The HTA have launched the HTA Safe Trading Guidance for all garden centres. This is to allow garden centres to prepare and implement when the Government gives the go-ahead for stores to reopen. These guidelines and the store signage can be found here. There will be a separate process where garden centres will be asked to register on the Plants Near Me website and acknowledge that they are following the guidance. The HTA will be issuing further communication on this.

The guidelines start with the following Macro protocols:

Cafes /restaurants should remain closed – no on-site food consumption.
• For the avoidance of doubt, no takeaway food sold on site should be consumed on site.
• Food departments; food hall; farm shops should operate under same hygiene and safe distancing protocols as rest of store.

Products to be sold should be restricted to plants; seeds; bulbs; composts /growing media; pots/ planters; garden hardware (tools; propagation equipment; fertilisers; pest control; irrigation etc.) and those products directly associated with the support thereof; pet foods and accessories; food products/cookware.
• For the avoidance of doubt no giftware/homeware; clothing; garden furniture; large BBQs to be sold on site – We would encourage online sales only/home delivery.
• These restrictions are designed to prevent ‘browsing’ and unnecessary contact with staff and other customers.
• These restrictions would be lifted as and when other retail restrictions are relaxed, or as social distancing protocols are fully enforceable.

It is strongly advised not to promote special deals or other aggressive marketing policies that lead to a surge in customer numbers.

Store space should be restricted to these areas (as above) with customer access to other areas prohibited.
• This requires the physical separation of stores and possible remerchandising of areas to maximise aisle widths and social distancing.
• The use of shop fixtures to achieve this would be encouraged or taped off areas robust enough to discourage customer wanderings
• Aisles should be as wide as possible and free from stock that would impede free flow.
• Fire escapes should be clearly kept open even if behind taped off areas.

Our strong recommendation is that customer numbers be controlled to 1 per 1000 square feet.
• Operators should use their discretion as to what is the safe number of customers to allow in a garden centre taking into account overall space, aisle widths and number of checkouts.
• Square feet is defined as gross square footage of available retail sales area – outdoor and indoor.
• This calculation will need to be done in advance by all those proposing to operate
• Customers in store should be limited to this number on a one in one out basis.
• Our advice would be to have a staff member controlling this at the entrance door but to avoid unnecessary queuing our strong recommendation would be to control the number of cars coming into the car park.

Entrance and exit from the premises should be separate – a minimum separation of 2m between doors.
• If the infrastructure at your store doesn’t suit this, then we recommend that you create another entrance alongside or directly through your plant area, or Goods Inwards area.
• Maintaining a one-way flow is a desirable outcome where possible. If store layout allows, use signage (and/ or marshals) to achieve this.

The guidance then goes into more detail for each protocol starting with site control, where restricting numbers to the store is a key objective.

This can be best achieved by limiting the number of cars accessing your car park.

• Controlling or restricting the number of car parking spaces available. Using pallets in alternate spaces, may assist this.
• Installing the appropriate signage at car park entrances will help.
• We would advise having a member of staff to control site accessibility and car parking.
• Customers should be encouraged to shop with trollies only avoiding baskets. This helps social distancing and allows easier cleaning of handles.
  All trollies returned for reuse should have their handles wiped down.
• All customers should be offered gloves and hand sanitiser on arrival should they not have their own.
• Allow a maximum of only two individuals to shop together.

The full guidelines can be found at: https://hta.org.uk/uploads/assets/633bb2d9-1918-47b5-9e2cb314ae1f6753/c8ad1b20-42f7-4fbc-963fe928960a1709/HTA-Safe-Trading-Guidance.pdf

Greenfingers Charity urges its supporters old and new to celebrate National Gardening Week and spread some more floral cheer by joining in #FloralFriday today.  And by taking part you will be helping to ensure the Greenfingers Charity brand stays in the hearts and minds of its supporters and at the same time encourage more garden lovers to find out about the valuable work of the charity.

Here’s what you need to do…

• Post your favourite floral image or a selfie wearing your favourite floral shirt, dress, hat, shoes, tie, pjs or similar
• Use the hashtags #floralfriday #hortindustry #greenfingers
• Tag Greenfingers Charity
• If you can, donate by

Texting FLORALFRIDAY to 70085 to donate £5 or FLORALFRIDAYTEN to 70085 to donate £10

• nominate a friend or friends to do the same

More so than ever, Greenfingers Charity needs your support so whatever you can do to help really will make a difference.

For more information about other ways you can support Greenfingers Charity, get in touch with Linda Petrons,  Director of Fundraising and Communications by emailing Linda@greenfingerscharity.org.uk or calling 07908 221240.

All retailers who claim their free site before midnight on Sunday 3rd May will receive a free licence to a delivery route optimisation service, for as long as they use the GrowNation platform. This will allow centres to have their daily delivery routes calculated to take the least possible time.

All GrowNation websites are free to set up and include:

If you are looking at adding extra facilities to keep your staff and customers safe when business are allowed to re-open, James Stamp Rental has the solution.

James Stamp sells jackleg portable cabins manufactured in the UK, new 20’ one way shipping containers, toilets and hand wash stations, metal kitchen solutions and shower units all over the UK and provides rentals in Cambridgeshire, Rutland and South Lincolnshire.

James told GTN Xtra: "My most popular products currently are toilets and hand wash stations.  The toilets vary from chemical service loos to metal mains supply cabin units.  Hand wash stations are all cold water free standing units, with different configurations but mostly soap dispensers, towel dispensers and bin holders.

"I also supply one piece all metal kitchen solutions which inc sink, microwave, hob, fridge, cupboards etc in multiple sizes and colours."

"Since the start of the COVID-19 lock-down we have been supplying toilets for non core visitors to sites, wash stations for additional hygiene at pay points and food vending machines, plus small portcabins for gatehouses, canteens and information points."

James is no stranger to the horticultural market as he already supplies products to Taylors Bulbs, Elsom Seeds, Flamingo flowers and plants, Emmett, Jack Buck Growers, DGM Growers and many more.

James can be contacted on: 01775 713344 or by e-mail: jamesstamprental@mac.com

www.JamesStamp.com

The topic of garden centre re-opening, so close to all of our hearts, reached new levels of attention today with two MP's asking questions as to when garden centres would be able to re-open during Prime Ministers Question Time today.

In answer, First Secretary Dominic Raab, standing in for Boris Johnson, said "The current advice, as I've indicated, from Sage was that relaxing any of those measures - including the ones he refers to - would risk damage to the public health, our economy, and frankly the progress we've made, the sacrifices so many have made, the lives that have been lost.

"Can I reassure him that they looked specifically at garden centres and we will continue, as I've indicated earlier, to keep the evidence on each individual measure under very close review."

The questions come as a result of lobbying and media activity led by the HTA.  Past President Adam Taylor told GTN Xtra: "It is a privilege to keep in touch with is the incredible amount of work that James Barnes, Boyd Douglas-Davies and the HTA Team are putting in on behalf of not just the membership of the HTA but all growers, retailers and landscapers.  When we look back, this work should not be over-looked by those of us in horticulture as there are some individuals who have gone above and beyond to have achieved the publicity and the support from the public and key decision makers.  They deserve our thanks."

Elsewhere in this issue of GTN Xtra you'll find more coverage of the HTA activity.  Well done to all the consumer media outlets who have picked up on this and helped our cause.  From our conversations with garden centres it is clear the demand from gardeners for plants and other gardening products is extremely high and garden centres are starting to plan for re-opening.  One way systems are being planned and implemented in centres across the country and there must be a good trade in perpsex screens for till areas.  In this issue of GTN Xtra there are stories from suppliers who are offering services to help with a safe return to trading and the Garden Radio team here at Potting Shed Press has even been recording social distancing messages ready to be played in garden centres as soon as re-opening is allowed.

Following on from last week we've had a few more suppliers contact us with feedback on how they are faring during the crisis:

More suppliers feedback

Craig Hall, Deco-Pak: "The government itself stated that 'manufacturing plays an important role in the economy' and as such we wanted to continue to support our retailers and their customers during this time. In order to do this, we have had to adapt our business in quite a considerable way, with the health, safety and wellbeing of our staff remaining our absolute priority. It is this that has been at the centre of the changes we have made, from furloughing staff, implementing social distancing measures throughout our site, increased cleaning schedules and the introduction of cleaning stations.

"We appreciate that these are unprecedented and scary times, so in addition to the changes already mentioned, we are also offering all our staff, whether working or furloughed, access to our product portfolio, enabling them to complete garden projects at home. It's a small gesture that we hope will show our appreciation for their efforts and ongoing commitment to Deco-Pak, as well as helping to boost their mental and physical wellbeing.

