Exploring Life & Business with Zach Drew of Pixel Plant Co.

Today we’d like to introduce you to Zach Drew

Hi Zach, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
A little over 1.5 years ago, I decided to try to get into plants again which started all of this. When I was younger, I had a decent connection with plants as I would always help my mom in our vegetable garden, help pick out plants for the landscaping, and even care for a few small houseplants here and there. After one of our moves and especially after I moved out, I really lost that connection. I would always try to spark it again now and then with one of those cheap bonsai trees from a grocery or hardware store or even maybe a tiny “lucky” bamboo plant. I even attempted getting into aquaponics in my old apartment, got half the equipment, but then never fully committed. After I moved in with my college roommates though, one of their dads had gifted us a big Aloe Vera plant to help liven up the space a bit. For the first year, I kind of neglected this plant and was the only one to care for it. I’d only water it on super rare occasions, luckily they’re pretty hardy plants. Eventually, I would start giving it the starchy rinse water from when I cleaned rice for cooking (another passion) and I started to see it thrive more. It eventually started producing pups (baby Aloe plants), and that inspired me to try one more time for plants. I began sprouting seeds from grocery produce, such as peppers or cucumbers, in cut-up milk jugs, which eventually led to a full pepper plant… it only produced 1 itty-bitty pepper though. That spark alone though is what fully drew me into houseplants. I remember joining some local Facebook groups and watching Marketplace like a hawk for some cuttings of specific things I found interest in. At this time my favorite was the Rhaphidophora Tetrasperma or “Mini Monstera” which I was lucky enough to get two cuttings for fairly cheap. Looking back now, I realize that I did not nearly care enough for these cuttings as much as I should have, as they didn’t get enough water, nutrients, or light, but I made it work in the end. Eventually my collection started to expand, growing into other plants that I’d collect, from a full pot of Syngoniums that I got for free and rehabilitated and also finally getting a Monstera Deliciosa that almost anyone with houseplants will recognize, and I still have both to this day. Overtime, this small hobby and collection turned into a bit of an obsession. I even expanded into making terrariums, which had started as a date night idea my fiancé and I had.
For the business itself, it kind of started with terrariums. We had gone up to Billings, Montana in June of this year to attend their local renaissance faire and visit an online friend. Our friend had a vendor booth at the faire and had agreed to let me sell terrariums if I was interested since she was already selling wool-felted ones and it fit in-line with her existing items. Surprisingly, it was a hit, I almost sold out of all the supplies I had brought with me and I brought a lot of smiles to people who were absolutely fascinated by these tiny enclosed ecosystems. Upon our return to Utah, I decided I wanted to make it official. I had already begun fantasizing about having a plant business throughout the beginning of the year and had never really committed to it, but now I wanted to dive right in aftering having a taste of what it was like.
At my next chance, I hopped on my computer and officially registered my business and had begun selling terrariums to coworkers, friends, and family. After a few sales, I realized I needed to start sourcing materials in an easier method than buying directly from shops at full price. I reached out to some local houseplant shops and managed to make some wholesale connections with them and now had terrarium and houseplants available for resale and use! I made some other wholesale connections as well that I am really excited about, including Soltech grow lights, which is one of my favorite brands in the houseplant community. Locally, after I made my connections and a few sales, I decided to apply for a table at the Salt Lake City Moonlight Market. It’s a little night market hosted at Church & State every third Thursday. It went decently well for the first few months, but I’ve since decided to move on to more plant-focused markets and events. I decided to take some event action into my own hands as well. Now I have a new event that I am planning and hosting back up in Billings, Montana and its gotten bigger than I can even imagine. I am just so excited to see where everything goes from here.

More details about my beginnings and the upcoming event can be found in the “News” (blog) section of my website.

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?
I feel like I had it surprisingly smooth compared to most. I managed to align wholesalers for various items and inventory very quickly (four in a single weekend actually), the biggest hurdle I would say currently is marketing and reputation. I haven’t had enough local sales, specifically within the closer plant groups out here, to make a good name for myself yet. Up in Montana, I have quite a few people excited to shop and work with me though, and I’ve mailed out a few orders to other parts of the country (I ship to all 50 states), so there is some hope still. I would really love to connect with people locally though to bring them a good, reliable source of quality plants or even introduce those who are timid or unknowledgeable about getting into houseplants so that they have an easier time.

Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your business?
Pixel Plant Co. is primarily a retailer of houseplants and houseplant supplies. The business is currently run out of my own home as I don’t have the capitol and profit margin for a brick & mortar store, but I would like to open one in the future. We have a good variety of plants available for what I am able to store with current space limitations (expansion to new space currently in progress). I try to specialize my selection in less common but not super rare plants. Mainly items that would be unique to both newcomers and experts in the hobby alike but not so rare that they break the bank. While I do have a few plants in my collection that are extremely expensive, they won’t be sale for a while until I can safely propagate them. What I want to do to set myself apart from others is to be able to show as much care into helping anyone that needs it as I would into caring for my favorite plants. Not everyone are experts on houseplants but some want to be or at least try do what is best for their plants and I want to be able to be someone who can offer that helping hand as well as introduce them into selections that may best fit their needs and lifestyles. The biggest thing I am proud of brand wise is probably the pixel art I have made by a close friend of mine. She designed my logo and other pixelated leaf designs with more on the way. I always have enjoyed tech as one of my first and biggest hobbies, and after getting into plants, I always wanted to have a bridge between the two, so doing pixel art helped me make that connection which led into “Pixel Plants” then “Pixel Plant Co.”. I would say the biggest thing that I want readers to know about my brand, offerings, and services, is that I am not just another plant seller, I want to be more like a planty best friend. I am here whenever you are needed if you have any questions or concerns about your plants, while not officially stated on my site, I am open to working with customers to make their plants thrive in the best ways possible while not becoming a “mad scientist” about it. I have started offering care and consultation services for businesses to take care of office plants. I am already the “plant guru” at my place of work currently and I’d like to expand this service to people’s homes as well. Plants in nature are all connected and work together, so I don’t want the experience for customers to end once they receive their plant and go home. We should all be interconnected and benefit from one another just as the plants do in nature.

One other thing I like to do as part of my practice is always, always, always support other small businesses and local sellers. I have made plenty of connections to local businesses to provide supplies, art, rugs, charms, and more all on the way while keeping it all plant related. I always advertise the makers as well so that they can get as much exposure through me as possible as having their items in my store wouldn’t be possible without them in the first place!

How do you think about luck?
With plants there is always a mix of both haha, but with my business I’d say I got really lucky with finding wholesalers so early on and also connecting with one of my favorite brands. Also recently, I went to Colorado for a trip for my fiance, and with luck, that weekend I was told there was a plant show happening in Denver at the same time. I attended and was able to get some really amazing finds including a plant so rare that the one I now own is 1 of 4 in the entire world.

As for bad luck, that usually plays into my personal collection where my plants will end up sick or with pests at random, but I’ve begun working in countermeasures to deal with both of those issues and make them more manageable and less of surprise. I suppose on the business end of this question, I have been less lucky with sales outside of in-person markets and events. Online sales aren’t the greatest but I am hoping with some more networking that can change.

Pricing:

• Cheapest Plants (currently) – $5
• Most Expensive (currently) – $35
• Grow Light Bulbs – $70 (BOGO Sale currently)
• Custom Soil – $10

Contact Info:

• Website: https://pixelplantco.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/pixelplantco/
• Other: https://www.tiktok.com/@pixelplantco