#25 - Getting a “Bloomsbury Hug” with Lauren Palmer

The Soft Focus

Today’s guest is Lauren Palmer of Bloomsbury Farm in Smyrna, Tennessee. Bloomsbury Farm is a diversified organic farm, with a host of vegetables, fruits, flowers, events, and even a small school onsite. It’s a cornucopia in a beautiful and romantic area of the country, less than an hour outside of Nashville.

On today’s show, Lauren walks Corinne through the evolution of her farm business, how she has grown as a farmer and entrepreneur, and all the things that keep her excited for new growth. Lauren shares the importance of leaning on her amazing team, the important role of her family members in building out her bigger vision, what she loves most about her multi-faceted farm business, and so much more. It’s a great conversation for anyone who is looking to diversify their farm, or is interested in small-scale farming in general!
Corinne and Lauren discuss:

• Lauren’s family farming background
• “In the worst-case scenario, we are all gonna eat”
• The evolution of Bloomsbury Farm in collaboration with chefs and farmers’ market customers
• Why Lauren likes to leave all the proverbial doors open, and keep things fresh and moving on her farm
• The importance of trusting amazing staff
• Employee appreciation and the “Bloomsbury Hug”
• The changes at Bloomsbury farm over the years, and how that brought everyone closer together
• The challenges of growing sprouts, and the growth that came from overcoming the challenge
• Lauren’s experience of her own creativity in her marketing and displays
• Bloombury Events and how that came into creation
• When selling kale at $4/bunch isn’t cutting it
• How Lauren has balanced risks and rewards with agritourism at Bloomsbury Farm
• The challenges in farming that have made Lauren a better business owner, mother, friend, etc.
• Why Lauren decided to add Bloomsbury School
• The evolution from summer camp to school
• Lauren’s role in learning the new curriculum and stewarding the school project
• The ways that Lauren’s family share their skills and perspectives to help her develop new projects and programs
• How Lauren crowdsources ideas and filters them through her own intuition
• The ways Lauren unwinds to stay fresh and inspired on her farm
• Lauren’s hopes and dreams of creating a cookbook, or coffee table book in the future

Find Lauren and Bloomsbury Farm online and on instagram!

This episode was brought to you by Late Bloomer Ranch. Be sure to check our farm-raised yarn, flower essences, and BloomBoxes available to ship in the continental USA.
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See you next time.