Couple grows business in Bennet with home and garden store

BENNET, Neb. (KOLN) – Tailored Life 360 is a hub for gifts in the garden and in the home. The people who created this home in Bennet are a husband and wife who studied horticulture together in college.

Now their talents are bringing their business to life.

“I transferred in (to the University of Nebraska-Lincoln), so I was an old freshman,” said Jake Sittner, founder of Tailored Landscaping. “I didn’t know what I wanted to do, and I couldn’t see myself wearing a suit and a tie to work every day.”

Jake, who is from Lincoln, met his wife on East Campus when they were both taking the same classes. Kristi, who is from Grand Island, had interests that leaned more toward the plant genetics, but she preferred interacting with people over labwork.

Jake had so much experience working for other landscaping companies that his friend suggested he start his own.

“I was sitting at the kitchen table with my mom trying to come up with names,” Jake chuckled. “Tailored Landscaping is what we came up with because I wanted to tailor things to people’s needs and do a lot of custom work.”

His landscaping business began in 2003, and the couple bought 20 acres outside of Bennet in 2008. That’s where they grow plants, build custom light fixtures and store landscaping materials. The space allows them to order in materials from other states and ship light fixtures across the country. They added another business to Tailored Landscaping and called it Tailored Lights.

“And then it kind of snowballed into, ‘What if we do a retail, and it becomes a place where people come and hang out?’” said Kristi Sittner. “And we could draw people in and bring people together.”

In April of last year, the Sittners renovated a building in Bennet’s downtown to open Tailored Life 360 – a store for gardening, home décor and gifts.

“I can come in and say, ‘Okay, I have this area in my house. I don’t know what to do with it,’” said Vicky Desh, a customer who discovered Tailored Life at a festival in Bennet. “In or outdoor – (the Sittners) will bring things together and say, ‘What do you think about this?’”

At Tailored Life 360, Kristi and her staff make custom pot and flower arrangements. They offer drop-ins that allow people to easily switch the plants in their pots for each season. They also dabble in custom floral arrangements and even host classes and events at the shop in Bennet.

“It’s just a wonderful place to be,” said Kristin Nelson, Tailored Life 360 manager. “We’ve gotten to see people come together over a common interest – gardening and flowers. It’s also just great to see people supporting local businesses.”

The Sittners also hope their business helps give back to the great community of Bennet.

“Now we’ve got three kids together, along with the property by Bennet,” Jake said. “It’s been 15 to 20 years of working every weekend, and it’s been a grind.”

But to the husband and wife, their efforts are worth it.

“It works good that we work together because it’d be hard for a spouse to understand the hours we put in,” Kristi said. “And Bennet is growing so much. We’re just happy to be a part of that.”

The 360 in the business’s name refers to its location, which is 360 Fir St. in Bennet. Their hours in the spring and summer are from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday.

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