In its July Market Update, the Horticultural Trades Association reports that challenging trading conditions for garden centres continued in June 2024. Despite a general improvement in consumer confidence, ongoing adverse wet weather significantly affected sales in core gardening categories. 

Fran Barnes, Chief Executive of the HTA, commented: “In June 2024, we saw a 3% decrease in garden centre sales compared to June 2023. The bad weather has been a common theme for 2024. Sunshine hours in June, which are always critical to sales performance, were at just 72% of the levels for June 2023—days which also saw rainfall increase compared to 2023, making for challenging trading in garden categories. There isn’t anything that we can do as the HTA to change the weather, but what we can and are going to do is champion the importance of our sector to the new government to ensure they put in place policies and regulations that will help mitigate the effects of this volatile weather and ask that they review the funding available to SMEs to adapt to our ever-changing climate.

“Sales in core gardening ranges and plants always bear the brunt of poor weather, and we are seeing that after the first six months of the year, sales of bedding plants are down 2% compared with the first six months of 2023, with hardy plants and trees down 7%. Specifically, bedding plants saw an 11% drop in sales in June, while hardy plants and trees experienced a 7% decline. Garden furniture sales were also notably impacted, falling by 38% compared to June 2023, with the summer scent of barbecues significantly absent -5%.

“In contrast, indoor ranges and non-gardening categories continued to perform strongly. Catering sales surged by 16% year-on-year, food and farm shop sales increased by 22%, and wild bird care saw a significant boost, with sales up by 23%.

“Consumer confidence in June 2024 improved for the third consecutive month, reaching -14, the highest score since November 2021. This increase is attributed to a falling inflation rate and a more optimistic view of the country's general economic situation.

"While the adverse weather has undoubtedly impacted our core gardening sales, the robust performance of indoor and non-gardening categories shows that garden centres remain a vital destination for consumers. We are optimistic that the rising consumer confidence and strategic focus on upcoming seasonal ranges will bolster sales in the coming months. With better weather finally being forecast and people keen to spend more time outdoors in their gardens, there is cautious optimism about recovering some of the lost ground. We hope that the July weather improves significantly.” 

For further details on the June 2024 market performance, please refer to our website's full HTA Market Update report available to HTA members.