By Livia King | Photographed By Sunny Frantz
Inspired by a 2014 visit to Yosemite National Park, Kate Holl decided to make an abrupt shift from her digital photography profession to one more rooted in nature.
“I realized I wanted to get into a passion that got me more on my feet and using my hands,” instead of sitting in front of a computer screen, Holl says.
After taking classes on botany and floristry, Holl opened her own plant store, called Flora, in East Nashville, where she was living at the time. It wasn’t long, though, before she decided to move back to Madison, her hometown. She opened her plant and design store, Wildewood, on East Johnson Street in 2019.
The store isn’t meant to simply be a museum of plants. “I want people to pick things up and touch them, kind of get to know their plant before they buy it,” she says. The staff can suggest the best plants for customers’ home or office space, based on lighting and how much time the client has to care for the greenery. Holl will even come to a home or office (or visit with a client via FaceTime) to help select plants for the space.
“I see the whole project through,” Holl says. Wildewood also offers décor, such as pots and earth-themed coffee-table books.
“We just want to introduce people to all the benefits of keeping nature and plants in our lives,” Holl says. “There are so many studies about how having plants around can really help with productivity and creativity.”
During this time, customers can easily shop online or check Wildewood’s website for information on store hours and shopping options.
702 E. Johnson St. and 733 Hilldale Way, wildewoodshop.co
This article originally ran in the July 2019 issue of BRAVA.
