To understand Optimara today, you have to go back to the early 1900s.

In 1904, Martin Dorrenbach founded his greenhouse in the lower valley of Germany. By the beginning of the 1930s, Dorrenbach’s son-in-law, a horticulturist named Hermann Holtkamp, bred his first variety of African violets. After World War II, Hermann bred several varieties and was recognized in 1952, winning a gold medal at the Bundesgartenschau Flower Exhibit in Germany for a violet named after Dorrenbach. By the 1960s, Hermann and his team developed the first non-dropping African violet.

Today, across the Atlantic Ocean near Nashville, Tennessee, the spirit of innovation still drives Holtkamp’s descendants to develop the next generation of African violets. Under the Optimara brand — grown at Hermann Holtkamp Greenhouses, a homage to Hermann and the largest greenhouse-produced African violets in the world — Herrmann's grandson Reinhold Holtkamp and his son Lawrence work with family still living in Germany to breed and grow the next industry-standard African violet.

At the same time, under Lawrence’s guidance, Optimara is investing in new retail markets aimed at getting a new generation of customers purchasing African violets.

“My grandfather always said that the African violet is the potted plant of the future,” Reinhold says.

Establishing a foothold

Reinhold grew up around African violets. Before emigrating to the United States in 1980 at 17 years old, he grew up in Germany working with his father, Reinhold Sr., and learned from him as he prepped for his own greenhouse career. In 1977, Reinhold Sr. purchased the Joy Floral greenhouses in Tennessee and started the process of moving his family to the United States.

The business had come on the family’s radar through a contact at the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

“It was a hard beginning because it was a dilapidated greenhouse facility when we started. It was 250,000 square feet when we started and three years into the effort, we went down to 100,000 square feet. I told my dad that we were going the wrong way,” Reinhold says with a laugh.

According to Reinhold, the move to America was something Reinhold Sr. had been exploring since a visit to the U.S. in the late 1950s, and he wanted to be somewhere where he could reach customers within 600 miles.

“Dad was always a pioneer,” Reinhold says. “He was never resting.”

Reinhold had come for a year in 1977 but returned to Germany to finish his pre-university education. In 1980, Reinhold emigrated to the U.S. to start his studies at Vanderbilt University pursuing his undergraduate degree in economics and an MBA at the Owen Graduate School of Management in marketing. He started to work full-time at the greenhouses in 1986.

“It was a big adventure,” he says.

On the technical side, Reinhold says that Tennessee’s humid climate isn’t ideal for African violet production. However, the greenhouse environment and selective breeding allows them to create a safe place for the plants to blossom over the six months it takes them to grow. Before that, growers take a cutting from a mother plant, initiate rooting and hand-stick them in a pot.

Optimara’s facility also doesn’t use any supplemental lighting, as the current technology doesn’t help the plants grow fast enough to be worth the investment.

“[Lighting] wouldn’t speed up the process to justify the investment,” says head of production Frank Nentwig. “It is an enjoyable plant, I think. Even though it does take a long time to grow, it’s also a long-living plant once it’s matured. If the flowers were to die, let’s say, you could cut off the dead flowers and it will rebloom after several weeks. It’s an ongoing, giving plant.”

“People keep them for a long time. I, for example, had someone contact me and say they had a variety from 1977. It was struggling, so I gave her advice and she thanked me six months later because it was thriving again,” Reinhold adds. “Since the expectation in the U.S. is to be able to re-flower the African violet, we want people to keep them successfully. Over here, they are re-bloomed, so our development has been focused on making them last longer and be easier to take care of. In Europe, people enjoy the African violets and toss them once they’ve bloomed out.”

Constant development

In Reinhold’s view, a main tenant of Optimara’s business is staying ahead of the competition through research and development efforts. He estimates that Optimara is six to seven years ahead of others when it comes to developing African violet genetics.

