Strategic Marketing – Week 1

Gale’s Green Barn, based in Olathe, Kansas, with five locations across the U.S.,
was founded by Dottie Gale in 2012. The Gale Family, five generations of
farmers, sells produce at county fairs and roadside produce stands. In 2010, after
completing her MBA, Dottie Gale handed in her resignation to pharmaceutical
lab, she’d been working at in Dublin, Ireland, and returned to her family’s row-
crop farm in Olathe. Dottie was interested in sustainability and healthier living.
In the span of eight years, Gale’s Green Barn grew to five locations – Olathe,
Chicago, Santa Clarita, Atlanta and Denver. Sales at each of the locations was
appx $5 million annually with revenues generated from products, soil and seed
sales, classes, and Farm to Table Weekend Events. Gale’s Green Barns are
community-based operations and have no online sales presence. Sales were
increasing yearly driven by consumer interest in non-GMO produce, alternative
medicine and sustainability.

In March of 2020, Gale’s Green Barn was impacted by the pandemic. All five
locations were closed April – December, resulting in layoffs at all five locations.

Dottie made the decision to close the Farm to Table offering permanently

because dine-in options were restricted. She started to rent out the land and
kitchens to local growers to generate revenue. Dottie’s supplier/farmer partners
were also affected. She could no longer support the Food Banks in the
communities she served. Gale’s Green Barns re-opened in January 2021 with
limited capacity. The losses are enormous. The Green Barn has a website and
some use of social media, but no online sales. Dottie is looking for your
consulting firm to create a strategic marketing proposal focused on rebranding
and repositioning to save her family business.

Stakeholders: Customers, Employees, Farmers, Food Banks, Community,
Board, Suppliers, Lenders

Gale’s Green Barn Mission: “Plants with a Purpose – Organic plants, products
and produce for healthier living.”

Revenue Generators:
• Garden Center – Sales of Essential Oils, Hemp products, CBD, seed
packets, produce, pots, crafts made by locals.
• Soil Sales – Sales of specially formulated soils sold in bulk.
• Classes – Kids’ Create Your Own Garden, Repotting Plants, How to Grow
Your Own Herbs….
• Farm-To-Table – Now closed. Offered weekend only dinner events with all
local produce offerings.
• Land Rental – Renting land to apartment dwellers who are interested in
gardening.