Wyevale Nurseries’ Sales & Marketing Director to be keynote speaker

Accredited Supplier Wyevale Nurseries Sales & Marketing Director and BALI Board Director Kersten Catella will be joining CEO of the Horticultural Trades Association (HTA) Fran Barnes on the podium for the occasion, which is also helping fundraise for the horticultural sector charity Perennial. 

Kersten explains:

"It’s an honour to have been invited to take part in this inspirational event on Thursday, November 14 at Horticulture House in Oxfordshire. The afternoon promises to be a fantastic opportunity for attendees to connect with like-minded professionals, exchange ideas and gain some invaluable insights from myself and Fran, who is one of the industry’s most respected leaders. We look forward to welcoming everyone who can come along and be part of this inspirational event and the forward-thinking Women in Horticulture community, which is welcoming and supportive. 

"The event will also be raising funds for the UK’s only charity dedicated to helping people in horticulture, Perennial. One hundred percent of all tickets sales, costing £20 each, will be donated to this wonderful organisation that does such amazing work in our industry. The team at Wyevale Nurseries already has a very close connection with Perennial. We work together on the charity’s Plants for Perennial initiative, which is a collaborative scheme between the organisation, us and three other major wholesale nurseries in Herefordshire and Worcestershire.

"We all help raise funds through sales of various plants via garden centre customers. The collection includes our Salvias ‘Cuello Pink’ and ‘Cuello White’ and our Hydrangea macrophylla ‘Cherry Explosion’."

The Women in Horticulture event aims to give attendees the opportunity to hear from industry leaders who have made a significant impact. Guests will hear the two keynote speakers share actionable insights to help them grow in their careers and more.

Fran brings a wealth of experience from her leadership role at the HTA, alongside her involvement with the National Farmers Union (NFU) and the BBC. She will discuss her journey to leadership and the future of horticulture.

Kersten, who joined Wyevale Nurseries – one of the UK’s leading commercial wholesale nurseries – earlier this year, is on the Board of Directors at British Association of Landscape Industries (BALI). She was also Chair of the British Protected Ornamentals Association (BPOA) from 2017-2019 and has been a NFU Board Member.

Kersten has more than 25 years of expertise in commercial sales, supply chain management and leadership and will share her journey and her views on the challenges the industry faces in 2025.

Wyevale Nurseries has a product selection that’s admired across the industry and a talented team that regularly introduces new, award-winning plant varieties.

Its main business is to supply landscape contractors, local authorities, foresters, landowners and garden centres with a comprehensive array of trees, shrubs, hedging, herbaceous and specimen plants.

For more information, and to purchase tickets for the Women in Horticulture event, please click here.