October 22, 2024
Proving herself a winner
Pushing back against imposter syndrome
BY KARINA SINCLAIR
Imposter syndrome is sneaky. It’s that nagging voice in the back of your mind that can make you doubt your own skills and successes — despite a mounting pile of evidence that says otherwise. So even after attracting high profile clients through her social media feed, winning several consecutive local awards, and becoming the first ever Canadian designated as a Proven Winners Certified Landscape Professional, landscape designer Samantha Ulasy still hears that voice. But now she ignores it.
Let’s back up to the beginning, because Ulasy only launched her business Margaret Valley Landscaping in 2019. After earning a diploma in horticulture at Red River College in Winnipeg, Man., Ulasy moved to Kelowna, B.C. and began working at Bylands, a large and well-regarded garden centre in the Okanagan Valley. Shortly after that, she worked for a landscaping company. “That really ignited my love of gardening and plants, and just creating art within the yard,” Ulasy said. But the experience didn’t allow her the freedom to explore her own ideas.
“When I worked for the other landscape company, I was just doing maintenance as one of the crew members and I didn't really have a lot of say. I knew I had really good ideas that were kind of getting stepped over,” Ulasy explained. “So I started working on the weekends with a few clients that I just picked up through social media, and through that, I was like, ‘I can really do this. If I'm doing a really good job, I should try and do this full-time.’”
And so she did.
On her own
“I made the hard decision to quit my job and begin a landscape company where I really had no prior knowledge of running a business or being my own boss,” Ulasy said. “But it just felt right and I just gave it a shot.”
Margaret Valley Landscaping is now an all-female landscape company, with three full-time employees (and a mini golden-doodle named Cedar who often joins the team on site “to supervise”). “We create, design and install all kinds of landscaping of anything that fits with the client, their home and their vision,” Ulasy said. “We just try and create a beautiful place to go that's outside. We're still fairly new, but we are definitely making a mark in Kelowna.”
Indeed. Under Ulasy’s leadership, the team has racked up an impressive number of awards, including Best Landscaper in Kelowna five years in a row, as well as Best Young Entrepreneur Under 40 for four years, among other local acclaim. That’s pretty impressive for a business that’s only five years old.
What’s most impressive about Ulasy is her genuine connection with the landscape. While giving me on a tour through one of her client’s gardens, her hands never stopped working as our feet crunched along the pea gravel paths. She’d caress a football-sized panicle hydrangea blossom, point out a bee on a zinnia, deadhead spent blooms in a container, snip stray twigs from a spiral topiary and even position fragrant roses for her dog to sniff. As supervisor, Cedar approved.
Ulasy was a bottomless font of knowledge as I asked about the growth habits of hibiscus or the water needs of sedum. As it turned out, nearly all of the plants in this landscape are from Proven Winners, which Ulasy says results from a brand devotion that began while she was in school and continued after she branched out on her own. “We always used Proven Winners plants. They're amazing. I've tried different brands, and Proven Winners always caught my eye,” Ulasy said. “They have the most unique plants. Creations, colour varieties and options are endless, along with a really unique set of plants that a lot of other gardeners don't necessarily use in their gardens. I've always had a dream of working with a big brand that’s as incredible as Proven Winners.”
Taking a chance pays off
On a chilly February day in 2022, Ulasy decided to introduce herself to Proven Winners. “I was like, ‘Let's just email them and see what happens.’” She wrote about her business and her passion for horticulture and hit send. “They emailed me back saying, ‘We'd love to have a meeting with you. Let's set something up.’”
Ulasy was introduced to Jeanine Standard, who handles influencer outreach at Proven Winners, and the connection clicked. “We had the same dreams and goals. And we love their plants. We love gardening. It's more than work for us,” Ulasy said. “So that really reminded me that this is the right direction I should be going in.
From then on, I started collecting content of my clients' yards.”
The content gets posted to Instagram (where most of Ulasy’s clients find her) and Facebook. Recipes for compelling container combos, advice on growing in a zone seven climate, landscape before and afters, and shots of smiling staff abound (Cedar included).
Ulasy’s creative hustle paid off. In 2023, Standard urged Ulasy to apply to become a Proven Winners Certified Landscape Professional. This program’s objective is to “provide landscape professionals with a competitive business distinction as a skilled Proven Winners plant expert, develop significant showcase projects and become a regional resource for the Proven Winners brand.” Landscape professionals in the program have demonstrated they are “skilled in the design, installation, maintenance and overall use of Proven Winners plants.” In return, those certified are featured on the Proven Winners website and offered presentation opportunities at garden tours and events, assistance with PR, media placement and business development, plus additional support.
