In recognition of Earth Day, we’ve been speaking to entrepreneurs who have used their education to make a difference. These individuals have created start-ups that solve a business problem in a sustainable way.

Shubber Ali is working to ensure the longevity of nature, through Garden for Wildlife Inc. a National Wildlife Federation company, of which he is CEO.

His for-profit business was launched in September of 2023 with the mission to “help people buy the right plants”.  This, he tells us, represents much more than just selling plants; it’s about educating and empowering humans to make choices that have a positive impact on local ecosystems, biodiversity, and the environment as a whole.

By helping customers select the right plants for their location, Garden For Wildlife Inc contributes to creating sustainable habitats for wildlife, promoting native species, and fostering a deeper connection between our customers and the natural world. 

We spoke to Shubber about his work, and how he feels his MBA, earned at McDonough School of Business, Georgetown University, and how a career spent harnessing skills such as digital transformation, innovation, emerging technologies and data science are helping in his mission to sustain the environment.

What inspired you to start this business and tackle this issue?

I grew up in Long Beach, CA, a suburban desert (with too many lawns, but that’s another conversation!), but I always loved gardening, something i picked up from my dad. I started with a few tomato plants, and that eventually grew into a full garden and that turned into preserving what I grew.

Fast forward to 2019 when my family moved to Maryland and we purchased a house with two acres of lawn. I wanted to add not only visual interest but also beneficial plants to attract bees and other pollinators. When I did the research and tried to find the “right” native plants, I couldn’t find any.

I spent hours googling and found that the plants offered were invasive species from all over the world (everywhere except native to my area!), and often treated with insecticides. I was working at the time as a Global Innovation Partner at Accenture, so I contacted the National Wildlife Federation and offered to do pro-bono work for them to solve a big problem, my big problem, and tap into a huge consumer market (gardening is a $40+ billion industry). 

The result was the creation of the e-commerce platform, GardenforWildlife.com, inside NWF.

How has your business school experience helped to launch the venture?

One of the things I tell people about why McDonough School of Business is special is that it prepares graduates for the wide range of disciplines you need to strategically run a business – it has helped me see how each component of the business integrates with the other parts, and to solve what is essentially a multi-variate problem set that never ends.

Operations can’t be successful without marketing and can’t be successful without having the right technology in place. Additionally, the network I’ve been able to build and maintain across alumni and faculty has made it easier for me to find everything from talent we’ve hired, funding we’ve raised, and even partners we are now working with. 

What challenges have you encountered while integrating sustainability into your business operations, and how have you overcome them?

At Garden for Wildlife, we have very strict standards for our growers, how we ship plants, and when we ship plants. First and foremost, we offer true native plants and we don’t allow any chemical treatments. We don’t want to put any plants into the environment that would do more harm than good. 

That means we have to engage growers that can meet these standards – sometimes further away from our customers than we’d like. However, as we’ve looked at our operations, we knew there was an opportunity to find more local growers that reduce our carbon footprint by offering plants grown closer to our consumers.

This is better for the plants, reduces shipping costs and time, and helps out more small nurseries. For instance, one of our newest growers is a husband and wife run operation in Virginia, Hidden Gem Farms – we even built a greenhouse for their location so they could support our plant needs.

In addition, we work with our growers to ensure that our packaging is the right size for our plants which means no unnecessary fillers in the boxes to hold the plants in place.

Finally, we are actively looking for opportunities to change our plant containers to more sustainable products that still allow for safe shipment. 

As a sustainability-focused entrepreneur, how do you navigate the balance between profitability and purpose?

As the CEO of Garden for Wildlife, navigating the balance between profitability and purpose is fundamental to our mission. We are dedicated to not only growing as a business but also fostering a positive impact on the environment. Here’s how we manage this balance:

• We design our products to enhance biodiversity and support the ecosystems where our customers live. This helps us maintain our commitment to the environment while also addressing market demands for eco-friendly products.
• We actively seek out and engage with customers who share our vision for a sustainable future. This alignment between our mission and our customers’ values drives both customer loyalty and profitability. 
• We collaborate with environmental organizations, local communities, and other stakeholders to broaden our impact making our business operations more effective and aligned with our sustainability goals.

Looking ahead, what are your aspirations for the future of your sustainable business?

We will change the way people garden. We will educate people and make native plants accessible, aiming to restore natural habitats and support wildlife. 

“Collaboration is key. Partner with organisations that share your values”

Shubber Ali – CEO, Garden For Wildlife Inc.

We measure our success in yards – how many yards we’ve transformed, and how many sq yards of habitat we’ve created.  We have set a goal of reaching one million Certified Wildlife Habitats by 2030, which is ambitious but achievable.

What advice would you give to other sustainable business founders? 

Don’t compromise your values for a quick win. The business world can be a whirlwind, but prioritise long-term success by staying true to your core principles. This commitment to sustainability sets you apart, builds trust with everyone you interact with, and ensures a lasting impact.

Fuel growth with innovation. Empower your team to be creative problem-solvers, constantly seeking new solutions and ideas. Break boundaries and push the envelope of what’s possible. 

One of our core values is: we figure it out. That means that when we have an idea, we start with first digging in to really understand the problem that needs to be solved, and THEN rapidly (in startup fashion) work to MVP and test with the market before scaling. 

This is how we launched our non profit affiliate fundraising platform in late January – in just three months from idea to operational, and now less than three months later we have over 70 organisations using us to help them raise funds while helping the environment at the same time!

Collaboration is key. Partner with organisations that share your values. Together, you’ll amplify your impact and create a more sustainable future.

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