"Additionally, we're also donating products such as birdhouses, bird feeders, playpit sand and our Rockin' Pebbles and Pens to local schools that have remained open to support the children of key workers, as well as two local hospices - Overgate In Elland and Forget Me Not Children's Hospice in Huddersfield. We hope that these products will bring a little bit of enjoyment to those during these challenging times, and perhaps the Rockin' Pebbles might even be used to create positive messages of support for NHS and other key workers.

"In regard to our support for retailers, we are certainly not operating at our normal capacity, but we are able to continue to service our customers. Products, particularly DIY products, have seen a sharp increase in demand as the nation looks to improve their homes and gardens during this period of lockdown, and we are working hard to ensure that high levels of stock remain available. We now offer a drop ship service for our retail partners, supported by contactless collection. This is minimising the amount of 'hands' in contact with product, whilst also streamlining the process making for quicker and safer delivery.

"Like everyone we are of course looking forward to getting back to some semblance of normality, but for now we will continue to follow the advice of the government and the World Health Organisation as we navigate our way towards, hopefully, an end to lockdown. We will continue to make adjustments to our working processes as we move forwards, and will communicate openly with our staff, retail partners and local community as and when these changes are implemented."

Adam Taylor, Taylors Bulbs: "We have had jobs that cannot wait such as field-walking the flowers that must be done for the health of the crop, selling and processing last year's agricultural crops, drilling sugar beet, planting potatoes as well as supplying existing and new customers with whatever summer bulbs, seed potatoes, etc. they can take according to the channels they are operating in.  The bulbs have been a drop in the ocean compared to the peak weeks we were expecting from garden retailing but we've been active enough to keep our full-time workers employed.

"We are fortunate in that we have facilities where the team can spread themselves out at this time of year (I am sitting alone in my office that usually seats eight). And we are now planning for the bulb harvest and packing campaigns.

"We believe the autumn season will be a crucial part of the recovery and we also need to help ourselves as we were approaching the payment date for the January deliveries of summer bulbs, seed potatoes, etc., many of which will still be hanging in closed garden retailers. So we are preparing as much as possible for a successful autumn campaign to help our customers.  Although our sales team are grounded and unable to contact many of their buyers, we have been putting together suggested autumn orders in the hope that we can fine-tune those in the short window we will have after the inevitable re-opening.  We know our customers will be busy enough making up for lost time, and we will run out of it before deliveries need to start so we feel the more we can do to prepare, the better.

"The other aspect of my working day that it is a privilege to keep in touch with is the incredible amount of work that James Barnes, Boyd Douglas-Davies and the HTA Team are putting in on behalf of not just the membership of the HTA but all growers, retailers and landscapers.  When we look back, this work should not be over-looked by those of us in horticulture as there are some individuals who have gone above and beyond to have achieved the publicity and the support from the public and key decision makers.  They deserve our thanks.

"I hope you are all well and I look forward to boring ol' normal!"

Michael Wooldridge, Woodlodge: "The lockdown period couldn’t have hit us and the industry as a whole at a worse time. After the poor weather in January and February and the perfect conditions we are now enjoying, it was set to be one of the best seasons we would have had. It has really put the disappointment of a rainy weekend into perspective!

"We are lucky to be in an industry that is used to adapting to change. It's great to see so many of our customers responding to the challenge with innovation and creativity.

"From an operational view, we remain open with staff at the warehouse and a small team of office staff working remotely. We have taken the opportunity to do some tidying up and have full plans in place to rapidly bring the business back up to full operational capacity when required.

"We have seen some customers already placing orders in anticipation of garden centres reopening and we have plenty of stock which means we are ideally positioned to service any pent up demand when centres are able to open up. We are looking forward to it!"

Malcolm Andrews, Panacea: "Panacea have continued serving our trade only customers during lockdown, operating safety first with a reduced warehouse crew. Office staff are working from home or safe distancing at our Swindon office - my thanks go out to all our superb colleagues, and respect for employees around the country who are keeping engines ticking over in these unprecedented times of uncertainty and anxiety.

"We are all learning new skills, especially ensuring communications are maintained throughout our business at all levels. One aspect which has personally taken me by surprise is the sheer time consumption of dealing with disruption! Our Company is expanding rapidly and importing stocks from abroad and gearing up high stock levels for a successful spring season has become a real problem. We were able to postpone further shipping at the beginning of the lockdown but now our warehouse space is crammed, costs are at a premium for additional temporary space, and the containers for now, keep coming!

"We shall be taking advantage of the various Government assistance packages where we can, facilities which will greatly help us and other small businesses to survive this potentially very damaging crisis. However we look forwards to a safe resumption of trading and the tills ringing once again, I’m getting a little tired of jam sandwiches. The signs look more positive since the start of lockdown and we now tentatively look to the future; needless to say we are ready and waiting.

"I do feel we will be a stronger team as we gradually come out the other side with new ways of looking at our business, new skills learned, and better ways of interacting with our customers and colleagues."

With the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic expected to change the way we shop for the long-term, Ivyline – more popularly known for its range of trend-led indoor plant pots – has launched Cleaner Retail with one mission in mind: to help retailers get ready to open, remain compliant in regards to hygiene and social distancing, and ultimately, stay open with a cleaner and more efficient retail environment to meet the demands of the post-lockdown world.

From sanitisation and hand washing stations, social distance signage and clothing, to PPE kit and equipment and screening, Cleaner Retail is a ‘one stop shop’ for everything needed to get UK retailers back up and running by providing solutions to help prevent the spread of the Corona virus both front and back of house. The products available will focus on the paramount importance of staff and customer health and wellbeing.

The full Cleaner Retail offering can be found online at www.cleanerretail.com, with retailers being able to access four core product areas – Eliminate, Protect, Direct, and Care. Hero products will include Ramsol’s Sanitiser Disinfectant Spray (available in both 22 litre and 500ml), which contains active biocides, specifically designed for the cleansing and disinfecting of hard and soft surfaces including food areas. This movable sanitiser vaporises in just 20 seconds for maximum efficiency. Cleaner Retail’s sanitation units can also be easily installed throughout the store, offering customers and staff vital ongoing access sanitise hands and trolley handles. Watch out for further developments in this area.

Portable wash stations are also expected to prove popular as they provide the necessary means for staff to ensure high levels of hygiene are adhered to both on and off the shop floor to. Handwashing with soap and water is one of the cornerstones of government guidance to safety in the workplace. On the shop floor staff and customers are offered advanced levels of protection with Cleaner Retail’s screening options, all of which can be quickly and easily installed at the till, entrances, areas of high footfall or queues, throughout warehouses and even outdoors.

Talking about this new venture, Scott Thomas, MD of Ivyline and founder of Cleaner Retail said: “More than anything Cleaner Retail has been set up to help retailers with their safety and sanitation needs as we transition into a new normal. Seeing so many retailers close their doors at the start of the Covid-19 lockdown was a wholly disheartening experience, especially as we were on the precipice of what looked to be a highly profitable Easter sales period, especially for garden retailing.  We knew we couldn’t sit around and do nothing, so we hope that our efforts will go some way in making the reopening of many stores a reality in the near future.

“UK retail will undoubtedly have to prove that it has considered all aspects of sanitation and social distancing compliance in order to gain approval from the government to reopen. Consumers, who are understandably cautious of re-entering the public domain, will also look to shop owners for reassurance.  Many retailers have been quick to respond accordingly; however, our research has shown that there are gaps in their knowledge and as such there are areas within the retail environment that risk being missed. Cleaner Retail offers solutions to plug these gaps, making it easy for retailers to confidently purchase everything they need to create a cleaner backdrop from which to trade. We want to help UK retailing to get back on its feet as quickly as possible and believe Cleaner Retail is a logical and positive way of doing so.”

Retailers can place orders instantly via the Cleaner Retail website, whilst bespoke packages are available on request. Personalisation is also available on many product ranges subject to a minimum order value. An additional benefit of Cleaner Retail is its commitment to supporting the wider UK economy and manufacturing, having only selected products made or sourced from UK suppliers.

Scott added: “If any retailer requires products that are not currently listed on Cleaner Retail, we ask that they reach out to myself and the team. In order to get the site up and running we have forged some great relationships with UK manufacturers, and as such are able to quickly add new lines if demand dictates.”

For more information regarding the government’s advice for social distancing in the workplace, including the use of pop-up hand wash stations, please visit: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/guidance-to-employers-and-businesses-about-covid-19/guidance-for-employers-and-businesses-on-coronavirus-covid-19#social-distancing-in-the-workplace---principles

What is on offer from Cleaner Retail?

