80 PUNCHMAGAZINE.COM {home & design} GARDEN SHOP business is blooming words by SHERYL NONNENBERG • photography by ROBB MOST Take a drive on Alpine Road to the Ladera Country Shopper if you want to see the old adage of “do what you love and love what you do” put into action. At the far end of this popular neighborhood shopping center, you’ll find Ladera Garden and Gifts. Mercedes and Juan Navarro, who have owned this business since 1981, are not only passionate about flowers, plants and gift items but also about providing the best, most personalized service to everyone who enters their shop. The Navarros only have time to talk to me on a Monday—the one day the garden center is closed to the public. The rest of the week finds the couple happily helping customers. Juan, who is outgoing and gregarious, jokes that he has no other hobbies because “work is a hobby.” “I like plants—they keep me entertained,” he says. Mercedes, soft-spoken and a bit shy, lights up when describing how much she enjoys finding the perfect plant or flower arrangement. “It’s fun and exciting,” she smiles, “and we love it.” The American Dream is alive and well for the Navarros, who are something of a textbook case. They were both born to large families and raised in Guadalajara, Mexico, though that’s not where they met. Both came to the United States in 1970 looking for opportunity. Juan grew up on a farm raising crops that helped keep his family fed. Upon arriving in the U.S., he took any job he could find, including a factory position where he met Mercedes. A part-time job in a nursery soon led to a full-time position and Juan was hooked. In 1979, he and Mercedes began working at a small nursery located on the same site as the current Ladera Garden and Gifts. It was owned by an older couple who were planning to retire. They encouraged the Navarros to undertake a sort of apprenticeship, which lasted for two years. “I learned on the job,” Juan says. Even after working closely with the previous owners, Juan and Mercedes both admit that they still had a lot to learn about running a business. “It was a risk, but we didn’t have much to lose,” Juan jokes. The pair formally took over in 1981 and immediately began to make it their own. Mercedes, who had some previous experience
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