The COVID-19 pandemic and the resulting shutdowns have hit Cottonwood businesses hard. Most businesses classified as nonessential have closed down and restaurants moved to takeout orders only.
But with everyone staying home and finding new time for hobbies, one business in Cottonwood has been seeing its customer traffic skyrocket: Verde River Growers, the nursery and garden supply store on South Rocking Chair Ranch Road, which has seen more people show up than ever before.
“Everybody has time right now, so people that normally could not be in here except for a minute a day can spend hours in here,” Christopher Bradshaw, an employee at the store, said. “So that’s become kind of an issue for our parking lot.”
The extra time at home has meant that both experienced gardeners and newbies have found times to make their yards blossom with flowers, herbs, fruit and vegetables.
“We always garden, but I have more time to put into it because I have more spare time,” said Jackie Vincent, a Cornville resident who normally attends college but has found that with both her and her two children — ages 8 and 10—home from school, there is lots of time to make a homeschooling project out of turning her normally modest garden into a thriving one this year.
“They love it,” Vincent said of her kids. “They could stay out there all day, digging in the dirt. I think kids and gardens go hand in hand. Anything outside, they love.”
“It’s Gardening 101 all over again, every hour,” Bradshaw said of the customers who come in seeking to plant in their yard for the first time during the COVID-19 shutdown. “You’ve got to start the exact spiel again. How do we plant? How deep? What can handle the sun?”
The surge in customers has coincided with a surge in applications to work at VRG, as many who were laid off during the shutdown are seeking employment at one of the only businesses still hiring. According to Bradshaw, the shop has hired some new employees to keep up with the demand, but has not been able to hire all that show interest.
The store has also experienced difficulty keeping its inventory stocked with so many people wanting to buy. Suppliers in California have been harder to buy from with the pandemic closing down businesses nationwide, and employees say staples, such as the popular Photinia, often run out.
With the increased business, the uptick has not been all good. In addition to feeling overwhelmed and busy trying to meet demand, employees complained of customers frequently flouting the social distancing rules that VRG has implemented.
However, for VRG employees like Bradshaw, there is a silver lining in seeing so much interest in something they have long loved.
“If this is what it takes for people to change their thought patterns and actually enjoy their home life with nature, that makes it wonderful for me,” Bradshaw said. “I love it. To have everyone improve their yard and their neighborhood with plants — I love it.”