“It comes from having a genuine love of the plant,” he says. “My grandfather, my father, my cousin now — they’ve done the breeding work and are in love with improving the plant.”

“The effort in the breeding being done in Germany is huge,” Lawrence says. “As far as flowering plants go, it’s one of the most collectible plants out there, just because it has so many variations and color and characteristics. It makes it a really easy plant to collect because there’s always something new — that’s part of our competitive edge.”

Right now, Optimara’s R&D efforts are focused on developing better characteristics. Reinhold’s cousin, Martin Holtkamp, oversees breeding efforts in Germany. His breeding is under the Optimara umbrella, so he breeds for Holtkamp Greenhouses and the Optimara brand. Reinhold says apps like FaceTime and Skype make collaboration easy despite the seven-hour time difference.

Optimara’s most notable African violet development from the past few years is the LooXo series. Introduced at Cultivate’18, and showcased again last January at the 2019 Tropical Plant International Expo in Florida, the LooXo series is ‘filantherless,’ meaning it is bred to grow (and still last) without visible yellow pollen sacs. According to Lawrence, this characteristic gives the plant low Botrytis susceptibility and high thrips resistance while still blooming strongly. Right now, it is available in four colors — ‘gorgeous,’ a purple white flower; ‘splendid,’ a lilac flower with a small white center; ‘radiant,’ a fully purple flower; and ‘amazing,’ a pink and white flower. And there are more in the works for 2020 and beyond. The patent for the LooXo series is currently pending.

“It’s something we are holding close right now as we are building it up,” Reinhold says. “We have over 35 varieties [in the LooXo series] in development right now that should hit the market in the next few years.”

Pursuing new opportunities

Reinhold says when he was growing up in Germany, there was never a question that he would follow in his father’s footsteps and grow African violets. But that wasn’t the case for Lawrence. When he was starting college at Furman University in South Carolina, he did have a passion for plants, but ended up studying business. Before collage, however, he thought he wanted to do something in the medical field.

“At first, I wanted to be a veterinarian and then it was wanting to be a doctor,” Lawrence says. “When I was in school, I was trying to do the medical track and business at the same time. It was overwhelming and I came to the conclusion that I had to pick one or the other.”

He ended up choosing business, and said it was a “natural progression” from there to become involved in the family business because he didn’t want to spend his days working 9-5 in an office cubicle.

“I wanted Lawrence to go out and make that decision on his own,” Reinhold says. “You cannot force someone on this track.”

Lawrence’s business education is now helping to shape the future of Optimara. In his role as director of eCommerce for Optimatra, Lawrence is responsible for developing new, digitally focused sales channels. A key part of that is tapping into a robust social media following — largely on Facebook — that Lawrence says gives them an audience of roughly 80,000 people. This has allowed them to forgo spending any money on digital advertising or investing significant capital.

“Ultimately, consumers do have to want to enjoy the plant and make the plant part of their happiness, so to speak,” Reinhold says. With the resurgence of houseplants, they have found African violets are drawing the attention of consumers who are now looking for a flowering plant to put in their homes.

“We think the Millennials that have been buying foliage the last few years are ready to upgrade to something that’s colorful,” Reinhold says, noting succulents as one trend African violets offer an alternative to.

Currently, online sales only make up about 11% of Optimara’s sales, Lawrence says, with the rest coming from independent garden centers and big-box stores. That sales total includes revenue from an online company called Selective Gardener Catalog, which is run and managed by Reinhold's wife Monique and was founded in 1994.

The hope, though, is that the digital presence will continue to grow over time, with social media reach organically educating and informing consumers about African violets and what makes them such a special plant. The idea is for online sales to eventually account for 15 to 20% of the business’s revenue.

“Ultimately, consumers do have to want to enjoy the plant and make the plant part of their happiness, so to speak.” — Reinhold holtkamp

According to Reinhold, it helps, too, that shipping African violets is feasible. Most orders are processed through the postal service or FedEx and the plants don’t always require special packaging to protect them in transit. Not only does that help keep shipping costs down but it also makes immediate plant care for the end consumer easier. African violets, Lawrence says, can be shipped and not show any damage for four to five days.

