Director

Susy Mannall

Susy is a Director at Southern Woods. She has been involved in the business from the moment she and her late husband Murray bought Southern Woods in 1997. Susy’s involvement with the Plant Nursery was more in the background as a director. In 2012 she dusted off her microscope from a previous career as a Lab Technician and started to produce truffle inoculated trees, a niche sideline of Southern Woods. Retired from her day job earlier this year, she still contributes as a director, focusing on providing a framework that shapes the culture and demonstrates the desired values and ethics of Southern Woods.

Spending her now abundant free time between volunteer work, environmental and community initiatives, she likes to recharge her batteries outdoors in the garden, tramping or taking her grandson for walks.

Board Advisor

Jenny Flett

Jenny is one of our board advisors. She has been involved with Southern Woods for over twenty years acting as the company Chartered Accountant.  She was appointed a director in 2013.

Jenny is passionate about good governance and has held a number of governance roles within the not for profit sector both in New Zealand and internationally.

She loves reading a good book, watching sport and travelling NZ with her husband Dennis in their retro caravan.

CEO

John Perry

John recently joined the Southern Woods team as CEO.

Raised in a rural Wairarapa sheep and beef farming family, John has a passion and respect for the environment and the sustainable use of our unique natural resources for the long-term social and economic benefit and enjoyment for all New Zealanders.

John has held leadership roles in the agribusiness and global logistics/transportation sectors here in New Zealand as well as in Singapore, Thailand, Cambodia and Myanmar.

John lives in Christchurch with his partner and three children and enjoys being an active member of the Institute of Directors, going to the gym, playing the odd round of golf and practising transcendental meditation.

Plant Centre Manager

Chris Smith

Chris joined Southern Woods as Plant Centre Manager in 2013. With nearly 20 years of retail garden centre experience, he enjoys making customers happy through great advice and recommending the right plant. He was inspired heavily by his time at Clifton Nurseries in London and a number of New Zealand garden centres.

Chris is responsible for staffing, sales, customer service and the culture within our Plant Centre team. He has a Bachelor of Parks, Recreation and Tourism from Lincoln University.  He is a member of the Canterbury Horticultural Society, IPPS and worked in landscaping prior to his current retail management role.

Chris has a wealth of plant knowledge he’s always willing to share. He’s really passionate about perennials and sees them as an important part of bringing life to a garden.

Chris is also fiercely competitive, he enjoys playing table tennis for which he used to be ranked nationally.  He also loves biking and getting out on the rail-trails throughout the South Island. He lives in Christchurch with his partner Jenni and 2 children. He’s been slowly teaching them Latin plant names in the hope they’ll follow in his footsteps one day.

Business Development & Marketing Manager

Rico Mannall

Rico is our Business Development & Marketing Manager. He has over a decade’s experience in the nursery industry, working across many departments at Southern Woods.

His current role sees him responsible for growth and development opportunities at Southern Woods. Rico works closely with clients, key stakeholders and industry partners on plant supply projects around the South Island. He’s also responsible for managing marketing across the retail/wholesale/online business.

A University of Canterbury Commerce & Arts graduate, Rico has a keen passion for design, innovation, and sustainability. He’s always on the lookout for new ideas within the nursery sector and beyond.

On the odd occasion you find him not working, he’s probably off planning his next adventure in a national park somewhere, or playing social sport with a lot more enthusiasm than talent. 

Winner – 2019 NZPPI Young Achiever

2nd – New Zealand Young Horticulturalist of the Year 2019

• Winner – AGMARDT Innovation Award
• Winner – Fruitfed Supplies Leadership Award
• Winner – Young Horticulturist Competition Best Speech

Nursery Manager

Devin Westley

Devin is our Nursery Manager at Southern Woods.

He has a background in fruit tree pruning and a particular interest in espaliers, farm shelter, forestry, and all the practical applications of plants. He is our go-to man for how to get the most out of your home orchard or lifestyle block.

His role as production manager sees him tackling a wide range of tasks from plant costing, water management, environmental impact monitoring, product line development, customer workshops and anything else the management team or board can think to throw at him on top of producing and caring for our large nursery stock.

A Lincoln graduate in Horticulture and Horticultural Management, Devin is a natural researcher, loving nothing more than getting stuck into a project, adding to his knowledge base.

In his spare time Devin, like all millennials, spends far too much time in front of a computer screen with a healthy stream library and Netflix watchlist…

2017 IPPS 4 Pack Member

2018 NZPPI Young Achiever

2018 New Zealand Young Horticulturalist of the Year – Runner up

• Bayer award for best practice,
• T&G award for best practical Knowledge
• RNZIH award for best speech

Trade & Online Manager

Clair Leith

Clair is our Trade & Online Manager at Southern Woods

Clair has a background in native restoration and gardening, with a degree in Landscape Architecture from Lincoln University. She’s passionate about New Zealand native plants, looking after many of our revegetation projects. Clair enjoys playing tennis and relaxing with a good book.

Compliance & Inventory Manager

Emma Jarvis

Emma is our Inventory and Health and Safety Manager.  She started here after completing a Bachelor of Horticultural Science at Lincoln University in 2005, and after working in a range of departments over the years, she has settled in her current role.

Her main role involves looking after the inventory in the nursery, ensuring stock numbers are perfect for the sales team. This is becoming a full-time job as the nursery grows larger each year!

She also looks after the Health and Safety of the team and the company and is often out on her red bike with a red helmet surveying the site ensuring everyone is behaving and working safely.

Emma loves baking, and we tend to love her baking too! When she’s not busy at work you’ll find her relaxing with her husband and Otis the cat.