• Disinfectant Sprays
• Social distancing signs, floor stickers, posters, banners and clothing
• Portable hand washing stations
• Portable hand sanitisation stations
• PPE kits including antibacterial gel, masks, gloves and wipes + refills
• Protective screening for tills, queues, warehousing, entrances, retail displays

To find out more about Cleaner Retail, or to place your order please visit www.cleanerretail.com. Alternatively call 024 7633 9189, email info@cleanerretail.com or get in touch with your usual Ivyline contact or agent.

Bruce Harnett of Kernock Park Plants contacted GTN Xtra this week with details of bedding plant packages they have created for large NHS "Thank You" displays.

"Many of us", says Bruce, "are taking the time to thank our NHS and the keyworkers, battling against the devastating effects of the Corona virus, saving many thousands of lives each week. What better way to express our gratitude, than to create a living “Thank You”? You could have an InstaPlant® carpet bed made to order and ready to deliver in June.

"What’s more, for each confirmation of these NHS displays, we will donate 5% of the proceeds to NHS charities which specifically raise money for enhancing hospital environment and help champion key projects that supplement patient care and experience in NHS trusts across the nation.

"Want a design, but not sure where to start? Well, we have put together five creative designs to choose from. These could be manipulated to fit almost any size, with the ability to add text or change colours to suit your preferences. Prices are indicated for the sizes shown. All designs can be produced in colourful annual carpet bedding plants. Anybody wishing to use one of our design templates with minimal alterations will receive an InstaPlant® at the discounted price shown:

Carpet Bedding NHS Rainbow
Size: 5m wide x 2.5m deep
Coverage: 12.5m2
Price: £1785 + VAT

Carpet Bedding NHS Rectangle logo
Size: 5m wide x 3m deep
Coverage: 15m2
Price: £2125 + VAT

Carpet Bedding NHS Heart
Size: 3m wide x 3m deep
Coverage: 9m2
Price: £1315 + VAT

Carpet Bedding NHS Rainbow Full Circle
Size: 4m diameter circle
Coverage: 13m2
Price: £2050 + VAT

Carpet Bedding NHS Rainbow with Thank You
Size: 5m wide x 3m deep
Coverage: 15m2
Price: £2125 + VAT

"All you require to be able to accept one of these lovely designs, is an area to lay the display (preferably on a slope for all to see), normally a minimum of 3 metres across to achieve the desired effect. The surface will need to be cut and prepared, ready to receive our InstaPlant® carpet bed which will arrive in easy to install tiles of “carpet bedding” plants like a large, easy jigsaw! Once installed, some water and a little love will see it grow and flourish for the whole summer into early autumn.

"So, why not take a look at the gallery above, which includes five lovely designs, as well as some examples of finished displays to give you an idea of what to expect. Please let us know if you are interested, by contacting us soon as possible, be quick to order as we are going into production as we speak!

"Show your support by ordering a display. If you have your own ideas for a “Thank You” design or perhaps another event, we can help bring your idea to life!"

Tel: +44 (0)1579 350561, Fax: +44 (0)1579 351151, Email: instaplant@kernock.co.uk

During these challenging days of lockdown, social distancing and isolation, Greenfingers Charity and friends would like your help this Friday (1^st May) to bring a little bit of floral sunshine to social media. 

#FloralFriday, now in its fifth week, has seen friends from across the gardening industry, garden lovers and many others post their favourite floral photos, videos and #FloralFriday selfies on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and LinkedIn.

Whether you have, or have not, joined in before, National Gardening Week is the perfect time to dust down your floral shirt, jacket, tie, dress or shoes, get creative, join in the fun and show the nation that spending time in the garden is good for the heart, body and soul.

To get involved, simply…

• Post a selfie wearing your favourite floral shirt, dress, hat, shoes, tie, pjs or similar or favourite floral image
• Use the hashtags #floralfriday #hortindustry #greenfingers
• Tag Greenfingers Charity
• If you can, donate by

Texting FLORALFRIDAY to 70085 to donate £5 or FLORALFRIDAYTEN to 70085 to donate £10

• nominate a friend to do the same

Speaking about #FloralFriday, Linda Petrons, Director of Fundraising and Communications said:  “We launched this campaign at the beginning of April with three aims:  to keep the Greenfingers Charity brand alive, raise awareness of the issues being faced by so many friends in the gardening industry and of course to spread a little floral cheer during these difficult times.  We are enormously grateful to all those who have taken part and/or have donated so far.  We are loving seeing your posts and are hugely grateful for your donations.  It is only thanks to your continued support that we can continue make a very real difference to children and families when life begins to return to what will surely be a new normal.”

For more information about other ways you can support Greenfingers Charity, please contact Linda@greenfingerscharity.org.uk or call 07908 221240.

Here's a selection of #floralfriday images from social media last week.

Following on from the HTA campaign to highlight the financial plight of ornamental horticulture growers during the coronavirus shutdown, the HTA has been inundated with messages from the public wanting to support the industry.

To help connect growers with the public, the HTA has launched the ‘Plants Near Me’ webpage – plantsnearme.hta.org.uk, allowing the public to find local growers and garden centres that are offering home delivery.

Gardening has many benefits for your health and wellbeing. These include providing exercise and staying active, relieving stress, grounding and connecting with nature, satisfying creativity and learning new skills, enjoying and sharing your garden with family, and feeding your mind, body and soul. During this uncertain and scary time, gardening is the perfect escape.

Since its launch in the first week of April, almost 450 horticultural businesses have signed up to the scheme.

HTA President, Boyd Douglas-Davies, said of the scheme, “Following on from the media coverage of the plight of growers and garden retailers it has been encouraging to hear the messages of support from the general public. There is pent up demand for plants and the launch of ‘Plants Near Me’ provides some way of enabling the gardening public to access plants available to them from local suppliers.

“Whilst this initiative helps in the short term with getting plants to people, it is vitally important that garden centres reopen as soon as lockdown restrictions ease to support the British horticulture sector and to get people gardening at this unprecedented time.”

If you would like your business to be included in this online directory, please fill in the form here.

For more information about the scheme, please contact the HTA Media Office 01235 766156 or e-mail: media.office@hta.org.uk

The Directors of Rosebourne are delighted to announce that Carol Paris has recently been appointed as CEO to head up the Rosebourne executive team.

For many years Carol was Operations and Buying Director for Garden & Leisure, a wholly owned subsidiary of the French garden centre chain, Truffaut. Garden & Leisure was sold to Wyevale in 2013 and Carol moved to become CEO of the Horticultural Trades Association. The role involved representing the interests of the horticultural industry to Government and other stakeholders. Carol also sat on several external boards to represent the horticultural industry, including the British Retail Consortium, The Trade Association Forum, AHDB Horticulture and the Horticultural Innovation Partnership. More recently Carol has worked as a Consultant to suppliers in the industry.

Charles Good, Rosebourne Chairman, has known Carol for well over ten years and is delighted to welcome her on board at these unprecedented times.

Neville Prest is standing down and is taking a Non Executive Director role. Valerie Kempster, Jon Kitching and Salim Sajid the other 3 executive directors will be continuing in their roles as at present.

The company is making full preparation for when the centres will open again while most staff are furloughed, in the meantime the company is operating a delivery service to its customers on a limited range of garden products, furniture and food boxes.

The Pet Food Manufacturers Association (PFMA) supports the HTA’s Garden Centre Reopening Campaign and agree that garden centres should be included in the first phase of easing lockdown restrictions provided new measures are in place to protect public safety.

All UK garden centres closed on 23 March 2020, following the Government’s measures to reduce social contact. As a result, they have been struggling with around £200m worth of plants that could be lost.

This has had an immediate impact on bird food manufacturers, given over one fifth of bird food products are sold in garden centres. Richard Johnston, Managing Director of Johnston and Jeff Ltd, and Chair of PFMA Bird Group remarked: “The 23rd March 2020 is a date we will never forget, due to the immediate effect of the lockdown. We almost instantly saw all garden centres close - some so quickly and unexpectedly that deliveries were still on their way and were turned around when confronted with closed gates.”

The Horticultural Trades Association (HTA) have highlighted their preparation work in setting out a series of social distancing protocols on what a garden centre reopening could envisage. In their statement on 20 April they said: “We are promoting to Government and MPs that if they do move to a phased review of the current lockdown situation before the three week period ends, garden centres are well placed to be in that first phase.”

PFMA and its Bird Group members support the position of HTA and agree that garden centres should be included in the first phase of easing lockdown restrictions provided the necessary measures are in place to prioritise safety of staff and customers.

This move could improve the availability and supply of bird food products, contributing to the welfare and conservation of wild birds. This could also play a part in the mental health and wellbeing of those individuals, many of whom are among older and more vulnerable groups, who regularly feed wild birds (over 60% of people that are over the age of 65, and have outdoor space at home, feed wild birds – PFMA Market Research 2020).