Options available to customers include 2-inch miniatures and 4- and 6-inch violets, specialty varieties that include “classic varieties” (including the “original” African violet, Saintpaulia ionantha, that was discovered in 1893) and 4-inch African violets from the variegated foliage range. Prices range from $8 to $25, plus shipping.

“I’m still focused on a small assortment of plants with high traffic rather than offer 100 different plants and foliage and every violet color,” says Lawrence, who launched Optimara’s online sales in 2017. “It’s grown every year, but it’s definitely a different direction for us. You’re sending it straight to the consumer, so it has its own set of challenges, but the price point of selling directly to consumers is higher than if we were to sell wholesale.”

The central location Reinhold's father picked out way back when means they can send violets to just about anyone who wants one. It goes back to 1904, too, when Optimara, from the very beginning, was built as a progressive, development-focused business that isn’t content growing the same plants just because they sold well before.

“When you feel like you’re good at something like this, you could just breed another variety, which isn’t that hard to do,” Reinhold says. “What we’ve done is breed into valuable characteristics. It’s a commitment to the African violet.”

Photo © Elenabsl | Adobe Stock

As summer wanes, thoughts naturally turn to school: new clothes, new teachers, new knowledge, new friends, new beginnings. Each new school year represents a fresh start filled with hope and possibility.

If education is calling your name, now is a great time to start. I keynoted at a conference where the association president shared her long-held dream of earning her doctorate. When asked what was getting in the way, she replied, “I’m busy, and I’m getting too old.”

“You’re never too old to go back to school,” I responded as I encouraged her. I also gently reminded her that the years were going to pass regardless of whether or not she pursued her dream. I’m happy to report she is almost finished. I couldn’t be prouder of her courage, tenacity and hard work.

Education changes us. Education opens doors. Education enhances the bottom line. And, deeply held desires, the ones that never go away despite being ignored or pushed down, are the dreams we need to pursue.

What about you? Is it time to begin turning your dream into your reality? What about your dreams for your company, department or team? Is it time to step up to the plate, or are you going to let another year or opportunity pass you by?

The easiest route in life and business is the path of least resistance. Unfortunately, the path of least resistance never propels you forward. Passivity leads to stagnation and lackluster results. Even worse, inaction, indifference and risk aversion cause individuals and organizations to slow down or even step backward while the competition and life pass them by.

Moving forward and pursuing dreams, innovative ideas and new revenue streams takes courage, work and risk. I find it helpful to keep two ancient sayings in mind when fear threatens to hold me or my business from moving forward: “Fortune favors the bold” and “Nothing ventured, nothing gained.”

Here are my top five forward-propelling tips:

1.Pay attention to your intuition. While you can’t always articulate why you know or believe something, your gut instincts provide powerful clues that shouldn’t be ignored. For further information, click here.

2. Listen to the “whispers of your soul.” Instead of ignoring the dreams and ideas that never fully go away, dig deeper. Find out what it takes to pursue them. Picture yourself at the end of your life or career. What would you rather say, “I’m so glad …” or “If only …”?

3.Take calculated risks. Don’t just dive into a new idea or venture, do your homework. Testing the market, measuring the cost, checking for viability and seeking advice from trusted sources who have made smart, calculated decisions will position you for long-term success.

4.Build your runway. Plan ahead and have reserves in place to cover the costs and time it takes to launch something new. Failure to do so can jeopardize your entire organization. If you crash and burn, you may never get your plane off the runway again.

5. Create an innovative, forward-focused culture. Encourage risk-taking and dreaming in your team and organization. Ask “What if” questions. Reward individuals for thinking outside of the box. Try new things. Allocate resources for opportunity and development. Lastly, don’t freak out if something doesn’t work. You can’t reap the reward of an innovative culture if you demand every idea must work.

