HER STORY: A Story in Lavender
“You can be soft and strong at the same time. In fact, that’s the magic.”
Hereward Farms: A Story in Lavender
By Julie, Founder of Hereward Farms
If you had told me a few years ago that I would end up knee-deep in lavender rows on a 250-acre farm in East Garafraxa, I would have believed you. I just would not have said it out loud.
I grew up here. This land is part of my story. I also built and sold a marketing agency before deciding, almost casually, to plant forty lavender plants for fun. A creative outlet. Something to grow.
That is how it began. Forty plants. A small experiment. A passing idea. Today, Hereward Farms is home to over 8,000 lavender plants and 400,000 sunflowers alongside our cash crops. We grow it. We make it. And yes, people love it.
What started as curiosity turned into a full line of farm to skin and home products made from lavender grown on site. When something is planted with belief, it has a way of expanding beyond what you first imagined.
The name Hereward came before the lavender. It is tied to the land and family history. I wanted something that felt grounded and enduring. Something that carried weight without needing explanation. Hereward Farms felt right from the beginning.
What I love most is the connection. Watching someone step into the fields for the first time and exhale. Seeing guests arrive at the Lavender Lounge and Boutique carrying stress, then leave with something lighter in their posture. Every product begins here, not in a distant facility. There is something powerful about being able to point outside and say that is where it came from.
Scaling a farm and a brand at the same time has not been simple. Agriculture brings constant unpredictability. Inventory, weather, staffing, logistics, and production often overlap in ways that require quick decisions and long days. There were moments of doubt, especially in the early stages. Growth asks you to stretch in ways you do not always expect.
What I wish I understood earlier is how much mindset shapes everything. A product can be strong, but belief in it carries it further. I also learned that boundaries are necessary, not optional. When you are building something from the ground up, it can easily take over every part of life if you let it.
Most of our growth has come through storytelling and real connection. People respond to what is real. Press features have helped, but so has showing the land as it is, the hands behind it, and the work that goes into each season. Relationships matter just as much as reach.
I rely on structure to keep things moving. Lists, calendars, time blocked days. Mornings are for creative direction and strategy. Afternoons shift toward operations and people. When I need to reset, I walk the fields. Lavender is surprisingly good at solving problems.
To anyone building something of their own, start before you feel ready. That moment rarely arrives. Trust your instincts. Do not hold back on ambition. Surround yourself with people who do not question your vision when it grows bigger than expected. You can be grounded and driven at the same time.
My favourite moments are early mornings on the farm. Sunlight touching the tops of the lavender. Coffee in hand. The land still and open. An orange cat weaving through the rows like he belongs there.
In those moments, I am reminded why this began. Not just to grow lavender, but to build a life rooted in something real.
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Hereward Farms creates all-natural, lavender-infused skincare and home products made in Canada. Every plant is grown, blended, and bottled on-site, turning lavender into products that bring calm and ease to daily life. Sustainability is built into every step, from formulas to packaging, making simple, effective self-care rooted in the farm.
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