Details of the HTA’s Garden Centre Reopening Campaign and how to support it can be found via this link.

We need to ‘Buy British to save our plant industry’ says Alan Titchmarsh as an increase of imports will have a devastating environmental impact on UK gardening.

· Around one in three businesses say that even with access to UK Government aid packages they are likely to be insolvent this year

· More than one in ten UK growers (13%) claim that they will out of business by the end of June

· Unless action is taken in the next two weeks a large range of homegrown British plants may not be available for up to two years, which will increase imports and leave the UK open to the risk of infectious diseases and pests

· Alan Titchmarsh is joined by UK’s top gardeners to support industry and launches new campaign #KeepBritainBlooming

Insert video here.

A new industry report conducted by The Horticultural Trades Association (HTA) reveals that the government’s current proposed aid package does not work for the horticultural industry and that a third of UK growers claim they will be insolvent by the end of June because of the impact of coronavirus.[1]

In response to the findings, the nation’s favourite celebrity gardeners, along with the HTA who conducted the survey amongst the UK’s ornamental grower businesses, are calling for the Government to act now and support growers before it is too late.

The HTA is asking for a compensation scheme to be set up and claims that the UK Government’s aid package simply does not work for the horticultural industry. Less than one in five growers have received help through the Government’s business support measures, while just 1% has received financial support from the government’s Coronavirus Business Interruption Loans scheme (CBILS).

Current UK Government support does not consider the total loss of annual income for growers, which is largely seasonal from March to June. Meanwhile, over three-fifths of growers (62%) said that they were not eligible for business support grants, while nearly four in five (79%) growers are not entitled to any kind of rates relief.

In the Netherlands, the Government has announced a scheme to help its industry while at the same time leaving garden centres open, meaning that Dutch growers will be perfectly positioned to supply the UK market if the British sector collapses.

Gardening icon, Alan Titchmarsh, has joined forces with an army of fellow TV gardeners including Adam Frost, Chris Beardshaw, James Wong, Bunny Guinness, Joe Swift, Pippa Greenwood, Jim Buttress, Matthew Biggs, Bob Flowerdew, David Domoney, Lee Connelly (The Skinny Jean Gardener) and Matthew Wilson, to help the industry by asking the millions of gardening lovers across the UK to show their support:

• write to their local MP in support of opening their local garden centres immediately in a manged and responsible way sharing a message or image/video of how gardening keeps them healthy linked to #KeepBritainBlooming

Alan Titchmarsh MBE comments: “The shocking findings from today’s report show that around a third of our ornamental plant growers – many of them family concerns could go out of business by the end of June unless action is taken now. Put simply, if the Government is unable to offer a compensation scheme on the lines of that already put in place by the Dutch government, and independent garden centres remain closed, then our beloved British garden industry is on the brink of destruction. The longer the delay continues, the more costly the solution.

“Europe has stolen a march on the UK and already prepared its horticulture industry for the future. Without a similar financial lifeline, many of our growers will go under and even more, plants will need to be imported from Europe. Aside from the catastrophic economic implications, such imports leave our nation open to the risk of all the infectious diseases and pests that for the last decade British horticulture has worked so hard to avoid. We need to buy British not only to save our plant industry but also to help deliver on our climate change and plant health ambitions in the future.

“We are asking the public to support our campaign to #KeepBritainBlooming and to recognise the joy that plants bring to millions of gardeners across the country. Opening garden centres now, with the same safety measures employed as in supermarkets, will give people across the country access to plants, encourage them to garden, stay healthy and productive at home and help save an industry at the heart of British life.”

The scale of the challenge for UK growers is enormous. While some plants can be distributed through mail order and home deliveries, there are hundreds of millions of bedding plants in production - equal to the land area of Liverpool - and ordinarily 60% of UK plant sales go through independent garden centres at this peak trading period.

Questions have been raised as to why DIY stores have reopened with garden sections last week, while supermarkets have extended retail areas to sell more plants and gardening products. In many other countries, garden centres have been reopened.

If a decision is made to reopen garden centres, many premises are already set up to allow for social distancing as they have wide aisles and outside space. Plant areas and other essential garden supplies will be the focus for any reopening and cafes or restaurants will stay closed.

A recent YouGov poll showed that over 70% of those who attend garden centres would feel comfortable to do so once measures were eased – the highest scoring for any retail outlet.

A managed re-opening of garden centres would give people limited access and would focus on allowing the purchase of plants and other gardening supplies.

James Barnes, Chair of the HTA comments: “We’re now at the end of April and the only way of rescuing this sector is to pursue a simple compensation scheme like the system announced by the Dutch Government, which will save its horticultural industry. We should do the same.

“However, the cost of this scheme would be significantly reduced by allowing garden centres to sell plants and gardening equipment as soon as possible. Unless something is done in the next two weeks, we could lose between a third and a half of our seasonal growing sector, which will be a tragedy for hundreds of family businesses throughout the UK and result in a dependency on foreign imports, with all the potential biosecurity issues that brings.”

Horticulture not only provides a great deal of grow your own produce but also contributes to the positive physical and mental wellbeing of gardening. Gardening is one of the UK’s biggest hobbies with over 23 million gardeners throughout the country.

Peak season has only a matter of weeks left for the horticulture sector, which has formed an essential part of British life for over 350 years. Around 70% of plant sales are made between March and the end of May. Many of these growers are facing huge difficulties and a near-complete loss of income due to the coronavirus. Not only are they losing sales, but many are and will have to write off their stock making this a unique situation.

Dobbies Garden Centres have announced its support for The Royal Horticulture Society’s (RHS) National Gardening Week, the UK’s biggest celebration of gardening from Monday 27 April to Sunday 3 May.

This year’s theme is ‘Keep Gardening and Grow at Home’, encouraging the nation to get gardening in whatever space they have, for the benefit of their mental and physical health.

At the start of National Gardening Week, Dobbies launched a brand-new gardening podcast to encourage the nation to get green fingered this spring and summer season. The series is devoted to all things to do with plants and gardening, providing inspiration and handy tips for seasoned gardeners and novices alike.

Hosted by talented gardener and writer Louise Midgely, the series will welcome a guest each episode to chat all things gardening, sharing trusted advice, tried and tested techniques and handy tips to get the best out of your garden.

In the first episode, host Louise is joined by Dobbies’ very own horticulture expert, Marcus Eyles. Drawing on their extensive experience, the pair discuss the best things to do in your garden this spring, covering beds and borders, lawn maintenance, the best produce to plant and grow now, and tips on how to prepare your garden for the summer ahead.

There will then be the chance to ask the experts questions directly with two Facebook Live Q&A sessions. Marcus Eyles will host on Wednesday 29 April at 19:00, with a focus on grow your own. Louise Midgley will host on Friday 1 May at 19:00, with a focus on styling your outdoor space.

Graeme Jenkins, CEO at Dobbies, said: “Spring is an excellent time to be in the garden and we’re delighted to launch our new podcast series and Facebook Live Q&A sessions to share expert gardening advice for National Gardening Week.

“Whether you are a keen gardener or just getting started, we hope the series and Q&As inspire people of all ages to get gardening, as well as positively impacting on their wellbeing, during National Gardening Week and beyond.”

RHS Chief Horticulturist, Guy Barter, says: “During these challenging and unsettling times when we are missing our family and friends, and our favourite places and activities, National Gardening Week takes on new meaning for many of us this year. While we all stay at home, the RHS is encouraging the nation to take to social media and share uplifting videos and images of their gardens, houseplants, allotments and even the trees and flowers that make them smile on their daily exercise, using the hashtag #NationalGardeningWeek, to help inspire everyone to keep gardening and grow at home.”

In addition to the podcast and Q&As, Dobbies will share advice and top tips on different elements of gardening throughout the week at dobbies.com, and on Facebook and Instagram.

Dobbies’ podcast is available to listen to and download now via iTunes: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/dobbies-our-gardening-podcast/id1509667463

Join the Facebook Live Q&As: www.facebook.com/DobbiesGC

For more information visit www.dobbies.com

The RHS will be creating films with beginner gardening advice for those who aren’t sure where to start – look out for these on the RHS Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and YouTube channels.

For further information visit https://www.rhs.org.uk/get-involved/national-gardening-week

Flowers have the power of diminishing problems and absorbing the mind. They are always beautiful to behold and bring colour and joy into our lives and homes.

We know that travel is not easy at this time so we are offering a 10% discount off all our online courses at the Judith Blacklock Flower School until 1st July 2020 - for those who wish to further their dream of working with flowers - either as a joyful hobby or profession.

