Each year, International Women’s Day provides an opportunity to celebrate the achievements of women from many different walks of life.

In Devon, one much-loved business was founded back in the 1960s by a resilient woman with a passion for plants and growing.

Marilyn White was a force of nature from the start; when she and her husband Malcolm started Otter Garden Centres in 1964 they lived onsite in a caravan, growing vegetables for local markets and bedding plants which they sold directly to customers.

Fast forward 61 years and the business now has seven branches across the South West and Hampshire.