“I'm always one to say yes. So I applied!” Ulasy said, adding the application required in-depth details about her clients’ projects. “Then I got approved, which means I was the first Canadian ever to have this certification. Not only is that exciting, but it's also to a female, which I thought was really cool considering landscaping is a male-dominated industry.”
Having reached her dream of representing her favourite plant brand, Ulasy continues to create content in her landscapes, finding strategic angles to highlight only Proven Winners plants. The global brand then shares her content on its own social media platforms, amplifying Ulasy’s audience. “You have to get really nice content and pictures. The lighting has to be right. The information has to be there,” Ulasy said. “So it is a lot of going home, downloading my pictures, adding information about what it is, what's growing, where it is growing, and what kind of climates it is suited for. It's a lot of work, but I really enjoy it, and I do it anyway.”
Proven Winners Certified Landscape Professionals are also required to attend sponsored or educational events in order to maintain designation each year. Since these take place in the U.S., Ulasy attends most virtually. “There’s a vast selection of classes that you can choose to attend. And it's so fun, like, it's so fun,” Ulasy said. “You learn so many things and you also get to meet people online. I follow a lot of landscape influencers, like Garden Answer’s Laura [LeBoutillier] and Skye Hamilton, and they're all in the States. They're super well known, and I'm just on a Zoom with them! It's really great to connect with everyone.”
Since announcing her certification, Ulasy has inspired other Canadian landscapers to consider applying to the program, such as Krista Irving, owner of Miss Muskoka Landscapes in Bracebridge, Ont. “I have a lot of landscapers on my Instagram, also female-owned businesses, and we keep in contact. Krista and I were chatting on Instagram, and she said, ‘I'd like to apply.’ And I said, ‘You should.’ So I guided her on where to go, how to apply. Then it was announced that she's the second Canadian with certification.”
The best perk
Another perk of the certification is early access to new plants. “Proven Winners will send me trial plants that were newly released or are coming out next year. And they give them to me so I can try them in my gardens. That's been amazing because I get my hands on the first of the first and see how it grows,” Ulasy said. This gives her the chance to give Proven Winners feedback on how well new plants thrive in the semi-arid climate of the Okanagan Valley, while also designing unique looks for her clients.
“I want people to say, “That yard looks like it has the ‘Sam touch,’” Ulasy said, describing that look to be whimsical and more than just random pretty plants. “I'm hoping to really create some special places for people to enjoy.”
As her success continues, Ulasy wants to lean into her creative side. “I have so many ideas. I'm constantly thinking of the next thing, the next project. For the next five years, I'd really like to focus more on designing. Designing is what gets me up every day. I love it, so I'm thinking of letting go of regular maintenance to focus on designs, construction and putting it all together,” Ulasy said. “I still need to get my hands dirty. I cannot not do that. So we'll still do the installations of all the gardens, the finishings and maybe spring and fall cleanups. But I wish I had a little bit more time to do that creative aspect, so I'm really hoping I can buckle down next year.”
And even with all her success and recognition from a major brand, doubt finds a way to creep back in. “It feels like imposter syndrome sometimes,” Ulasy admitted. “I don't know how to explain it. It's like you know you're doing a lot, but as a business owner I never feel like I'm doing enough. I work every night till the wee hours in the evening, and then I'm up at five to go to work. And I still don't feel like I have done enough.”
When asked what it would take to banish that doubt, Ulasy was reflective and optimistic. “This year has been a very mindful year for me, so I think I'm there. I feel like I've enjoyed the little moments in the quiet times in the garden, and my own thoughts and my successes just come to light,” she said. “But that's taken six years of grinding away to really get to that point. I do it because I love it, not for awards and recognition. It's just a little bit trickier in my head to really be like, ‘You deserve this, it’s okay to enjoy these moments.’”
Although the imposter syndrome has been (mostly) banished, Ulasy refuses to rest on her laurels and still tries to squeeze more into her day. “That's who I am. I'm a busybody. I can't sit still. I like to create and design and I literally live at the garden centres,” Ulasy laughed. “I don't like talking about myself because I try to be very humble. Even after we've won Best of Kelowna for five years in a row, I still get that feeling of, ‘Oh, me?’ But you have to believe in it and look at all the things you've accomplished and sit back and go, “I did that, I created this.’ So it's a little bit of a mind game, but I think that's just life as a business owner.”
Take a tour of Samantha Ulasy’s Tuscan-inspired garden in the latest video of the Down the Garden Path series