All modules have up-to-date, in-depth information, accompanied by a comprehensive video of about 25 minutes giving clear guidance on how to accomplish each design. Students are given their own personal tutor who help guide them and develop their skills. An accredited diploma by the BAC (British Accreditation Council) is awarded at the end of each course. You don’t need to go out and buy your flowers, the courses can be completed with an order from the supermarket, flowers from the garden or an online local florist and can be supplemented with silk flowers also.

For more details please visit: www.judithblacklock.com

"This is a wonderful course! I can 100% endorse it. The support and guidance from Judith and her Team is incredible. I successfully graduated from the online business course with distinction and my floristry business is now entering its 6th successful year.” Claire Wallace

As the days pass and we quickly adapt to the new way of living, there are some days being cocooned in our homes and gardens with our loved ones that we feel safe and protected. But it won’t be long before most people will know of a life lost, or a livelihood destroyed by the Coronavirus pandemic.

The sanctuary of the garden space
This reality is never far from our minds at Evergreen Garden Care. The safety and wellbeing of our employees, retailers, agencies and supplier partners is our upmost priority. But remarkably, in the midst of this pandemic, the garden space has become a vital part of day-to-day life. It offers families, high-risk individuals, teenagers and children a precious place to help process, cope and distract from the current situation. More than ever people are trying gardening for the first time or trying new gardening projects.

Control Measures
For these reason's Evergreen Garden Care has put in place a number of different measures and initiatives to continue serving our customers and maintain business as best as possible, whilst safeguarding employees wellbeing. We have introduced best practices to maintain 2m social distancing at our 3 UK factories (Howden, Hatfield and Gretna), our distribution centres and at our research and development station - Levington. This has included:

• Shift patterns altered to increase separation at work
• Start and finish times staggered to reduce overlap
• One-way systems
• Slowing operating manufacturing lines

We have invested in more regular cleaning and disinfecting in all areas and shared equipment, put in place Perspex screens as well as voluntary temperature checks for all workers at these sites. This has ensured we can maintain manufacturing and distribution but with reduced capacity and thus to ensure supply we have focused on the key selling lines.

Where products are unavailable, we are offering alternatives in the means of different pack sizes, formats, variant or brand. We appreciate this will result in gaps in their deliveries but we are doing our upmost to find a solution to continue to service in challenging circumstances.

At the beginning of the month as Garden Centres closed due to government guidelines, 28 of our team members went on the government furlough scheme, many of which included our sales representatives, but we have retained a smaller team to continue to support this channel. The global executive and UK leadership team members have also taken a 20% pay cut.

Supporting the Category
We have taken the decision to continue to invest in marketing support, but we have adapted the plans to inspire, challenge and enable all gardeners to successfully complete their gardening projects. Miracle-Gro will run on TV, Video on Demand and digital campaign throughout April and May, whilst our social media will continue to produce content that help people grow from seed, grow their own or offer help and advice to get started. We are continuing to work with renowned horticulturist David Domoney to produce content that is supportive and practical in this situation.

The Future
We know that things are not going to be straightforward as we all adapt to the new normal and we’re looking to the future to see how we can play our part to helping to rebuild communities and to support our people and customers when we come out of this immediate phase.

These are challenging times for everyone and our heartfelt appreciation goes out to all those who are working so tirelessly in so many professions to protect the health and wellbeing of our nation.

From all at Evergreen Garden Care, please stay safe and we commit to continuing to extend our help to you at this time.

With the country under lockdown due to Covid-19, new research commissioned by Jeyes, reveals that 6 in 10 Brits are spending more time than ever in their gardens. Yet surprisingly, 2 in 5 people admit to not cleaning up and taking care of their gardens properly.

On the back of the research, Jeyes has joined forces with Gardeners’ World presenter, Mark Lane, to set the nation a challenge. For the month of May, they want people to use the extra time in the garden to flex their green fingers for just 30 minutes each day to spruce it up in preparation for summer.

The initiative, named “The Great British Garden Spruce up” kicks off on April 27th, to coincide with the launch of National Gardening Week, and runs through to May 31st. A downloadable planner has been created including quick and easy, family-friendly suggestions on how people can spend their daily 30 minutes, from water blasting the patio to upcycling old plant pots.

The benefits of gardening to both mental and physical health have long been proclaimed. A report by The King’s Fund recognised that regular gardening can reduce the risk of heart disease, cancer and obesity. The Royal Horticultural Society calculates that half an hour of digging in the garden burns up to 150 calories and moving the lawn burns 165.

Furthermore, the newly commissioned Jeyes research, conducted among 2,000 adults, reveals that 68% of people feel more relaxed when in the garden and around nature. And, half of all respondents say that being close to nature makes them feel happy.

Mark Lane comments: “This will absolutely be a worrying time for many, but gardening has the ability to not only keep you physically fit, but it is also great for improving mental health and wellbeing too. May is one of the best months on the gardening calendar with the longer days and warmer weather, so we encourage you to make the most of this time by taking part in the challenge and creating an outdoor sanctuary of your own, no matter how small or large the space.”

Charlotte Blampied, Brand Manager at Jeyes, adds: “The planner includes quick and easy tasks that will make a difference, not only to your garden but to your health and wellbeing too. We hope this challenge not only gives you the opportunity to get some jobs ticked off your list, but allows you to reconnect with nature and feel comfort in knowing that the nation is also doing the same.”

Participants are encouraged to share pictures of their spruce ups on social media using the hashtag #JeyesGardenSpruceUp. Visit www.jeyesruleyourgarden.co.uk for further information and to download the Great British Garden Spruce Up Planner.

The study surveyed 2,000 women and men across the UK.

This is a year like no other. As many of us stay at home to protect the NHS and support keyworkers, we have more time to spend tending our gardens, courtyards, driveways, window boxes or balconies than ever before. Even though some supplies are difficult to find during lockdown, our home gardens and green spaces will never have looked so good!

As many of the national and local garden competitions have been cancelled, Perennial, the charity for people in horticulture, has stepped up with the largest ever virtual garden competition. The competition will celebrate gardens of all shapes and sizes across the UK and raise funds at a time when Perennial’s services are needed most and usual fundraising methods are not possible. With the support of Suttons and a panel of top gardener judges, the HortAid-20 Gardening Competition is open to anyone.

Perennial President, Alan Titchmarsh MBE, is heading up the judging panel. He says: “During the current crisis the need for Perennial’s help has never been greater. It really is a life-saver for gardeners and all people in horticulture who are in need of support, and our current work is making a vital difference to so many in these life-threatening times. That is why the team at Perennial have set up the HortAid-20 Gardening Competition to help raise funds.  With categories to suit everyone whether you have a large garden or small, or even no garden at all please do enter, have a bit of fun and help the men and women who have devoted their lives to making our landscape a better place.”

Alan is joined by a team of the country’s finest gardeners who will judge photographs submitted by individuals until 15 August 2020. The panel includes Rachel de Thame, Ann-Marie Powell, James Wong, Jim Buttress, Jo Whiley, Lee Connelly (The Skinny Jeans Gardener), Lesley Watson and Michael Perry. All category winners will win a certificate personally signed by Alan and Jim and the chance to meet one of the judges.

Anita Bates, Director of Marketing and Fundraising at Perennial, says: “Our HortAid-20 Gardening Competition is open to everyone with categories to suit all ages and abilities. Thanks to Suttons we have a top prize of a hamper of goodies worth £250 up for grabs, plus individual category prizes and the chance to meet one of our fabulous judges – when we’re all allowed out again of course! Each entry costs just £5 with all proceeds helping us provide our essential advice and support to people in horticulture. Go on, have a go, you might just surprise yourself!”

Hilary Cutler, Sales and Marketing Director from Suttons says: “Suttons is delighted to sponsor the HortAid-20 Gardening Competition with Perennial to support their fundraising activities during this challenging time. With everyone spending more time in their gardens than probably ever before we are looking forward to seeing the entries, from all generations and gardens large and small.”

Full entry details for the HortAid-20 Gardening Competition can be found online at: https://perennial.org.uk/home/how-you-can-help/gardening-competition/.

The closing date is 15 August 2020 with photographs invited by email to GardeningCompetition@perennial.org.uk

As many across the region continue to face additional challenges during the COVID-19 crisis, The Gardens Group has been seeking out opportunities to bring the positive power of plants to flower beds, vegetable plots and window sills in need. Utilising unsold plants to contribute to the work of carers, hospital staff and teachers, The Gardens Group is putting excess stock to good use in support of key workers and everyone doing their bit to stay home throughout the lockdown.

