Every Monday, we ask small businesses key questions. Here we speak to Ben Laing, owner of Threaplands Garden Centre at Lhanbryde, near Elgin.
How and why did you start in business?
I’d been working at the Land Rover garage in Elgin for about seven years until 2011.
After a sudden admission to hospital I was told my best chance of survival was a kidney transplant.
I’d been feeling tired but hadn’t given it much thought. My daughter was just a baby, and I was working two jobs over seven days because, let’s face it, babies are expensive.
I immediately started dialysis, spending five hours a day, three days a week hooked up to a machine in Aberdeen. In 2012 I received a transplant from my father, Neil, and my outlook on life changed.
How did you get to where you are today?
I started looking for a job with progression opportunities and, in 2014, this brought me to Threaplands Garden Centre as a landscaping supervisor. I didn’t know much about landscaping but could talk to customers, was organised and could learn everything else very quickly.
After working tirelessly for the good of the company, in 2017-2018 I became project manager for our fantastic new garden centre just off the A96 at Lhanbryde, near Elgin.
Through working locally I knew some great local businesses that could help with the build. The garden centre owners, Scott and Grant Higgins, were extremely appreciative of the effort I put in. They opened the door for my father and I to invest in Threaplands, and we bought the business outright this year.
Who helped you?
I have to mention my manager at Land Rover, Frank Ingram. His attitude to work, regardless of reward, has been very influential in my approach to my own working life.
Without the vision of my ex-business partners, Scott and Grant Higgins, what we’ve achieved in building the new garden centre would never have been possible. And without the investment and support of my father, giving both time and money, we would be in a very different position.
What’s the best piece of advice you’ve ever had?
Always go above and beyond expectations, whether they are your employer’s or customers’ expectations.
What is your biggest mistake?
Some mistakes have been expensive, some embarrassing and some I regret. Although negative comments and reviews are less than 1% of our total feedback, I tend to focus on them instead of the 99% of amazingly positive ones. It’s because customer service is so important to me that any negatives really hurt.
What is your greatest achievement?
I’ve mentioned building the new garden centre. With very little experience, and the support of so many others, I pulled everything together to create what is, in my opinion, a beautiful building.
How are you managing rapidly rising costs and how could the government help?
It’s a challenge but we expect our electricity costs to halve from September. Suppliers are reducing prices and we continually review every single cost to the business. I call it a “cost diet”. This year’s “diet” has been particularly slimming.
VAT on hospitality is a real killer and a reduction would be a huge help. It’s great to have organisations like the Federation of Small Businesses providing help and advice, and fighting our corner.
What do you still hope to achieve?
We’ve been working to increase our green credentials from day one of the new centre.
The very fabric of the building is built with energy saving in mind. We achieved a Green Tourism Award this year and are finalists in the Scottish Environment Business Awards. We plan to reach net zero ahead of the Scottish target and work every day to get closer to it.
What do you do to relax?
I’m not entirely sure if I ever relax, however, this year we took two weeks away with the caravan to Glenmore Campsite in Aviemore. I basically had no phone signal and disappeared off with the dog into the hills for around 10 miles each day. Now that was relaxing.
What are you currently reading, listening to or glued to on TV?
Yellowstone (streamed on Paramount Plus). I had never watched it until a couple of months ago, but have now binge-watched all five series. I’m really looking forward to the next one, to be released in December.
What do you waste your money on?
I have a 1991 Ford Fiesta XR2i in the garage which has consumed considerable cash.
What’s the first thing you do when you get up in the morning?
Work. I usually deal with any emails, Facebook inquiries and anything else on my phone – sometimes before I fully open my eyes.
What do you drive and dream of driving?
We have a Jaguar F Pace and Jaguar XF. They’re both diesel but electric isn’t far off. I would rather have a Bentley Continental GT but I’d need to sell a lot of cups of tea.
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