Today we’d like to introduce you to Ara Flink.
Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
Propagation Diaries started out an account to share my houseplants and document their growth. Propagation is where you cut pieces of a plant, either a leaf or stem, and regrow them to create another plant, and I found this to be one of the most rewarding parts about keeping houseplants. After a couple of years of growing a sizeable collection, I found myself in need of a product that didn’t exist and also found myself in a position to be able to create it. With no prior background in design or manufacturing, I connected with a designer who helped me create and prototype my idea, Arka Trellis. We produced a few dozen prototypes for a local plant market, and the product sold out completely. I was shocked by the success and positive feedback after the first round of Arkas were produced and was inspired to produce even more.
This first product, Arka Trellis, is my main and best-selling product and is what inspired me to turn my hobby into a business. I decided to transition Propagation Diaries from a photo diary into a brand of easy-to-use, simple, aesthetic and functional houseplant accessories. I now offer a variety of houseplant accessories, my original products Arka Trellis and CLIMB Plant Support are both produced locally in Georgia, and I also carry several sourced products curated to help ease the burden of caring for houseplants. This is a woman-owned, product-based retail business intended to help improve the experience of growing and collecting houseplants.
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?
Every step in growing this business taught me a lesson, but I wouldn’t call it a struggle. Product development and design is nowhere near related to what I actually went to school for, which was medicine, so in building this business, I am navigating a very unfamiliar industry. Medicine taught me to relax and calmly face the unknown to resolve challenges, by working with literal life or death situations, I am able to find a solution to almost anything else. I will not downplay the extremely stressful day of having my website crash at the exact time I was posting my largest product launch, but I made it through and learned not to try out new features on a live website. What has been the most interesting aspect about starting this brand and business are the multiple roles I have assumed and carried out– marketing, brand ambassador, accountant, product designer, graphic designer, content creator and order fulfillment department, to name a few. Starting something new is always a challenge, but if you believe in what you are doing, I think you should follow your ideas as far as you can take them.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your business?
Propagation Diaries help you Grow Beautifully. At the moment, it is one of the only exclusively houseplant accessory e-commerce businesses around. We aim to provide everything you could need to care for your plants, from the soil and pots you need to grow them in, plant support accessories called trellises that help you guide the plant to grow the way you want it, clips to hold your plants in place and even the plants themselves. Our products share the same minimal aesthetic of transparent products that also serve a very important function to help your plants grow healthier.
Traditional plant support accessories are made of natural materials which break down over time, so I decided to use a modern material, acrylic. The products serve the same function but provide an aesthetic and material quality far superior to the only other option on the market. I am proud of the fact that I have been able to build so much from one simple idea, and I am excited about all the possibilities and opportunities of growth that will come in the future. I want to inspire someone who has always wanted a plant to go out and get one and to help them feel the joy of growing a plant and seeing it thrive in your care. I hope to provide all of the resources necessary from information to products, to be able to help someone learn how to grow their plants easily.
Is there anything else you’d like to share with our readers?
I would love for readers to learn more about the specifics of growing plants, learning about the importance of soil quality, the right pot for your plant, the right plant for your environment, and then be the place for them to find all of these in the same place. My products help give your houseplant some style while also providing the actually necessary function of support to keep them from falling over. Growing houseplants is therapeutic and rewarding, and once you have figured out what the plant needs, you get to see new growth and new leaves appear right before your eyes. I want to be your source for growing beautiful and strong plants.
Contact Info:
- Website: propagationdiaries.com
- Instagram: instagram.com/propagationdiariess
- Facebook: facebook.com/propagationdiaries
