Shownotes
In this episode of Scale HER Up – The Female Entrepreneur Show, I’m joined by Hannah Powell, Communications and HR Director at Perrywood Garden Centres, a multi-site family business she runs with her dad and two brothers. Hannah shares what it’s really like to work in – and help grow – a second-generation garden centre business, from being “the boss’s daughter” to sitting on the leadership team and steering major expansion.
Before returning to Perrywood, Hannah built a successful career in PR and marketing, running high-profile campaigns and helping to launch Global Entrepreneurship Week. But behind the polished CV was a different story: living in London, she experienced severe burnout and was later diagnosed with a Functional Neurological Disorder (FND). That health crisis sent her on a “green recovery” – turning back to nature and, eventually, back to the family business.
We talk about how nature became central to her healing and to her work, and how that journey led to her memoir “The Cactus Surgeon: Using Nature to Fix a Faulty Brain.” Hannah shares the lessons she’s brought into Perrywood around wellbeing, people-first culture, and creating workplaces that support mental health rather than erode it.
This is a warm, honest conversation about family business dynamics, leadership, recovery and redefining success when life doesn’t go to plan.
In this episode, we cover
- Hannah’s role as Communications and HR Director and how Perrywood has grown into a multi-site family garden centre business
- What it’s like to run a business with your dad and brothers – boundaries, communication and keeping relationships strong
- Hannah’s earlier career in PR and marketing and her work on national and global entrepreneurship campaigns
- Burnout, Functional Neurological Disorder and the physical and emotional toll it took
- How reconnecting with plants and nature became a crucial part of her “green recovery”
- Why she decided to share her story publicly and eventually write The Cactus Surgeon
- The power of nature and mindful moments for everyday mental health – even if you don’t have a big garden
- Lessons she’s taken into leadership: pacing growth, looking after people and normalising conversations about wellbeing
- The unique challenges and rewards of building a successful family business over the long term
