In This Issue
BBQ giants Weber to give SOLEX a miss in July
HTA Study Tour is a Dutch Sensation
Westland/GCA Rising Stars 2016 deadline extended
Garden Retail Experience - Netherlands 2016 Briers go Dutch!
Closed garden centre site could be turned into housing
Colour and rotation are key ingredients
Sales at garden centres bursting out all over
Flower Show Forum will sow seeds of change for gardening clubs around the UK
Wyevale Garden Centres raise record-breaking donations for community hospice
The Greatest Awards go back on tour in 2016
Garden Wise aims to raise £5,000 for Marie Curie through daff feeder sales
Four weeks to go, 10 pounds still to loose
Garden Centre Supervisor
Customer Service Assistant
Assistant Shop Manager
Plant Area Manager (Full time, including alternate weekends)
Assistant Garden Centre Manager
Bedding Department Head (Full time, including alternate weekends)
Garden Centre Shop Manager
Horticultural Content Team Leader \ Essex
Plant Area Sales Assistant (Full time, including alternate weekends)
Plantarea Manager / Supervisory / Berkshire
Get your own copy of GTN Xtra
New Board appointment for Blue Diamond
Sales of garden products slow to pick up
Shallots and veg seeds selling well
Growing media sales are the star performers
Long Service Award celebrations at Forest Garden
Nurseries certified for Environmental Management
MEP's keynote speech to plant-health conference
Buttacup partners with Buglife to promote invertebrate sustainability
Allensmore increase their creative team with new appointments
APL Avenue at BBC Gardeners’ World Live winners announced
Pictures from The Greatest Christmas Gold-winning Teams
Brookside Garden Centre
Haskins West End
Hillmount Garden Centre
Mains of Drum
Premier Decorations
Bents and Le Friquet
Silverbirch (Small Garden Centre Gold)
Old Railway Line (Mid-sized Garden Centre Gold)
Barton Grange (Large Garden Centre Gold)
Le Friquet (Group Garden Centre Gold)
Bestsellers Top 50 charts every week
Buy your subscription to GTN Bestsellers
All the latest news from the world of garden centre catering
Wyevale Garden Centres wins Design Effectiveness Awards for Food & Beverage concepts
Catering sales kick off the New Year
Snack dispensers ideal for garden centres, says firm
Casual Dining 2016 opens in London next week
Situations Vacant
Garden Centre Supervisor
Competitive salary
 
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Customer Service Assistant
Langlands Garden Centre - Leeds
 
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Assistant Shop Manager
Competitive salary
 
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Plant Area Manager (Full time, including alternate weekends)
West Horsley KT24 6AR
 
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Assistant Garden Centre Manager
Salary: £23,000 - £25,000
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Bedding Department Head (Full time, including alternate weekends)
West Horsley KT24 6AR
 
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Garden Centre Shop Manager
Salary: £20,000 - £26,000
Read more»
Horticultural Content Team Leader \ Essex
Salary: Dependent on experience
Read more»
Plant Area Sales Assistant (Full time, including alternate weekends)
Twickenham TW2 5PA
 
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Plantarea Manager / Supervisory / Berkshire
Salary: Dependent on experience
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Email neil.pope@tgcmc.co.uk, or trevor.pfeiffer@tgcmc.co.uk or call the GTN News team on 01733 775700
Casual Dining 2016 opens in London next week
 
The casual dining sector is big business in the UK and next week it’s set to get even bigger, when Casual Dining returns to the Business Design Centre in Islington, London, on 24-25 February.
 
The multi-award winning two day trade show is expected to attract over four thousand key buyers and decision makers from many of the country’s biggest casual dining pub groups and restaurant chains, hotels, contract caterers, and independent operators.  Over 170 leading industry suppliers – showcasing an innovative choice of food and drink, equipment, table top, POS technology and services, will be there to meet them.
 
“The Casual Dining show is the two days a year when our sector gets together.  It’s an essential forum for sharing new ideas, innovations and insights,” says Simon Kossoff, co-founder and chairman of Carluccio’s, who’ll be in conversation with CGA Peach’s Peter Martin at 11am in the Keynote Theatre on opening day.
 
Topics under discussion include the future of Carluccio’s, opening overseas, authenticity, social responsibility, maximising seasonal returns and whether appearing on TV is ever a good thing or not.
 
Other opening day speakers (in order of appearance) include Horizon’s Peter Backman; David McDowall, MD of bars at BrewDog; Mark McCulloch, founder and group CEO of WE ARE Spectacular; Kate Nicholls, chief executive of the ALMR; Mark McQuater, chief executive of Revolution Bars Group; and Keith Bird, chief operating officer at Gourmet Burger Kitchen.
 
“Casual Dining is a hotbed of innovation…the most focused, most relevant, the best show of the year,” says GBK’s Keith Bird.
 
The Sustainable Restaurant Association Panel (at 1.15pm) will see Joseph Evans, finance director at Oakman Inns & Restaurants, Harry Cragoe, owner of the Gallivant hotel, and chair Mark Linehan, MD of The SRA, add their insights to the hot topic of ‘fair pay’ in the hospitality industry.
 
Improving staff retention, engagement and empowerment is the key focus of The Training in Pubs Panel (at 3.30pm).  Chaired by Anthony Pender, chairman of The BII and MD of Yummy Pub Co, the session will feature James Nye, MD of Anglian Country Inns, and Joycelyn Neve, MD of The Seafood Pub Company.
 
The second day’s seminar line-up is equally impressive – kicking off at 10.15am with the exclusive unveiling of the results of CGA Peach’s Business Leaders’ Survey.  CGA Peach director Jamie Campbell will discuss this year’s findings, including the key challenges, business risks and investment opportunities facing the sector for 2016 and beyond.
 
He’ll be followed by one of those leaders – Steve Richards, CEO of Casual Dining Group, who’ll take to the stage at 11am.  He’ll be revealing some key insights of his own, including how CDG (formerly Tragus) have evolved and improved key brands like Bella Italia and Café Rouge.  Speaking ahead of his session, Richards says Casual Dining offers “a chance to debate and consider the big issues driving change in the casual dining market – perfect”.
 
Other second day highlights include exclusive ‘in conversation’ sessions with Luke Johnson, chairman of private equity firm Risk Capital Partners (talking to Paul Charity, managing director of Propel Info) and David Campbell, chief executive of Wagamama, reflecting on the evolution of the brand with CGA Peach’s Peter Martin.  Plus, there’ll be Keynotes from Martin Morales, founder of Ceviche, and Paul Pavli, operations director of Punch Taverns.
 
“Casual Dining gives all operators a chance to hear from peers on what they are working on, what’s going well and not so well.  It’s also a great place to sample trends, so you can make sure you are on track with your own developments,” says Pavli.  In his visitor feedback last year, he called the show “a must attend event”.
 
New for 2016, visitors can now plan their visit in advance via the online Show Guide, which includes full seminar details and exhibitor listings.  It’s available to view at www.casualdiningshow.co.uk/showguide.
 
Casual Dining is free to attend for pre-registered trade visitors and relevant press representatives only.  To register for a free pass, please visit www.casualdiningshow.co.uk and quote priority code PR1 (alternatively, use direct link: www.eventdata.co.uk/Visitor/CasualDining.aspx?TrackingCode=PR1).
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