Continuing its longstanding relationship with Dorset-based social enterprise, Future Roots, Poundbury Gardens near Dorchester has contributed small plant kits to the members of The Countrymen’s Club, a group of vulnerable adults who suffer from conditions including dementia. Intended to keep these service users positive, occupied and engaged with nature, while they are unable to access the farm’s programme, the plant kits contain a collection of plants that need to be potted on, along with some compost and larger pots to plant into.

Reaching out to NHS workers in the surrounding communities, the staff at Castle Gardens have donated a selection of houseplants to Yeatman Hospital in Sherborne, brightening up window sills across the site, while the team at Brimsmore Gardens supplied some spring plants for the flower beds at Yeovil hospital, providing a cheerful welcome for all, including wildlife visitors.

Any other items that could use a little extra TLC are being donated to local nursing homes, not-for-profit organisations and schools like Ash Primary School near Martock, which stayed open throughout Easter for the children of key workers. Receiving compost and plants for the vegetable garden, the pupils were able to get stuck into learning about where their food comes from, while benefiting from this connection with the great outdoors.

Mike Burks, managing director of The Gardens Group and chairman of the Garden Centre Association, commented: “Community is at the heart of what we do at The Gardens Group, so we’re looking for every opportunity to support those in need during this period. Surplus stock has become a great vehicle for this, and while a loss in sales in never welcome, it’s very rewarding to see the impact that these plants have had in schools, homes and hospitals across Dorset and Somerset. In many ways, it’s been a great reminder of what makes plants and gardening so special, so it’s given our team a big boost as they continue to go above and beyond throughout this incredibly challenging time.”

Set up as part of the ongoing fight against Covid-19 the temporary NHS Nightingale Hospital at ExCel London has become ‘home’ to over 1,600 support staff bravely facing the virus head-on. Thanks to LifestyleGarden and a wealth of generous donors, these workers now have a stunning garden space in which to relax and find a moment of calm away from the frontline.

Co-ordinated by the superb team at Biotecture Limited, this new garden space came together in just a matter of days thanks to the hard work and dedication of the on-site team. Adding a splash of colour to proceedings and a much needed to rest weary bodies, is LifestyleGarden’s limited-edition Banyan Tree Cast Aluminum Chairs in pink, green and sunny yellow - reflecting the rainbow that has become the symbol of support for the NHS during these unprecedented times.

Paul Cohen, Sales Director at LifestyleGarden, said: “We knew as soon as we were approached to help with the garden project at NHS Nightingale, that we absolutely had to be involved – it is the least we could do! The team at NHS Nightingale are true superheroes and we will forever be indebted to them for their bravery and unrelenting dedication to fighting against the corona virus. We hope that the new garden space created for them will provide a quiet place to rest and recuperate during their working day.”

Richard Sabin, Managing Director, Biotecture added: “During these strange times it was actually something of a relief to be able to work on something so positive. I was also so heartened at the response from the rest of the landscape industry and a number of volunteers who worked on the project. This made it so easy to pull together in just three days and the reaction of the NHS staff when they saw the garden made it all worthwhile.”

In addition to donating product to the NHS Nightingale garden, LifestyleGarden has also launched a special giveaway via its Instagram (@lifestylegardenfurniture) and LinkedIn pages. This giveaway is designed to offer thanks to key workers, with 10 of its rainbow coloured Nassau bistro sets up for grabs. People need only nominate the key worker in their life with the hashtag #FeetUpwithLifestyleGarden.

Paul Cohen added: “It’s almost impossible to truly show our gratitude to those key workers that are keeping our country running during lockdown, but we hope that our giveaway might bring a little bit of sunshine into the lives of those have been working tirelessly since this all began. We’ve already had a great response, and we are really looking forward to announcing the winners in a few short weeks.”

If you want to find out more about LifestyleGarden and its premium-quality outdoor furniture, please visit us at www.lifestylegarden.com and follow the team on Facebook and Instagram.

AQUA 2021 will be a crucial event in the aquatics and water gardening industry, according to UK and international suppliers and retailers.

Planning for the exhibition in October 2021 has already started with companies booking their stand space for the biennial event.

Stuart Bertram, sales director of D-D The Aquarium Solution, summed up the mood of exhibitors, saying: “AQUA is the ideal environment to meet with all of our customers in a friendly and personal setting. The exhibition ticks all of the boxes for a well-run show, in a convenient central location, where we can showcase new products, meet new people or just sit down and chinwag with old friends.”

And Andy Bond, national sales manager of OASE UK, remarked: “AQUA is such a good exhibition because it gives retailers the chance to see all the new products first hand.”

AQUA 2021 will be returning to the Telford International Centre on Wednesday 13^th and Thursday 14^th October, 2021. Major companies acknowledge the importance of exhibiting their products and services to aquatic and garden centre retailers, all under one roof.

“It’s great to see the industry getting right behind the show again, especially when there is so much uncertainty throughout the world at the moment,” said organiser Gordon Thomas.

“Starting to plan for a show like AQUA 2021 will hopefully bring some respite from the current coronavirus crisis. I know companies will be working hard between now and next year’s exhibition to produce new and innovative products and services.”

One retailer who has already put AQUA 2021 in his diary is Simon Jenkins, of Ripples Waterlife, who has been a New Product Award judge at the show in the past. “It’s always great to get everyone from the trade together, and it’s important this happens every two years. I thought the show last October was a success and look forward to AQUA 2021. I know a lot of effort goes into getting these events to work.”

Joining leading UK companies at AQUA 2021 will be a long list of international brands from around the world, including America, Denmark, France, Germany, Italy, The Czech Republic, and The Netherlands.

As well as getting to see all the new products to be launched on to the market, visitors will also be invited to join exhibitors at an AQUA dinner on the first evening of the exhibition. The dinner is one of the main highlights of the event, where guests get the chance to relax with fellow industry colleagues.

Details of the 2021 event can also be found on the exhibition’s new-look website  www.aquatelford.co.uk, which includes the latest show news, how to register to visit, and the AQUA dinner.

To discover more reasons why AQUA has become a vital date in the water gardening and aquatics trade calendar, retailers and suppliers can view a special video of last October’s event at https://vimeo.com/371139081.

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As the Government continues to adapt to the ever-changing COVID-19 situation, garden centres are amongst those industries being hit hardest, having closed their doors during their busiest time, and sector specialists Malcolm Scott Consultants are encouraging them to take advantage of all grants and relief available to them.

Last month, Chancellor Rishi Sunak announced £20 billion of business rates support and grant funding to help the most-affected firms manage their cashflow through this period.

In addition to the one-year 100 per cent business rates holiday for the retail, hospitality and leisure sectors, the Chancellor also pledged an increase in grants to small businesses eligible for Small Business Rate Relief from £3,000 to £10,000, and further £25,000 grants to retail, hospitality and leisure businesses operating from smaller premises within the rateable value bracket of over £15,000 and below £51,000.

Chris Primett, Director at MSC, said: “In guidance issued by the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, Garden Centres are specifically identified as beneficiaries of this package of relief and grants. The aim of Government has been to support these businesses through the initial lockdown period and subsequent uncertain times.

“It should not be overlooked that whilst the COVID 19 crisis continues to run its course, the business rate system remains intact, as does its mechanism for disputing Rateable Values.

“We, in conjunction with our colleagues Harris Lamb, are experts in challenging rateable values, and in doing so creating refunds of overpaid rates to occupiers that can be backdated to 1st April 2017. It is essential that while planning or future operations within the sector, centre operators use this time to research any overpayments that they have made and redress the balance,” he added.

For further details contact Chris on chrisp@malcolmscottcons.co.uk

EGO’s new battery is compatible with all EGO Power+ tools and includes power level gauge to reduce unexpected power failures.  It can be fully charged in just 70 minutes with EGO’s rapid charger.

Representing a big step forward in gardening technology, EGO’s new 10Ah (560wh) battery (BA5600T) means gardeners can power their equipment for longer, without the need for extra batteries or urgent recharging. It even includes a power level gauge to help with planning the day’s activities.

Featuring EGO’s pioneering 56V Arc lithium-ion technology, the new 10Ah battery is the latest and most powerful addition to a range that already includes 2.5, 5.0 and 7.5AH batteries. Offering superior run time, the new battery means that gardeners can go about their work knowing they’ll be able to power through the entire day.

Weighing in at 3.4kg it can be used with EGO’s backpack harness for extra comfort – ideal for larger gardens or extra chores. And with no power cables to trip on or petrol to handle, it’s a safe and clean option for environmentally conscious gardeners.

With a standard charge time of just over three hours, or 70 minutes on rapid charge, the new 10Ah battery puts optimum power and performance into the hands of gardeners and professional users.

The EGO 10Ah battery removes the frustrations caused by running out of power before finishing the job. To help people plan more efficiently, EGO is also introducing a new power indicator gauge into all new EGO batteries.

