It all began when newly graduated Agricultural Technician and Landscaper, Pedro Campaner, decided to take a leap of faith and turn his hobby of designing and creating gardens inspired by the natural beauty of Mallorca, into a fruitful business at just 18 years old. Pedro believes that despite his humble beginnings, it’s his long-term vision that has led him and his gardening company S’Estepa to where they are today.
He is a landscaper by nature, spending his travels with his gaze on the tops of trees, flowers and garden designs and taking his life passion, and his business, wherever he goes, taking notes of new species and keeping his perennial curiosity alive.
Strong Roots and Principles
The small business he started out solo has now flourished into a large gardening company with a team of more than 15 gardeners. Together with his wife Blanca Gonzalez, who manages the administrative side, and project manager Sofia Grimaux, the company is now ready to embrace its new garden design branch S’Estepa Design, led by Pedro’s creative genius.
The steady growth of S’Estepa is marked by a promise towards the technical aspects of the profession as well as the development of a good work ethic and relationship with the employees. “If you don’t develop these two aspects simultaneously, a business cannot grow” points out Pedro, very proud of how the linear structure of the company allows workers to develop all their skills and interchange roles without hierarchy.
S’Estepa not only has a strong focus on the relationship with people but also with the land. The name itself is an homage to the love that Pedro has to his motherland Mallorca, as Estepa is a typical Mediterranean plant, renowned for its resilience, that blooms naturally within the island’s forests.
The Bloom of a Vision
When approaching a new project, communication is crucial. The team makes sure to have a clear understanding of the vision of the client, and then the magic begins. Pedro approaches the creation of a garden design as an innate creative process to transform the client’s dream into an elegant garden, terrace or interior.
A preliminary study is conducted to determine the characteristics of the terrain and its microclimate to ensure the garden becomes an extension of the Mallorcan landscape in the most sustainable way possible. “We try to use endemic species, but we also play with exotic varieties that can adapt to this climate, in the end this is an art” explains Pedro. Once the design concept is established, Sofia recreates it on a realistic 3D design that portrays the final result.
“Gardens can take years to fully develop into the ultimate concept, so it’s important to take it slow and respect the rhythm of nature,” he reflects, as if also referring to S’Estepa’s trajectory to become the gardening and design company it is today.
Text by Fátima Carasol | Photos by Jonatan Barzola
