15-05-2025
How Posie Pots founder Kay Wells makes plant care easier with 3D printing technology
Covered in dirt and mosquito bites, Kay Wells knew there had to be a better way. Not long after moving back to St. Louis in 2012, Wells, who was working in the aerospace sector at the time, decided to start digging in her garden — until the mosquitoes arrived.
'I was fresh from California, with no bug spray, shorts and a T-shirt,' Wells remembers. 'I look down and there was a scene of mosquitoes tearing me up. I ran inside and in an instant was like, 'I only need to water my plants once a month.' It was this obsession, idea and creation, all in that moment.'
Armed with some 30-gallon storage totes, PVC plumbing tubes and Computer Aided Drafting software, Wells got to work fashioning grow boxes. In the first, she grew a two-foot-tall tomato plant; in the second, five bushels of asparagus. Those would soon become the prototypes for Posie Pots, Wells' line of innovative self-watering planters now made on 3D printers.
Posie Pots combines Wells' lifelong passion for horticulture with her professional background in mechanical and manufacturing engineering. She holds bachelor's and master's degrees in mechanical engineering from Saint Louis University and Missouri Institute of Science & Technology, respectively, and has worked in product development, R&D and six sigma methodologies for Amazon, Bayer and Boeing, among other companies.
'I've always had a very deep and intense curiosity for aerospace, aeronautics and really overall design — how we as human beings can create something that did not exist before,' Wells says. 'I learned all about rapid prototyping, 3D printing, additive manufacturing and composite engineering. I knew everything about materials science, how structures and strengths come together and also the art in it — how to make it aesthetically beautiful and pleasing, how air actually flows in and out of different angles and concave and convex curves and all of these different mathematical equations. Art meets science meets gardening with the Posie Pot.'
Wells spent five years on R&D before acquiring her first 3D printer in 2018 and officially launching Posie Pots the next year. Her planters feature a patented water system that helps with drainage, aeration and circulation of the plant's root system so that plants only need to be watered once a month. Posie Pots require just one third of the soil and 95% less water than a typical pot, making them less susceptible to pests, root bound and root rot.
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In 2022, Posie Pots was named to the third cohort of the University of Missouri–St. Louis' Anchor Accelerator. She received $50,000 in non-dilutive funding and an eight-week business development program that enabled her to scale the business by buying more 3D printers to increase production, expanding marketing efforts and broadening Posie Pots' footprint outside of St. Louis.
Wells has continued to find support from St. Louis' startup community in the years since. In 2024, the company was named to the first cohort of Saint Louis University's New Venture Accelerator, which gave it the opportunity to receive up to $50,000 in non-dilutive funding and mentorship. Later that year, Posie Pots received $75,000 in non-dilutive funding from Arch Grants.
Wells says the support from the St. Louis community has been vital to the success of Posie Pots, which are available for sale on the brand's website and through retailers, including the gift shop at the Missouri History Museum and Dierbergs Markets. All of the pots are produced in Wells' space in the Wellston Business Incubator.
Wells is also working closely with the Advanced Manufacturing Innovation Center St. Louis to advance her 3D printing work, including a giveback component working with students and the community. She has also partnered with Lincoln University of Missouri's St. Louis Urban Impact Center to teach kids about 3D printing, CAD software and plant science.
In 2024, Wells was selected as one of 500 entrepreneurs out of nearly 15,000 applicants across the country to be invited to Walmart's 11th-annual Open Call pitch event. Posie Pots are currently available for sale on the Walmart website and in 100 Walmart stores; the more items Wells sells, the greater her chances of securing a permanent placement with the retailer.
But while Posie Pots continues to grow across the country, Wells remains firmly rooted in St. Louis. In 2023, her pots were featured on Good Morning America's 'Deals & Steals' segment, and Wells was particularly thrilled to hear host Tory Johnson note that the pots were 'made in America — St. Louis, to be specific.'
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