This new battery is compatible with all EGO power tools including the new 42cm mower as well as trimmers, blowers and chainsaws, so gardeners can tackle multiple jobs on one single charge.

Representing the industry’s most reliable and advanced technology, the new 10Ah battery retails at £399.00.

The course taken by the Dutch government, as expressed by Prime Minister Rutte on 21 April, unfortunately leaves no room for the physical edition of the trade fair Plantarium 2020. Plantarium's main mission is to promote trade in ornamental plant products. In order to lend a helping hand to the horticulture sector, the main focus will be on digital interaction.

Large events are prohibited until 1 September and even after that a fair with corona adjustments is not responsible and feasible. An international fair like this cannot follow adapted protocols and still hold sufficient interest for all parties involved. The plans for the physical fair will be postponed until next year, if the developments surrounding the coronavirus allow it to take place again in a feasible form.

Digital communication has become the worldwide standard in this lock down period. It is therefore logical to take this direction for the promotion and trade facilitation of products and companies in the horticulture sector. Moreover, it is in line with Plantarium's new course to grow from an annual trade fair to a digital platform as well. Just like at the trade fair, Plantarium is digitally focusing on inspiration, with the aim of acting as a guide and connector for Plantarium visitors.

If you want to keep your staff up to date with what's happening in the industry during the lockdown how about adding a link to the GTN Xtra weekly e-mail newsletter into your staff communications.

All you need to do is add this link: www.gardentradenews.co.uk and that will take them to the current issue.

Or you can add an RSS feed of our newsletter using this link: http://tgcmc.newsweaver.co.uk/gtnxtra/rss/

Don't forget to send us your news and views during lockdown, GTN Xtra continues to be read at very high levels, for which thank you.  Send your news and views to: trevor.pfeiffer@tgcmc.co.uk

Last week we asked garden centres how they and their teams were after the quietest Easter ever and as the story has been so well read we thought this week we should ask suppliers how they are faring with the crisis. Here are the responses received so far, starting with compost and gardening essential suppliers through to giftware suppliers.  Feedback from Garden Leisure suppliers are in the story.... 

Simon McArdle, Westland: “Garden centres will have plenty of opportunities when they get to re-open. There will still be 25 million households trapped at home and many of them will be starting a brand-new relationship with their garden.

“If they didn’t realise it before, what an asset their garden is now?

“We’re hearing that many garden centres are tooling up for click and collect, if they are not one of the “Bunker and Cowells” brigade that have already rolled up their sleeves and got on with business, and many are also spreading their shops out to take up restaurant space and out into the planteria to allow for greater social distancing when they can re-open.

“We are working on a host of initiatives to help with trade when it re-starts, mainly based on “mission” shopping, so watch this space.  When we know exactly what retailers will and will not be able to do, we will be ready and raring to help.

“Westland are open.  We’ve been shipping and manufacturing throughout and we have good stocks of identified lines we know will be in high demand.  We’ve also been supporting retailers with images and information for their on-line shops for delivery services or click and collect.   Our website: gardenhealth.com has been changed so that the home page drives consumers to local retailers who are offering local deliveries.

“Across the Westland and Gardman Crest ranges we are uniquely positioned to complete all the garden tasks, sending one delivery to garden centres with all the products your customers need.”

Mark Portman, Evergreen Garden Care: “Yes, we are open for business and have high levels of stock for the season ahead. Last week, demand was high and our customer service team took a lot of orders. As a result, we are increasing our production and adding an extra shift, anticipating that garden centres will re-open around the middle of May. Demand in Europe has been very high when they have re-opened garden centres and DIY stores, and so we will be ready for whenever this happens in the UK, as the climate is ever-changing.

 “Our Ipswich research station is still operating, and all three UK manufacturing plants are still running along with our French factory too. We’ve changed the way that we’re operating at our sites with temperature checks when staff come on site and we are not allowing 3rd party visitors, apart from lorry drivers.  All of our warehouses are still operating with safety as our top priority.

“The landscape is moving quickly, and demand is remarkably strong. Independent garden centres have been super creative and entrepreneurial. I think the season will be longer than usual.

“As a team we are learning how to do things virtually, keeping everyone connected with video calls, virtual coffee mornings, drop in lunchtime sessions using Google Hang Out and we dial in at the end of the week to have a drink together.

“I would like to say a big thank you to our manufacturing, warehouse and customer service teams who have all done a tremendous job keeping things going in difficult circumstances.”

Steve Harper: The Greener Gardening Company: “It's been an interesting journey over the past few weeks.  In the first week of April I would have predicted we would have lost 80% of our business but as retailers adapt I would suggest now maybe less than 30%.

“Those retailers that are trading have in some cases found ways to massively overtrade, I have garden centres now delivering only, up 200% plus on last April on Compost sales (not as a whole).

“We have only furloughed a relatively small amount of the team and we keep in contact with a weekly video call. Indeed I have a daily wellbeing call with my whole team given we're so disparate which the furloughed guys can dial into whenever they like but I insist they call in at least weekly so we can make sure they're ok. It's good to see the home haircuts appearing

“I think we're in a good place to step up as an when things start to return to normal, the struggle may be to ramp haulage back up quickly but I'm sure we'll have some notice to prepare.

“I know some garden centres have started relaying their centres so they can create a supermarket type flow. It seems to me as much as we want and need garden centres to open, some of them will have to radically change their flow to make sure it's safe but currently if they're planning they at least have the time to do that. I for one can't wait to get some plants!”

Andy Chalmers, Melcourt: “After 6 month's of wet, gloomy weather, the clocks going forward, an ideal date for Easter, everyone is 'up for gardening' . . . then this happens!

“There is massive 'pent up demand'. Melcourt does not have an e-shop, but we sell our garden centre products through traditional outlets (garden centres and builders' merchants) or businesses with e-shops. Any business with a 'home delivery service' is quids in at the moment.

“When we eventually get the 'all clear', most people will not go on an expensive overseas holiday but will probably stay local. I would expect the gardening season to be extended, as we will have no interruptions such as Wimbledon tennis, European Cup Football or 2020 Olympics.

“As long as 'all of the ducks are in a row', i.e. raw materials, packing, pallets, transport and staff, we are able to continue to supply our customers.

“Business is just like a normal year, at this time for us. There is a continuing and increasing demand for quality 100% peat-free products, particularly Melcourt's. Retail price is not the issue. I want it now!

“But take care to get paid. Cash flow could be an issue.”

Paris Natar, Smart Garden: "The best Spring and Easter weather for a generation and most of our customers have been shut!

“Closing down Smart's operations has never been an option unless forced to do so, which, thankfully, has not happened. We believe in the importance of keeping our business going, the wheels turning. We have about 50 colleagues working at our Eureka warehouse, handling orders, mostly small top-ups from UK and European garden centres as well as from our mail order and e-commerce clients.

“Many garden centres decided they did not want to shut down and adapted to doing home deliveries. A very tough way of doing business but it has rescued a substantial part of their and our sales so, hats off to them!

“Perhaps unsurprisingly, there has been a big spike in demand from our mail order and e-commerce customers but volumes, relative to our normal April sales, have not been that great.

“Thanks to an extra server, sales and customer service colleagues, normally office-based, are working from home with reliable, speedy access to our system. Could this be the way of working in the future, even beyond the crisis? I doubt it because one of the best things about going to work is seeing friends and colleagues. They (and I) would miss the buzz!

“We are also taking this opportunity to tidy up and carry out a myriad of maintenance tasks that have eluded us in busier times...for example jet washing our car park at our Abingdon HO now that there are hardly any cars in it!

“When the restrictions are lifted and garden centres come back to life, we hope for but don't anticipate a huge surge in demand as much of the season will be gone, there will still be a lot of un-sold stock around and shoppers will continue to be a little nervous about going out. On the flip side, the season should extend beyond June as no one will be going abroad for their holidays. We will be ready for whatever comes as we will not be starting from scratch!

“The next few months are going to be critical for our industry. Retailers and their suppliers are totally inter-dependent and the only way of getting through this will be by working together for the common good."

Nick Davies, Gardman Crest: “We are open, picking and shipping in a managed and measured way. The warehouse has had to change the way it operates but we have a steady flow of orders coming in electronically. The orders tend to be for the essentials like grow your own and basic gardening requirements.

“Our sales office is working as normal, albeit from home.

“Based on the orders we’ve been getting I urge all garden centres to know which are their bestsellers for the time they are re-opening as for sure there will be big demand for them.”

