As a local girl, Lisa would ride her horse to the YMCA swimming pool when it was still outdoors. “Growing up in Prescott was a real treat, rare by today’s standards,” said Lisa Watters-Lain.
After school, she and her three sisters worked in the family garden center. She learned what real customer service was. “Back in those days, you knew everyone,” she said. “We would meet customers at school, church, the grocery store and at the YMCA pool. It was a small town back then, and word spread fast good or bad. It’s been decades, but I still feel the pressure to deliver more than customers expect, it’s within the company’s DNA to make sure the community talks positively about Watters Garden Center and our family.
After graduating from Prescott High School, Watters-Lain earned her bachelor’s degree in Special Education from Arizona State University and her master’s degree from Northern Arizona University, but her love of gardening and fond memories of working in the family business never left.
Lisa married her college sweetheart, Ken Lain, after graduating from ASU. The couple raised four children and the next generation to own the family garden center. “Our kids developed a strong work ethic working here. It’s a joy working with family. Just last week, we had four generations of family here in the garden center, not all working, but family collaborating in the garden center,” she said.
As Prescott has grown, Watters Garden Center has also been able to grow. “My father, Harold Watters, never dreamed we would use all the land when he built the garden center in 1982.” Lisa and her husband, Ken, now wish they had a few more acres to expand, too.
Watters Garden Center has been voted the best garden center in Arizona many times and has made the top honor of “Most Revolutionary Garden Center” in the country by peers. “It’s a lot of work, and you can never be happy in retail,” she said. “There is always something that can be improved or makes you better. It’s work and fun all at the same time.”
“What I love most about owning my own business is the flexibility we had when raising our four children, and the ability to make a lasting difference in your community,” she said. “Watters gave back over $83,000 last year to support our causes, and that doesn’t include the offerings we give to our church. One family business can make a difference in our community.”Competing head-to-head with giants in the box stores is challenging, but this is where Lisa shines. The mountains of Arizona have different garden needs than anywhere else in the country, and this is where Watters Garden Center makes a difference in the community. “Small business is responsive and able to grow plants unique to the area. Watters not only has the right plants at the right time, but we also help locals with design and education, so their plants don’t only survive but thrive in the garden,” said Watters-Lain.
As a second-generation owner, Watters-Lain hopes one of her children will carry on the legacy. “Running a small business is ideal for families. It has allowed me to be an individual, boss and mother with the flexibility to thrive in each; not always easy, but I never get bored.”
Watters-Lain and her staff conduct free garden classes at 9:30 a.m. every Saturday, and she co-hosts “The Mountain Gardener” radio show, which airs throughout Arizona. “Watters success comes down to hand-holding our customers, helping them choose the right plant and then surrounding them with local garden advice that ensures success,” she said.
Lisa’s weekly garden advice can be found on her blog at WattersGardenCenter.com, weekly podcast at TheMountainGardener.podbean.com and published in the Quad Cities Business News. She can be found most days managing her team at Watters Garden Center in Prescott, Arizona. QCBN
Lisa Watters-Lain and her husband, Ken Lain, can be found throughout the week at Watters Garden Center, 1815 W. Iron Springs Rd in Prescott, or contacted through her web site at
WattersGardenCenter.com or FB.com/WattersGardenCenter
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