Bart Timmermans is a small-scale Belgian grower of tulips and sunflowers. He and his wife Annick run an in-house flower shop. "Things have worked out tremendously well. My wife, who manages the shop, is extremely happy with the opportunity to socialise."
Can you tell us something about your business?
“Twelve years ago, we set up short-chain sales to become future proof. At the time, we were growing ranunculus, but cheap imports caused prices to plummet, so our business model was no longer viable. This was a time when many ornamentals growers were either quitting or expanding. Now we are small-scale Belgian growers of tulips and sunflowers with an in-house shop.”