Work dried up during the pandemic. So this commercials director pivoted to planter boxes - sold 171

[Demovictory9]

beautiful boxes... check out pics at the links


In March, when the pandemic closed down the economy, commercials director Raúl B. Fernández used the free time to build his wife a pair of planter boxes for their Mount Washington home. Friends on his soccer team asked for some, and he built a few more.

Then he put a picture of the boxes on the neighborhood app Nextdoor to see what would happen, and the response was dozens of orders, far beyond his expectations, all fueled by the sudden boom in gardening that has occurred since so many of us found ourselves cooped up at home during the pandemic, anxious for something to do.

https://www.latimes.com/lifestyle/story/2020-08-14/commercials-director-raul-fernandez-began-building-planter-boxes-during-covid-19

https://spectrumnews1.com/ca/la-west/human-interest/2020/07/02/out-of-work-commercial-director-builds-garden-boxes-during-pandemic

On April Fools’ Day he and his business partner, producer Colin Hakes, officially started Victory Garden L.A., offering customized planter boxes made out of cedar and redwood. The boxes continue to evolve.

Hakes, a neighbor, had farming experience and suggested adding a veggie-flower growing soil, weed barrier fabric lining and drip-line irrigation. Hinged covers to keep out pests came next, plus wheels, and now in the latest iteration, trellises. They also build stand-alone covers for existing boxes as well as containers for odd shaped spaces: triangles, hexagons, terraces. The boxes range from 2-by-4 feet to 3-by-8 feet and start at $250.



Fernández is a “carpenter by chance” but grew up building things in the garage with his engineer dad. For help in meeting demand — 171 boxes delivered so far — they hired former industry colleagues.