Growth Spurt
Jane Kitchen -- Gifts and Dec, 9/14/2010 6:51:01 AM
Before he was out of grade school, Ben Busko was already on his way to becoming a gifted retailer.
If there was ever a child prodigy in the world of gifts and decorative accessories, Ben Busko is it. Busko started Ben's Garden when he was just eight years old, selling decoupage crafts and notepads. By the time he was 11, he counted Smith & Hawken and New York Botanical Garden among his clients, and he put his friends to work in his parents' carriage house.
At 20, he opened his first store and studio in Oyster Bay, NY - in what was once the summer office of Theodore Roosevelt. The expansion into retail was a natural one. "I happen to really enjoy talking with people and interacting with customers, and I wanted to have that dynamic," he explains. He also takes advantage of the store to test out new products and get an instant read on their popularity.
A GROWING GARDEN
But Busko didn't stop with just one store; in 2007, he opened a second Ben's Garden in Huntington, NY, with four times the square footage and room to expand his product mix. "We started off solely selling things I make; now we sell things that I love," says Busko.
His growing inventory in Ben's Garden stores includes his ever-popular decoupage trays, as well as soaps, candles, paperweights, coasters, stationery, unusual plants, vintage furniture, antiques, artwork, garden ornaments and books. Busko's aim is to put them all together in an environment that speaks to people.
"So much of the world we live in today is oriented toward these giant malls," he remarks. "So we really have to present something that is extremely captivating."
Busko engages the senses, creating dynamic window displays, and adding sensory details like candles and music. "If we had chairs where people could sit, they would," says Busko.
Ben’s Garden has two locations in New York’s Long Island: Oyster Bay and Huntington. The Conservatory garden room, above, in the Huntington store. At right, a Holiday store window display uses marshmallows strung on fishing line to look like snow.
FRESH AND REFRESHING VISUALS
Keeping things fresh and exciting is part of the philosophy as well; Busko changes out the window displays once a month.
His most recent was made from 700 gallons worth of Poland Spring bottles, cut into the shape of flowers and spray-painted in vibrant colors. For the holidays, he strung marshmallows so they looked like snow.
"We've been really having fun with the windows," says Busko. With heavy pedestrian traffic in both towns, attention-grabbing windows can be the key to turning passersby into customers. And once those customers walk in, they are immediately engaged. A 12- foot table near the entrance feature's Busko's best-selling line of trays with inspiring quotes, which he says people stop to read as if they're reading the newspaper.
Busko, of course, doesn't do it alone; he has a small staff of artists who help with the production of his signature designs, as well as six employees in each store whom he "couldn't do anything without."
View of the cashwrap area of the store and a display of decoupaged plates that encourage customers to stop and read.
THE GARDEN BLOOMS
As well as the two thriving stores, Ben's Garden's wholesale business is booming as well; currently Busko's handcrafted items can be found in more than 400 high-end gift stores, as well as Anthropolgie.
Busko plans to open two more stores within the next year, including a New York City location, and says ultimately, his goal is to have at least 200 Ben's Gardens.
Like most successful people, it's his passion that's seen him through so far.
"I would do this if it didn't make money," says Busko.
"I love what I do."
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