I strongly encourage you to use the beginning of another school year to propel your business and your life forward. What do you need to start doing today to create the future you want for yourself, team and organization?

The People IQ Expert, Dr. Sherene McHenry, works with organizations who want to elevate their productivity, People IQ and profits. Learn more at sherenemchenry.com.

Photo © ngad | Adobe Stock

The first, and perhaps most important, step in maintaining healthy accounts receivable is an unyielding policy against any delay in sending out invoices. Every day that you fail to process and mail an invoice is a day that someone else has the use of your money.

Whether you depend on your accountant or your software to monitor your accounts receivable (A/R), it’s important that the system’s aging report notify you of any accounts that are overdue by 30 days or more, depending on your credit policy, so that you can immediately place a call or send out a reminder. Most software packages can be programmed to produce aging reports automatically.

There’s no need to be concerned about offending a good customer. Any customer who is slow in paying bills will be hearing from other creditors as well. The more casual you allow yourself to become about collecting the money owed to you, the more casual your customers will become about paying you.

Of special importance is red flagging any accounts that are 60 days or more overdue. If that comes to 10% or more of your total A/R, you have a serious problem that demands immediate action.

To help avoid burdensome overdue accounts, make sure your credit policy is clearly defined with all new customers, and send it in writing. Explain when and how you invoice, and when you expect invoices to be settled. You may want go with the more-or-less standard 30-day payment terms, or you may be satisfied with 60 days. You may even prefer to require immediate payment as soon as invoiced. It’s up to you to decide on your payment terms.

Whatever your decision, make sure that your employees and your customers are familiar with it. Loose or unclear credit policies are an invitation to slow-paying customers.

Once your credit policy is clearly defined, it’s important to enforce it uniformly and strictly. A sound credit policy will be of no use unless it is enforced.

Here are five steps to a structured procedure that will help you collect accounts once they become overdue.

Don’t waste any time.

As soon as an account becomes overdue, place a call to the customer. Even a minor delay on an overdue account reduces the chances that you will ever be paid — the longer the delay, the greater the likelihood that you will never see your money.

“While it’s important to listen courteously to whatever explanations for being late are offered, it’s equally important to make it clear that you need your money and that you are justified in demanding payment.”

There is no substitute for a personal phone call when dealing with an overdue account. Letters and emails may seem sufficient, but they are too easy to overlook. An initial letter or email may be acceptable, but if that doesn’t result in an immediate response, it’s time to make that telephone call.

First, make certain that there is no complaint about your service or products. Then remind the customer that the account is overdue and ask politely if there is an explanation. Sometimes there may be a legitimate reason such as an overlooked or misrouted invoice. Be sure to evaluate your past-experience with the customer. It’s always possible that the company is experiencing unusual problems and deserves a little latitude.

If the customer is having cash flow problems, you may want to offer extended payment terms. In that case, make certain that your terms are clearly understood by the customer.

Understand your customer’s internal procedures.

Every company has different procedures for handling accounts payable so make sure your invoices are submitted on time and properly routed. When you are following up on a late payment, talking with accounts payable may not be your best bet. You may get more leverage by talking directly to the person responsible for ordering your service, especially if you explain that you’ll have to suspend deliveries unless the account is paid. If that doesn’t produce results, then it’s time to talk directly with accounts payable.

Persistence pays off

Photo © ngad | Adobe Stock

Put it in writing.

If a late-paying customer fails to respond to your most direct and diplomatic collection efforts, it’s time to send a letter clearly stating your intentions if payment is not received promptly. In addition to adding interest charges and turning the account over to a collection agency or a lawyer, you may want to mention that such steps are likely to hurt the customer’s credit rating, something that you would prefer not to do. (See sample letter on the previous page.)

Take the final step.

