TURNING ABANDONED INTO BEAUTIFUL

Zack Family Farms is an urban flower farm located in Ogden, Utah. Owner Ana Zack specializes in growing and selling unique, sustainable flowers and ornamental plants for any occasion. This urban farm utilized an abandoned 1.3-acre field in the middle of houses with limited access and plenty of places to hideout. 

Zack rents the land for relatively cheap and has cleaned it up, including the buried shopping carts. It is now a beautiful feature of a neglected neighborhood. Ana approached the SBDC after her husband Ben, who works for Weber State University (WSU) as a photographer, referred her. Her vision of turning blighted areas into something productive was immediately apparent, and the SBDC helped source the right location for the farm. The SBDC also encouraged Ana to present her idea publicly, which she first did to 1 Million Cups. With the help of WSU SBDC as a business mentor, she then applied for funds from the Wildcat MicroFund. Over two years, Ana received approximately $7,000 in grants ranging from cooling and heating, to greenhouse, to marketing the company with a refurbished 1973 Volkswagon Beetle to showcase her freshly grown flowers.