Charlotte Rowe Garden Design - London

Jenna G.

Charlotte Rowe Garden Design exceeded our exceptions on every level. Charlotte and her team turned a small, unattractive, unloved London garden space into a tranquil, mediterranean haven. Our brief and our ideals were considered in great detail, she was practical and applied out-of-the-box thinking with any potential barriers that came up. We were involved throughout the whole process and understood the plans in detail as we requested. Our garden is a very special space and probably the most impressive room in the house! Thank you.

Sam D.

Charlotte Rowe’s team always design beautiful and often very detailed gardens. We enjoy the challenge of working on them and collaborating with her and the team. Charlotte always listens to the clients and really understands what they want. She is highly creative and an expert problem-solver, looking at situations from every angle. We can thoroughly recommend her and her design team.

Rob T.

We are currently renovating a house and I found Charlotte's website whilst looking for a garden designer. She clearly has a great eye, and her completed gardens look fantastic, however my experience is very much similar to that of Abdul. On making an enquiry I found the response to be very rude and abrupt.

We have a considerable budget but it really put us off using her services. With such a poor first impression it's hard to see how it would have been an enjoyable experience should we have engaged her.

Robin B.

Charlotte is a multi-talented and hugely imaginative designer. As a Chelsea exhibitor for more than ten consecutive years I know just how exceptional it is for a designer to win a coveted gold medal: everything - the hard landscaping, the planting, the context - has to be truly exceptional. The other thing about Charlotte id the breadth of her talent: she can work equally well with a difficult space in London and broad country acres; an unusual trick to pull off in my experience. Highly recommended.

Rebecca W.

Charlotte has designed an exceptional garden for the family, focused on the brief of abundant and imaginative planting. The team has been a pleasure to work with. Juliet is a huge asset and has a wonderful eye, adding flair to the overall composition. Charlotte has a strong team and pays close attention to the overall budget. She sets realistic expectations from the outset and delivers.

Lex M.

As an architect I have really appreciated Charlotte and her team's input on my latest project. She has recognised the value and design potential in an unloved rear plot and her use of planting and levels has added enormously to the overall concept. We should be finished mid-year and I think the results will be amazing. Can't recommend her highly enough. Alex McMillan RIBA

Carrie S.

I don't usually write reviews and certainly not negative ones but sometimes it's good for an organisation to consider the brand damage they inflict upon themselves. There is no doubt that Charlotte Rowe's deigns are great but sadly the team lack communication skills. A recent enquiry was met with the worst response I've come across in a long time. If I treated potential clients with the same level of disinterest and barely concealed irritation then I wouldn't be in business. The conversation was one sided with the CR team very much on transmit. Send in your size of garden, we'll consider but too busy to even talk to anyone before 2021 etc, etc. No listening skills displayed, no questions asked. A missed opportunity as budget, opportunity and size of garden should be in their wheelhouse. What a shame and sadly an unfollow to follow!

WM

I wish I had read the reviews before contacting Charlotte Rowe as I would have avoided losing 15 minutes of my life being spoken to by what I can only describe as the most rude and patronising professional I have ever had a conversation with. Within about 2 minutes of the conversation I was about to politely end the call because of her patronising manner and her complete inability to demonstrate any evidence of listening to anything I was saying. However, the pandemic has taught me patience and regretfully, I allowed the conversation to continue. She went on to ask whether "I had 'even looked at [her] website" when I said I didn't want a garden full of right angles and when I talked about the materials in an attempt to convey the type of feel I wanted for the garden she dismissed this as "details" when, as someone who has worked and taught with qualified architects, I would have thought it was clear I was trying to help her visualise a design concept for our garden. Of course, everything became clear (including the reason why she asked how long we had lived in our house - presumably to guess my age and income) when she asked about our budget and said we would need to spend at least 4 times as much. I have no shame in saying that I am not prepared to spend 40-50K minimum on a 35sq.m garden but I would also say the idea that "you couldn't build a patio for less than 10k" suggests that she needs to speak with some of the many excellent architects that I know. If I were a potential client for whom money were not a concern, I would suggest finding a garden designer who is generally interested in what you want so together you create a garden that is beautiful and uniquely yours. Interestingly if you google her 5 star reviewers, most of them seem to professionals in landscaping and gardens rather than clients.
In the spirit of generosity I would like to give Ms Rowe some professional advice:
1. The foundation of good design is empathy with your client - this requires genuine listening so that you understand your client's priorities and dreams and not just their bank balance
2. Many architects cannot afford to spend 40k on a garden but they are likely to have many clients for whom money is not an issue
3. Treating your potential client with respect is a basic requirement of professional behaviour. Everybody's time is valuable. If you only work for high value clients that is fine, but I suggest you politely explain this by email rather than wasting other people's time as though yours was the only time that mattered.