By following the above procedures for collecting overdue accounts, you will minimize the likelihood of the need for taking that final step. Still, you may eventually find yourself dealing with a debtor who is clearly a deadbeat. While the easiest path may be to write off the debt as a loss, it may not be the wisest, at least not yet. You have earned that money, you have a right to it and you need it. If the amount of money is so small that it’s not worth your time, it will be best to move on and write it off as a bad debt. Every business has to deal with some uncollectible debts. However, if the amount is significant, you shouldn’t be hesitant to put the matter into the hands of a collection agency or a lawyer.

Collection agencies are very good at getting debtors to pony up, but if you’ve never dealt with one, there are some things you should keep in mind. Many are very aggressive and not known for their courtesy and tact, so you should use them only for customers that you are willing to write off. Typically, they charge on a commission basis that will usually be around one-third of whatever they collect.

“While the easiest path may be to write off the debt as a loss, it may not be the wisest, at least not yet. You have earned that money, you have a right to it and you need it.”

Overall, using a lawyer as a last resort for collection may be your best bet, but it is also likely to be the most expensive. Many lawyers will be willing to work on commission for collection efforts, but some may take on the job only on an hourly basis. It’s usually best to avoid that arrangement because it could prove to be too expensive to be worthwhile.

Skillful handling of overdue accounts may not be the most enjoyable part of running your nursery, but neglecting accounts receivables can cause hidden and often serious damage to your cash flow.

The author is a freelance writer in Pennsylvania, specializing in business management, as well as personal and business finance. You can reach him at blynott@comcast.net.

Photo courtesy of Ken Morrow

Ken Morrow, a regular columnist for sister publication Cannabis Business Times and owner of cannabis R&D company Trichome Technologies, is a horticulture nerd at heart. In his experience, the cannabis and horticulture industries aren’t all that different — and could learn a lot from each other.

Greenhouse Management: What can the greenhouse industry learn from the cannabis industry?

Ken Morrow: I look [at] the reverse — I look at what the cannabis industry can learn from the production industry of large-scale greenhouse horticulture. In some ways, they are different, but in some ways, they are same. I tell people all the time about these three businesses in Wilcox, Arizona. They took over existing greenhouse space that used to belong to EuroFresh Farms — they were the largest greenhouses in the U.S. — and if you Google EuroFresh Farms and look at their history, you’ll realize that they filed for bankruptcy three separate times because they couldn’t stay bug- and disease-free. There are nuances with lighting spectrums and other things we don’t know. But we can learn from any indoor operation.

GM: What is currently driving growth in the cannabis market?

KM: I think the thing that’s driving [growth] most is extract. Seeing that rapid explosion of extract, whether it’s CO₂, hydrocarbon or ethanol, there’s apparatuses out there that cost well over $1 million dollars. It wasn’t even 10 years ago that there wasn’t a single grower out there that could afford to buy something for $1 million, let alone that there was no legal avenue for an investor to invest in a company to give them the amount of money to buy that piece of equipment. And they didn’t have a large enough amount of cannabis to utilize that piece of equipment. Who would have thought that 80% — or even 90% — of the cannabis grown in 10 years will go to vape pens, cartridges and extracts? There’s very little market for [the cannabis flowers].

GM: How would you recommend greenhouse growers interested in learning more about the cannabis industry, or perhaps getting involved with it, start that process?

KM: My girlfriend has a niece and the niece was training at a grow facility in Santa Cruz, California. She was very good, very hardworking and became very desired by certain people [in the industry]. And one of them could no longer employ her, so he introduced her to the people that run a company called The Proving Grounds. They are in the Eastern San Diego area and spent millions upon millions of dollars on their greenhouse. She had learned as much as she could, so she got to visit there. And she attended classes at the University of Arizona, where they have some greenhouse classes a few times a year that teach people real-world greenhouse growing — not with cannabis, but with plants. And that still applies. It’s not too different than learning about [horticulture production].