Photo by: Reflections By Patty ©
Growing lavender can be difficult, but not impossible. Knowing that this beautiful and fragrant plant is often the result of a challenging start didn’t deter Julie Thurgood-Burnett from opening Hereward Farms, a gorgeous lavender farm based in East Garafraxa, Ontario. At Hereward Farms, not only do they grow lavender, but they have created a true farm-to-skin experience with beauty and skincare products developed from the family land.
So, what led Julie, a former marketing maven, to make the big jump to own and operate a farm?
“We opened on a whim! It was during the Covid pandemic shutdown that things came into place. I used to travel a lot, but during the lock down, we were at the farm which had been in the family for five generations, sitting on the back deck and thought ‘Would lavender grow here?’”
Julie and her husband weren’t thinking about their plans on a large scale – they started with a mere 40 plants in containers in the yard. “It was something to keep me busy. I started taking some courses and went to school for cosmetology. I created some products using the lavender that we grew, and my friends loved them.”
Julie’s husband persuaded her to plant more lavender – to the tune of 3000 plants. She acquiesced and though they didn’t have a longer-term goal in mind at the time, the farm has flourished and evolved – Hereward Farms currently is home to over 6,000 lavender plants and over 400,000 sunflower plants.
Hereward Farms has become a destination – a seed of an idea that grew into a flourishing plant.
That said, the road to success hasn’t been an easy one.
When asked about some of the biggest challenges for this growing agritourism business, Julie’s immediate response was, “Staffing and labour. It’s so tough because we are a seasonal business, and finding the perfect fit in a small business takes a special kind of person.” Labour issues have been a common pain point for many throughout the tourism and hospitality industries over the past few years, and Hereward Farms is not immune to this.
Another challenge has been figuring out how to pace their growth. “We’re trying to manage the fast pace and figure it all out. What trade shows are good? How do we export? Everything is moving so quickly. Lavender farms have taken off in general, and the awareness for your average consumer is there which is great – but how do we differentiate Hereward Farms from others?”
One aspect of Hereward Farms that Julie believes truly differentiates and makes them special is that they support local first, and then women-owned businesses. They work with women-owned businesses to supply candles, lotions and eye pillows that are made with the lavender from the farm. They also stock a women-owned jewelry line in the farm shop.
“We are big on community-first. We never used to charge for visiting the lavender field, but now we do charge and it’s donated to local charities. We’ve donated over $25,000 to the food bank, Wellington Pregnancy Centre and the Alzheimer’s Society.”
Having a support network is crucial for any business, and Hereward Farms is no exception. So much so, that Julie’s early struggles, going at it alone, paved the way for making it her mission to help others succeed. With initially no experience growing lavender, and minimal help or resources available, especially within the lavender space, Julie faced numerous challenges, including learning about growing techniques and sourcing plants. Over the years, she has perfected the process of both growing and producing her field-to-skin products as well as marketing them (internationally too!), and now embraces a mentor role in order to help new agri-tourism businesses avoid similar struggles, and further develop the Headwaters region as a lavender/agritourism destination.
Additionally, Julie mentions the critical importance of working with Central Counties Tourism, Dufferin County and Centre Wellington. From attending the Central Counties annual tourism symposium, to hosting a networking event at Hereward Farms, CCT has been a constant source of support.
“Hosting the event here was invaluable because it allowed us to showcase the venue to different stakeholders and partners.”
Julie also mentions the importance of partnership and collaboration, having been connected with partners such as Udderly Delicious through CCT and selling their ice cream at the farm.
When it comes to visions for the future, the sky is the limit. Julie would love to develop an app that highlights other things to do in the area to recommend other local businesses. They are also working on getting a cafe put in to enhance the farm visit experience.
“Ideally, I’d like to grow but at a manageable pace. I’d love to continue to work to advance women in agriculture and showcase what we can do for the industry.”
Check out Hereward Farms for yourself and treat yourself to some farm-to-skin products!
Written by:
Jessica Gedge
