the end of the day, I have no problem being the ultimate decision-maker, but I make sure that I’ve gathered all the decisions from all the different facets to make sure that we’re making the best decision.”

The lasting impact of mentors

Though she acknowledges many mentors in her life, Susie ranks her family at the top of the list.

“My dad is probably my biggest mentor,” she says. “I would say he’s been the most influential. Because I don’t care much about what anybody thinks of me, but I do care what my dad thinks of me and what I’m doing. It doesn’t mean I always do what he thinks I should do, but I do care about his opinion.”

Describing her father’s quiet leadership style, she says, “I have never seen a person that can get people to follow him and do whatever he needs done, I don’t want to say no questions asked, but the trust that he develops and his relationships are unbelievable, and so I think I’ve taken a lot of traits from his leadership style into my own.”

She also credits her uncle Gerry, whom she describes as a visionary, as being an extremely important mentor in her life — even though they have different philosophies and often don’t “see eye-to-eye.” One of her favorite sayings is: “What would Gerry Raker do? But how would Susie Raker do it?”

Impact beyond horticulture

Susie’s leadership achievements and commitments don’t start and end with horticulture.

“I believe in service before self, and I lead by example there,” she says.

She’s served on multiple boards in her community. She acknowledges her 13-year-old daughter drives much of her involvement.

“Kids need a positive, real, genuine influence. They don’t need to be perfect, because I am far from perfect, but they need to see somebody that’s out there, living in a positive way and doing big things and realizing that the sky’s the limit,” she says, noting she tries to achieve that through school and community activities.

“I coach all the sports, and so that is a great way to mentor,” she says. “I think sports are a great way to teach leadership, because you learn how to work with people you may not like. You learn that it takes all different kinds of people to make the sport work, to make the game work. And I just really enjoy that venue.”

Erik Weatherwax, recently retired superintendent of Jonesville Community Schools in Jonesville, Michigan, worked with Susie in her role as school board trustee for the last several years.

“This (award) is so well-deserved. She’s just such a hard worker, but she’s just got a great mind driving her dreams. In my experience working with her, she was willing to learn; she was willing to listen,” he says. “And in a position that attracts people — the board trustee — sometimes for the wrong reasons, she always maintained her integrity.”

Weatherwax notes that the board dealt with some delicate policies. Even though they didn’t always agree, he could trust Susie to do her research, give it careful thought and have the courage to speak her mind.

“For me, a true leader, they’re driven, of course. They’re innovative, they’re inspiring, but they’re also humble, and she embodies all of those qualities,” Weatherwax adds.

Change or challenge?

Asked about how she handles change, Susie responds that it’s less about change, but more about being challenged.

“If I’m not challenged, I’m bored, and if I’m bored, I get in trouble. If I’m challenged, I’m at least moving forward. I think that kind of describes me,” she says.

Her team has grown accustomed to the near-constant challenge of keeping up and contributing something new and vital to the projects they touch. Her “best team in the business” is built on trust, chemistry and leadership, not competition, and no one is afraid to poke holes in her ideas.

She urges everyone to take the time to build relationships, “but be genuine in your intent when you’re building those relationships. Part of the problem with the world today, in my opinion, is people are building relationships superficially to get something out of them.”

She focuses on building relationships to understand others and establish genuine friendships instead.

The strength of that philosophy is now being seen in Rooted in Solutions, she says.

“I am calling on friends that I built relationships with 15 years ago to help me be successful. So, I would just say be genuine in your intent and be able to see all sides of the table, understand why somebody’s perspective is the way it is and figure out the best way that everybody can win.”

Watch a video of Susie from the Horticultural Industries Leadership Awards at Cultivate'25 here.

Jolene Hansen is a freelance writer specializing in horticulture. Contact her at jolene@jolenehansen.com.