In 1997, Gael and Francesco Boglione moved their young family from central London to Richmond, into a Queen Anne house called Petersham House. Beyond their garden lay a run-down plant nursery, carved out of the estate grounds in the 1970s. Francesco, a self-confessed former hippie who had funded youthful travels to India by buying and selling unusual furniture and decorations, initially didn’t know what to do with the place. Then a vision materialized.
What began as uncertainty became something extraordinary. Over the past 20 years, the Boglione family has transformed that small nursery into a world-renowned brand that stretches far beyond its Richmond roots. Today, Petersham Nurseries stands as a testament to what happens when Italian and Australian cultures meet English garden settings, when family values meet commercial vision, when sustainability meets beauty.
The Accidental Blooming
Petersham Nurseries didn’t follow a business plan. It evolved organically, guided by Gael’s natural style, elegance, and attention to detail. She brought a gentle approach and an ability to draw out beauty in the simplest things. Francesco contributed his collector’s eye and global perspective. Over time, they created the atmosphere for a place to gather, incorporating their travels and belongings into a lifestyle destination based on their core values.
The nursery opened its doors to the public in 2004, but this family had been developing the concept and vision for many years prior. What emerged was a place of calm, fundamentally connected to nature, where you could reconnect with something essential that urban life had stripped away. Since 2002, it has blazed the trail for what we now call eclectic bohemian chic and farm-to-fork cuisine.
Five Pillars of a Philosophy
Petersham Nurseries follows five main values when it comes to planting and developing, as well as treating employees: natural, thoughtful, respectful, nurturing, and visionary. These are not just empty slogans touted for marketing purposes. They are the basis by which Petersham operates daily and serve as guidance when making decisions.
Natural means horticultural roots dictate everything. They garden organically, offering sustainable alternatives to pest and disease control. They grow their own organic cut flowers in an on-site cutting garden. The Richmond location benefits from its own groundwater source, which feeds irrigation and keeps plants watered in warmer months. Natural light floods the site and greenhouses. Even the yew trees bordering the nursery get recycled through The Friendship Estate, supporting cancer research.
Thoughtful means being proudly local and homegrown. In Richmond, 70% of the 100-plus staff live locally. The team has become an extended family. Since opening, Petersham has supported a wide range of charities and initiatives, both locally and abroad. In 2013, Managing Director Lara Boglione launched Petersham Platform, creating a space for discussion, education, and expression on sustainability, astronomy, and agriculture. Speakers have included Patrick Holden of the Sustainable Food Trust, environmentalist capitalist organic farmer Joel Salatin, and Carlo Petrini from Slow Food.
Respectful means embracing slow living. Chefs and buyers will seek out locally grown, in-season products to minimize environmental impact with every decision they make. They have their own organic farm, Haye Farm, in Devon, as well as supporting groups such as the Marine Conservation Society and Farms Not Factories. The restaurant has been a member of the Sustainable Restaurant Association since its early days, achieving the highest accreditation as a sustainability leader for 4 consecutive years. In 2017, they received the ‘Food Made Good’ prize for Serving More Veg and Better Meat. In 2018, they were shortlisted for Business of the Year and ranked in the SRA’s top 20 most sustainable restaurants.
Nurturing extends to everyone who touches the business. The company has a culture that encourages knowledge sharing through gardening, inspiration schools, and cooking workshops. They look to promote their own employees within the organization and provide funding for employees who want to further their education in management, win,e or horticulture. Regular appraisals are held to look for growth opportunities. Capel Manor and Leith’s, offering first-time employment. Apprenticeships are on the horizon.
Visionary means creating something unique. A destination like no other that stretches boundaries in what is created, sourced, and served. Exciting senses and provoking thought. A place of aspiration and inspiration.
The Green Star
Petersham Nurseries Restaurant was awarded a Michelin Green Star, recognition for pioneering work in sustainable gastronomy. But sustainability here isn’t a marketing angle. It’s woven into operations at a granular level.
They recycle nearly all waste, categorized by food waste, coffee waste, organic waste, glass, paper, industrial cardboard, and mixed recycling. For over ten years, Richmond has separated waste alongside SRA-approved Quantum Waste, a socially conscious company that uses lighter vehicles and collects within a local radius to lower carbon emissions.
Food waste management matters deeply. Kitchens prep utilizing entire meat carcasses and every ounce of produce. An odorless aerobic food digester turns food waste into water, eliminating the need for waste bins and achieving substantial carbon footprint reduction. Coffee waste goes to Bio-Bean, which turns it into biofuels. Petersham then buys those biofuels back as coffee logs, sold at the nursery.
Wine corks get donated to Recorked, the UK’s leading natural wine cork recycling program. Takeaway packaging is 100% biodegradable. Greaseproof paper comes from sustainable forests. Cling film has been replaced with compostable bio-film. Chef jackets are made from recycled bottles. Even the bubble wrap is biodegradable.
The Philosophy Made Real
What sets Petersham Nurseries apart is the refusal to compromise. Sustainability could have been bolted on as an afterthought. Petersham Nurseries understands that what many people would consider beauty can be created in many traditional ways (i.e., plants/flowers). At Petersham Nurseries, when a decision is being made, they always consider how making that decision will impact the environment. Petersham Nurseries could have continued to grow, diluted their vision, and expanded; however, with each expansion and growth opportunity, they always connected to the same values.
As Lara explains, “Petersham Nurseries has created a place of calm where you can reconnect with nature, restoring a sense of balance and space. By celebrating aspects of the home, garden, and food, we offer a destination that encourages you to step back and embrace a lifestyle of positive living.”
The family is dedicated to positive living, where ethics meet aesthetics, philosophies interwoven in every aspect of the business. This manifests in how they look after employees, what they sell and serve, how they manage waste, which suppliers they choose, and how the space evolves.
Twenty years from that uncertain beginning, Petersham Nurseries proves that doing things right and doing things beautifully aren’t mutually exclusive. A business can be wildly successful while maintaining principles. That family values can scale that a plant nursery in Richmond can become an internationally recognized brand without losing its soul.
The vision Francesco couldn’t quite articulate in 1997 has materialized into something far more significant than anyone imagined: a blueprint for building a business in tune with nature, community, and conscience. A place where you can buy a plant, eat a meal, drink exceptional wine, and leave feeling somehow more connected to what matters.
