The Van Der Meer family works together as a tightly-knit team to plant, harvest, and deliver flowers from their New South Wales Southern Highlands farm to nearby regions. During the pandemic, online shopping and telephone orders tripled, and they were running a prospering roadside stall. As markets closed, a new income stream opened up for A&M Flowers when they started supplying wholesalers with flowers from their Tallong property. For Arnoldus 'Arno' Van Der Meer, the secret to the thriving family business is investing in his children.
"I see my family, my kids, I see them growing, I see them flourishing and I think that's the best thing you can have in life," he said.
Arno offers advice on how they achieve family cohesion and prosperity even though they work 365 days a year.
Arno's daughter, Melanie Van Der Meer, 18, is an early riser, these days by choice. Her strong work ethic can be attributed to a childhood on flower farms and rising early to catch the Sydney Flower Markets with her parents. Melanie says she enjoys the market stall, and clearly, her creativity and people skills are put to good use here.
Ms. Van Der Meer said a business's success was not all about money. "The success of a family business is found in the balance of financial wealth and physical and mental health," she said.
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