Mardi Dover, Consulting

Hi, I’m Mardi 👋
I’m the founder of MardiDover.com, owner of Gardens by Mardi, a Certified Professional Landscape Designer, an APLD award winner, a dog lover, and a yoga enthusiast.
But really? I’m someone who believes that running a design business should feel as intentional and thoughtful as the gardens we create.
After years of building my own landscape design practice, I know how much heart, creativity, and courage it takes to do this work. I also know how overwhelming the business side can feel when you’re trying to serve clients, manage projects, price your work, and still have a life outside of it all.
That’s why I do what I do: helping landscape designers build businesses that are not only profitable, but sustainable and enjoyable, too.
So whether you’re new here or have been following along for a while, I’m so glad you’re here. Tell me: What part of running your design business feels the most energizing right now? And what part feels the heaviest?

Your business model is more than a list of services or a pricing structure.
It’s the shape of the work that actually supports you: the clients you serve best, the projects that fit your skills and energy, the market you’re working in, the income you need, and the pace that allows your business to remain sustainable.
When those pieces are misaligned, the work can start to feel harder than it needs to. But when they begin to come into focus, your business gets clearer, steadier, and more intentional.
We explore this in detail in Module 3 of the Foundations Course, where you’ll begin defining a business model that supports both your work and your life.

Available only at Mardidover.com!

I’m honored and deeply grateful to be featured in APLD’s May 2026 Design Online e-magazine.
In the article, I had the opportunity to share a bit about how I use social media in my business — not just as a place to post beautiful pictures, but as a way to educate, connect, build trust, and invite people into a more thoughtful conversation about design.
Thank you to APLD for the feature and for continuing to highlight the many ways designers are growing, adapting, and sharing their work with the world.

Don’t think of systems as the stiff, corporate part of your business.
Think of them as the structure that lets your creativity breathe.
Without clear systems, every decision feels heavier. Every client process becomes something you have to rebuild from scratch. Every busy season starts to feel like survival instead of momentum.
In Chapter 2 of my Foundations Course, we talk about systems in detail. Not as a way to make your business rigid, but as a way to make it more aligned, more sustainable, and easier to lead.
Because a business without systems will always ask more of you than it should.
And the goal is not to do more.
The goal is to build something that can actually hold what you’re creating.
→ On-demand course
→ 9 weeks of content, on your schedule

A garden becomes more memorable when it has moments that ask us to pause.
Well placed statuary, an arbor, a bench, a gate, or a beautifully chosen structure can do more than complement the planting. It can give the garden rhythm, meaning, and a sense of arrival.
For landscape designers, these elements are not afterthoughts. They are opportunities to shape the experience, guide the eye, and create a story that feels intentional from the very first step.
The right piece in the right place can elevate an entire garden.

Success is never magic. It’s showing up prepared, doing the work, staying curious, and letting the hard lessons shape you.
The failures are not the end of the story. They are part of the training.
Keep going. Keep learning. Keep building the kind of life and work you are proud of.

Most people try to fix their business from the outside in.

Better systems.
Better marketing.
Better pricing.

Here’s the hard truth:
If your business isn’t aligned with what actually matters to you, none of that will stick.

You’ll keep second-guessing.
Keep adjusting.
Keep wondering why it still feels off.

Because your values are what shape everything.

What you say yes to.
What you walk away from.
The clients you attract.
The business you build.

When those are clear, things start to click.
Decisions get easier.
The work feels lighter. (Finally.)

This is where we start in Foundations.
Clarity first. Always.

→ On-demand course now live!
→ 9 weeks of content, on your schedule
→ Code: FoundationsOnDemand at checkout for $200 off introductory enrollment through May 20th.

Save this for the moments when your business feels harder than it should.