Cambridge University Botanic Garden

What Cambridge University Botanic Garden does

Cambridge University Botanic Garden (CUBG) is a university-affiliated botanic garden established in 1831, relocated to its current 18-acre site in Cambridge, UK in 1846, and operated as a department of the University of Cambridge. The Garden maintains an internationally significant living collection of over 8,000 plant species across glasshouses, the Winter Garden (developed 1979), a one-acre Rock Garden (constructed 1950s using 500 tons of carboniferous limestone from Cumbria), Mediterranean Beds, Dry Garden, lake, and wildlife areas. It supports scientific research, including the Phenology Project, staff publications, and a continuous daily weather dataset maintained since 1904. The Garden's collections also include a Seed Bank operating an Index Seminum international seed exchange, a Herbarium, the Cory Library, and historical Archives.

The Garden serves multiple customer segments: general public and tourists purchasing admission tickets; schools, colleges, and universities participating in curriculum-aligned programs; families attending seasonal events; researchers and scientists accessing collections, herbarium, and seed bank; horticulturists and enthusiasts enrolling in the Certificate in Botanical Horticulture, Certificate in Botany, and short courses; Friends members and corporate supporters; and community groups for outreach activities. Distribution is via the University of Cambridge Online Stores ticketing platform, Cambridge Live and Ticket Tailor resellers for events, on-site walk-up admissions, the Garden Café, and the Garden Shop.

Revenue streams include ticket admissions (one-time), Friends membership subscriptions (single/joint/corporate tiers), voluntary donations, course fees for the Certificate programs and short courses, ticketed events such as Cambridge Botanic Lights and Sounds Green concerts, and on-site café and retail sales. The organization is a non-profit operating within the University of Cambridge, supported by university allocation alongside self-generated revenue. Headcount is approximately 46 employees. The Garden operates an extensive digital marketing presence across YouTube, Instagram, Facebook, X, Threads, and LinkedIn, with email marketing via Mailchimp and paid retargeting through StackAdapt and Meta pixels.

Name

Cambridge University Botanic Garden

Legal name

Cambridge University Botanic Garden

Website

https://botanic.cam.ac.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

1831

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Cambridge University Botanic Garden is a University of Cambridge department operating an 18-acre botanic garden with over 8,000 plant species in Cambridge, UK. It serves the public, schools, researchers, and horticulturists through admissions, memberships, educational certificates, seasonal events, and on-site café and retail.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Botanical Garden & Horticultural Education

NAICS

Zoos and Botanical Gardens (712130), Nature Parks and Other Similar Institutions (712190), Greenhouse, Nursery, and Floriculture Production (1114)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200), Services-Commercial Physical & Biological Research (8731)

akta.pro primary industry

Zoos, Aquariums & Botanical Gardens (Educational Collections) (THAJADAL)

Keywords

• Botanical garden visits
• Horticultural education
• Plant conservation
• Botanical research
• Environmental learning

Headquarters

HQ city

Cambridge

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Garden Admission Tickets: Visitors pay for entry to the Garden. Normal Garden admission applies for most events. Part of the Great British Summer Saving scheme with discounted entry at times.
2. Friends Membership: Annual membership program offering benefits to supporters of the Garden. Includes single, joint, and corporate membership options.
3. Donations: Voluntary donations from visitors and supporters to support the Garden's development and conservation work.
4. Educational Programs: Revenue fromhorticultural training courses including the Certificate in Botanical Horticulture and short courses.
5. Events and Activities: Revenue from special events including Cambridge Botanic Lights, concerts, and family activities. Some events are free with normal admission while others may have separate fees.
6. Retail and Hospitality: Revenue from the Garden Café and Garden Shops on site.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels6 records

Marketing channels12 records

Core offering

Cambridge University Botanic Garden operates an 18-acre university botanic garden offering public visitor access to living plant collections of over 8,000 species, glasshouses, and themed gardens (Winter Garden, Rock Garden, Mediterranean Beds, Dry Garden). It delivers formal horticultural and botanical training through Certificates in Botanical Horticulture and Botany, short courses, and school programs, while also supporting scientific research in plant science and conservation through its seed bank, herbarium, and living collections portal.

