Celebrity Gardeners: Are They Really Part of the Landscape Industry? - Philip Voice
- 14 February 2013
I got an email yesterday from a PR company trying to get me to promote their client's new garden at Chelsea this year. I won't reveal the content of the email or name names as that's not fair. The email ended with "I wondered if this would be of interest at all and if you might be able to blog or tweet about the announcement?"
I don't follow any celebrity gardeners because I think most of them are up their own backsides and more interested in promoting their celebrity status rather than the landscaping industry.
A couple of years or so ago, I covered the celeb in question when he wasn't very well known. He was an emerging talent so I published a news item about him. I thought, well done, good to see young talent emerging.
He was obviously watching out for coverage and telephoned in a bit of a panic at 6.30am the following day to ask where I had got the quote from because he didn't remember giving it. From your PR agency I replied. Oh, really! was the retort. He had no idea and it was obvious to me the quote had been made up for publicity's sake.
After this we exchanged a few emails and he even joined our network. Then we agreed that he'd do a few guest blogs for Landscape Juice. Wow I thought..he's keen.
I also continued to blog about his boss's success and ran their PR too. But the promised blogs never came and he eventually left our network.
I never heard a further murmer, and I wasn't particularly bothered either, until yesterday when the cheeky blighter sent me (Oh OK, his PR) his latest news.
All a bit one sided me thinks. These celebs only seem intent on promoting themselves and their fame; I don't think they really give a toss about the industry they're in, or at least that's how it seems to me.
Do you think the landscape industry is two (or more) tier? Can celebrities really refer to themselves as one of us?
After starting my garden maintenance and landscaping business in 1984 and running it for 21 years I decided I needed a change of direction (probably a mid life crisis, no seriously! :-0) Together with my family, wife Donna, Son Henry and Daughter Fleur (not forgetting Hector the Black Labrador) I moved to France in search of an old farmhouse to renovate. In the interim period whilst waiting for the contract to go through I started writing a blog. Initially just to keep a diary for family and friends to keep up with our progress if they wished but then it occurred to me that there isn't a real time watcher of the landscape industry in the UK. I didn't want to waste my experience and experiences so I decided I could put all of this Juice to good use so I started Landscape Juice.
Source: Landscape Juice - Celebrity Gardeners: Are They Really Part of the Landscape Industry?