Jackie, a communications training professional based in York, has recently added a commute to her daily routine. After six years of working mainly from her dining room table, she now commutes fifteen steps to her new Horto garden office.
Fifteen steps may not sound like much at all, but it has given Jackie some much-needed separation from the hustle and bustle of the family home. This was particularly important during lockdown, when her oldest son was also stuck working remotely. This less than productive situation encouraged Jackie to make some big decisions about investing in a more sustainable long-term workspace, which was ready in time for the second lockdown. ‘It was great to be enjoying my fantastic new office space while everyone else was struggling with the kitchen table or even ironing boards,’ she says.
Jackie calls her garden office her ‘little microcosm of learning’. It serves as the perfect backdrop for the Zoom corporate training sessions she does with individuals all over the world. And now that many offices are open again, it’s also proving to be an ideal base for in-person training sessions. This is a huge transformation for Jackie, who definitely wasn’t able to invite clients to visit her previous workspace!
It’s not always easy to know where to start with a big project like this. ‘I saw all sorts of things at the beginning of the search that were like glorified garden sheds,’ Jackie says. ‘I like to use local companies, so I got in touch with a few who came out to do site surveys. But it was really clear that many of them wanted to sell me what they had in their heads, not necessarily a bespoke solution based on what would work for me.’
Flexibility was important for Jackie, especially as the location she was considering for her garden room was at a bit of an angle. She got in touch with Horto and was impressed to find that it was Gary and Ellen themselves who came out to do the site visit. ‘They were really likable. They took a real interest, did a great job of explaining everything and were very quick to respond to questions. The whole thing just whizzed along.’
In fact, the only slight delay to Jackie’s project was due to a wait for supplies caused by the pandemic. Even this was relatively painless for Jackie, as she liked ‘how open and honest Ellen and Gary were. They were good communicators and totally transparent.’ Considering Jackie’s professional expertise, this seems like a compliment well worth taking to heart!