Product overview

Cambridge University Botanic Garden is a university-affiliated botanic garden offering visitor access to an 18-acre site with diverse plant collections. The organization provides educational programs including Certificate in Botanical Horticulture, Certificate in Botany, short courses, and school/college programs. It maintains extensive living collections of over 8,000 plant species, a seed bank, herbarium, library, and archives. Key visitor offerings include themed gardens (Winter Garden, Rock Garden, Mediterranean Beds, Dry Garden), guided tours, family activities, and seasonal events like Cambridge Botanic Lights and Snowdrop Trail. On-site amenities include the Garden Café and Garden Shop. The Garden also conducts scientific research including phenology monitoring and supports plant science research through its collections portal. Membership is available through the Friends program.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Garden Visit Experience

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 8,000 plant species maintained in living collections
• +3 more outcomes

Segments7 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration7 records

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• University of CambridgecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCambridge University Botanic Garden is part of the University of Cambridge. The Garden benefits from the University's academic resources, research capabilities, and institutional support while contributing to the University's educational and research mission.
• University of Cambridge MuseumscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe Garden is part of the University of Cambridge Museums consortium, collaborating on joint marketing, visitor initiatives, and events such as Summer at the Museums programme.
• ConnexionsminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSecondary schools and village colleges may put forward candidates for a limited number of work placement opportunities through Connexions for young adults considering a career in horticulture.
• University of Cambridge Jobs PageminorGTM or Marketing PartnerJob vacancies are posted on the University Job Opportunities webpage.
• Cambridge Orchid SocietyminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerLocal horticultural society offering advice to orchid enthusiasts.
• Alpine Garden SocietyminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerNational society with numerous local groups and alpine shows offering expert knowledge to alpine gardening enthusiasts.

Scale indicators19 records

Recent moves8 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• New York Botanical Garden: Major US botanic garden with research, education, and visitor programming. Highly comparable to CUBG as a public-facing institution combining plant science, education, conservation, and recreational visitation.
• Singapore Botanic Gardens: UNESCO World Heritage botanic garden in a major urban setting, combining conservation, research, and public visitation. Comparable as a leading research-active botanic garden with strong educational and visitor programming.
• Brooklyn Botanic Garden: Urban US botanic garden with strong education and community programming comparable to CUBG. Similar visitor and educational programming focus, though serving a much larger market.
• Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew: The UK's leading and largest botanic garden, operating multiple sites including Kew Gardens and Wakehurst. Directly comparable to CUBG as a publicly accessible botanical collection with conservation, research, and education missions; CUBG is much smaller in scale.
• UBC Botanical Garden: University of British Columbia's botanic garden, with a comparable university-affiliated model featuring plant collections, research, and public visitation. Closely analogous institutional structure to CUBG.
• Oxford Botanic Garden and Arboretum: The UK's oldest botanic garden (1621), also university-affiliated (University of Oxford). Closest comparable peer to CUBG by institution type (Oxbridge university botanic garden), visitor profile, and educational/research mission.
• RHS Garden Wisley: Royal Horticultural Society's flagship garden in Surrey, offering similar public visitation, horticultural displays, educational programming, and plant collections. Operates at a much larger scale than CUBG.
• Missouri Botanical Garden: One of the world's oldest and largest botanic gardens, with extensive plant collections, research programs, and educational offerings. Comparable to CUBG on scientific research, conservation, and visitor-facing public garden operations.
• Wakehurst (Kew's country estate): Kew's 500-acre Sussex site featuring natural habitats, seed banking (Millennium Seed Bank), and conservation programs. Directly comparable to CUBG on plant conservation, seed banking, and education mission components.
• Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh: Major UK botanic garden with similar public-facing plant collections, research, and education programs. Comparable scale, scope of activities, and visitor proposition, though with multiple sites and a larger staff base.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/cubotanicgarden
• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCoNJkpGYFo0CZVsIblR5oRw
• Facebookfacebook.com/CUBotanicGarden
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/cambridge-university-botanic-garden
• Instagraminstagram.com/cubotanicgarden

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Cambridge University Botanic Garden