Garden*Hood — Local services in Atlanta

Honestly I am bummed to have to write a negative review here, as the crew at Gardenhood seems like cool people, and I like to support local businesses to the maximum extent I can. But Gardenhood's current reviews are so out of touch with my experience there that I feel compelled to relate my story here. Last winter, my wife and I contacted Gardenhood about relandscaping our front lawn, which, due to its lack of direct sunlight, has come to be in pretty rough shape. We asked Gardenhood for both a new design and help with planting everything, and made it clear that we were eager to move forward on the project quickly, so that we could have a nice front garden in time for spring. We heard back from Kacey, Gardenhood's general manager, who came by our house in February, took detailed measurements, and was generally very friendly and pleasant to deal with. She told us she would get our sketches to us by the following week. When that week came and went and we hadn't heard anything, we followed up, and she told us she was running a bit behind -- she just needed, um, an extra two weeks. We'd liked her when we met her, so we told her that was fine. Then another two weeks came and went -- and still, nothing from Kacey. So we followed up yet again, this time suggesting that we'd be happy to go elsewhere if they were too busy to work on our project (which was starting to appear to be true). This time, though, Kacey promptly responded, and came to our house soon afterwards with some nice sketches outlining how to redo the front lawn. We chose one of the designs, proposed some tweaks to it, and told her we were eager to move ahead with the planting, just as soon as they could tell us how much everything would cost. Kacey repeatedly promised us in emails that she was just about to send us the pricing (e.g., "I'll get the price lists to you soon!"). And then, in mid-April, we simply stopped hearing from her, despite our follow-up emails. In sum, our experience with Gardenhood felt like one sustained struggle, as a customer, to be paid any attention ... a struggle that ultimately left us still in possession of our nasty front lawn. If they had simply told us they didn't want our business, that'd have been fine -- we could have used all these months to find someone who did. What Gardenhood did not need to do is waste months of our time missing deadlines and stringing us along, only to leave us in the lurch near summer with a set of incomplete plans. Gardenhood may be a decent place to stop if you need to pick up a gardenia on a Saturday afternoon or something, but if you're looking for someone reliable who can take care of your landscaping needs,...

I visited this business this morning after hearing very positive reviews from several friends. I entered the parking lot to find there is no designated accessible parking for people with disabilities. The entire area is unfinished ground with gravel and a challenging navigation for me which I think was obvious as I was moving so slowly and being careful not to lose my balance. I made a few inquiries about things I was looking for which were not available or not in stock. They are having a sale so perhaps that accounts for why they had so few options of flowers to plant. Because they care for the plants and what they have is healthy and I did find 2 flowers and a few houseplants that are lovely I added a star to my review. This business does not seem at all concerned about accessibility especially exhibited by the confused look I got from the counter person when I inquired about it. I had to spend time waiting for help when I had questions, and while the staff were affable they did not seem knowledgeable. I asked about a butterfly bush and was told they had lantana and some type of tree, he did not seem to know what I was talking about. I left and went to Highland Ace where I usually shop and immediately found what I was looking for, the people helping me there offered to carry my items (which I declined but was grateful for the offer) and had a much better experience. I am not overly concerned by the high prices at Gardenhood since Ace also has high prices and I expect the plants to perform commensurately. Please improve your customer service and make some kind of effort towards accessibility. You are not a new business and you are literally making it impossible for some potential customers to shop. I will...

A year ago, I received advice to repot my plants, either after a year or if their roots became visible. I carefully loaded my plant into the car, to get repotted. Along the way, the plant tipped over about three times, causing a few stems to suffer, but I pressed on. Upon arrival, I asked for a repotting but was told that my plant didn't require it (got a solid educational moment of why)and that it was very healthy as well. I was also asked if either way I’d still want to repot the plant I of course can! I said I was good if the plants still good and head on out. I placed the plant on the top of my trunk to secure a good stable spot in my car for the ride back. The unexpected happened – the plant tumbled down with a sudden gust of wind. I hurriedly rescued it, righting it in its pot, and sighed, realizing I had to actually repot it after all. I returned inside and let the employee know what happened. He not only assisted me but also took the plant to my car for me, given its weight. And then he told me not to worry about the payment, extending an unexpected kindness. This small act of generosity reached far beyond its surface, touching my heart deeply. In the midst of a challenging past month, this experience became a beacon of light. It's difficult to put into words, but that simple act of kindness managed to uplift my spirits. I didn’t get your name but this review is for you! Thank...