James Hoad: Apta: “Apta remains open for business, with a skeleton staff running the office and warehouse. Although most of our staff are on furlough leave, and our merchandising service isn't operational, we've been delivering orders to customers that are still trading. It appears that more and more garden centres are getting their e-commerce up and running so we've seen an increase since Easter, although obviously nothing like what it should be.

“The Apta team is fine although with 90% on furlough leave we're all just itching to get back to normality.

“I really hope that common sense will prevail and enable garden centres to be among the first to reopen when lockdown restrictions are eased. Let's just hope the government are listening to Alan Titchmarsh and not Monty Don!”

David Nicholson, Elho: “We have remained fully open and are now increasing our logistics capacity. Monday was our highest order entry so far in the crisis which encompasses the whole of Europe. It brings a lot of encouragement to the full elho team to see the business increase and we hopefully start to see light at the end of the tunnel. During the crisis we have been supporting and delivering in full to all customers in the UK whom remain open and willing to place orders.

“elho have implemented the following:

- regular team touch point calls to look after the full teams wellbeing as we are spread across Europe

- elho strava group to share our exercise to stay healthy

- company online yoga/cardio boxing training for all employees

“We are ready and fully prepared to support all centres when they re-open. We are gearing up in logistics and have good stock in preparation for a sensational summer and amazing autumn.”

Tim Jeffries, Mr Fothergills and Darlac: “Unlike many garden centre suppliers we, at Mr Fothergills, have been able to continue trading at a reasonable level. Although sales are down to traditional outlets that have closed of course we have been working hard with our centres that are trading online or offering click & collect or delivery services. Seeds have still been in high demand as people cocoon at home and demand for grow your own is high.

“We have prioritised our retail business and have spent long hours providing images for new trading websites or copy platforms. Our Territory sales team is working from home, but not furloughed, as we want to maintain contact with our garden trade customers and provide the service they expect from us.

“Our office staff are mainly working from home and we have split shifts over 24 hours at the Kentford production and despatch operations to ensure we keep our staff safe by respecting the 2-metre rule and having adequate safety equipment on site. We have furloughed any staff on any grounds of age or vulnerability. Our staff have been amazing!

“Seed sales in our Australian business, where garden centres and Bunnings have remained open, are very strong and seed rationing has been imposed in some stores.

“At Darlac, the story is different with dramatically reduced sales. We have taken the decision to maintain staff numbers working so that we can supply a good service to any centre that is trading - albeit tools are further down the shopping list.

“We all hope garden centres will reopen in the first phase of easing of the lockdown and we will be in the best position to step up immediately, whether at Mr Fothergills or Darlac.”

Guy Jenkins, DLF Seeds: “DLF Seeds Ltd UK are open for business. While all my office colleagues are dispersed and working from home my colleagues in production and warehousing are at work and fully operative. For the record social distancing is in place throughout and we have made physical adjustments to our production and warehousing to ensure their safety. In early March we asked several warehouse colleagues to work from home in stock control, to return if other colleagues were unable to attend, to ensure continuity of supply.

“We continue to supply customers with Johnsons Lawn Seed and Neudorff products, direct to store, into wholesalers and for some customers via dropship deliveries. There is very high demand for Johnsons and Neudorff lines and end users are finding the retailers prepared to deliver, click and collect or in some cases, where they can, shop in store. To date our inbound supply chain has remained secure and delivering on time and out bound deliveries continue uninterrupted.

“We have Skype for business and Microsoft Teams so we have joint calls morning and afternoon. Throughout the day we are in touch and can share screens for work or sometimes just for our own gardening projects! End of the day on Friday we have a quiz and sometimes we have corona coffee breaks too, there's definitely an emphasis on time to catch up on non-work events, even if it's only for a minute or two.

“Hopefully garden centres will be allowed to start opening after the first May bank holiday and we are ready to supply the day this happens!”

Millie Ferns, Meadow View Stone: “We took the early decision to furlough all staff from our main operation, but with the exception of our accounts team, on 25th March following a massive drop in orders.

“We maintained skeleton staff at our Rye operation and during this period supplied a few customers who had managed to navigate a home delivery system

“During the last 7-10 days we have seen a significant demand for our products, which has led us to reopen the Meadow View main site with a small team of operatives this week.

“Direct shipment is now available for customers to promote, however many accounts have been taking full load orders and recording record sales of our products via their own home delivery system.

“My thoughts are that once the doors are allowed to open there will be a mass influx of customers wishing to support their local Garden Centre, and to get their hands on plants, compost and aggregates – all of which have been in massive demand but have been very hard to come by these last few weeks

“The weather leading up to, and following Easter; with glorious blue skies each morning, would have provided the best six week window of sales possibly on record, which is something very hard to tolerate and to try and assess if we will ever recoup.

“Our customers have been hugely supportive in paying their outstanding Pre-season’s and the ones that are struggling have been honest and willing to confirm a future payment date, so we are very optimistic that our customers will pull through this with our help and support.”

Jenny Douthwaite, Primeur: “We are very much 'open for business'. Our doormat ranges are continuing to be ordered, albeit in a reduced volume at the moment. We have not supplied any of our garden centre customers since lockdown, but we remain ready and able to help them with stock should they be looking at deliveries or collections.

“We have a number of colleagues furloughed at present and many others working from home. We are using lots of the communication routes to keep in touch including Whatsapp and Zoom so that we can still all feel part of the Primeur team! We believe regular updates with our colleagues is key to making them feel reassured and keeping the positivity going in these strange and unfamiliar times.

“Once the restrictions are lifted, we will be ready to ramp back up to full capacity within a few days. We were fortunate to have all our stock for the season in our warehouse ahead of lockdown which allows us to turn deliveries on quickly.”

Jackie Eades, Fallen Fruits: “After the initial moment of 'what now' on the 23rd when our bricks and mortar customers were given no option but to shut we focused on our online and Drop Ship retailers.

“By risk assessing the warehouse and implementing all the Covid-19 requirements we have been able to remain operational and we are keeping communication flowing to members of the team who are on furlough.

“Taking the positives from the situation we already had a thought through Drop Ship strategy with our specialist on line team but this fast forwarded evolution for our retailers and has made us focus on how to future proof not only through a change in consumer habits but also the possibility of a second wave of the virus and possibly another lockdown later in the year”

 Mark Pitman, Wildlife World: “We're remaining very positive, it's a difficult situation to be in, and the government have had to react faster than ever before to put measures in place to help - e.g. the furlough/JRS system. We are watching the CBI webinars every day which are an invaluable source of information and guidance.

“Although Easter was a non event for retailers other than those offering home delivery etc, our B2C was busier than ever - the demand grew steadily before Easter, and has continued since; we are operating at 'Christmas' levels of trading and just had our best ever week (on the direct to customer side of the business).

“We are open, we put measures in place early on to be able to supply if the demand was there, and we entered lockdown with good quantities of stock in our warehouses - so our dispatch units ( we operate from 3 sites; one workshop and 2 dispatch) are socially distancing and operating in accordance with all guidance.  B2C has been phenomenal, and B2B is down, but steady - we are sending orders out to those businesses operating deliveries/home collections and online, both here in the UK and in Europe. We are also seeing a few older customers returning, and new ones approaching us.

“One real bonus for us is the increases in social media following and interactions. This was an aim for us earlier this year, and the lockdown has actually worked in our favour to boost our audience more than we had hoped for, and I can only see the momentum growing. We are using #wildlifeforwellbeing as our tag through this.

“We offer drop shipping as part of our operation anyway and have offered this out to all.

“Early on we were very concerned that business would drop off and we would be in a very different position to where we are now. The increases, particularly on B2C have given us a great deal of encouragement and this has raised motivation with the teams. We keep in touch with all staff via a WhatsApp group message with any relevant updates - this goes to all staff, whether working, or furloughed. All of our office teams are working at home now, so we communicate daily via email/phone/zoom, including 'zoom coffee breaks' and a weekly, or more regular if needed Management Team Zoom meeting. We talk regularly on the phone to those on furlough; we are now looking at some of the furloughed workers as to bringing some back into the business if we can.

“Let's hope garden centres are able to open soon. I’m fully behind Alan Titchmarsh, David Domoney et al. in their campaigning. We are working on plans to grow our business and adapt once things open up. There will no doubt be opportunities in the marketplace. One of the issues for anyone in our position will be flow of stock in from abroad. We have just started placing a few orders for stock, but there will be inevitable delays in the supply chain, which we will need to look at.”

Stephen Illingworth, Widdop: "Yes, we absolutely are open for business.  We have furloughed all but 8 in our warehouse which means we are maintaining social distancing but also able to cope with the small number of people still ordering regularly and service our direct despatch business which had orders of over 2,000 B2C shipments after the Easter weekend. We are shipping with a 1 day turnaround right now so anyone still open can get stock very quickly if they order via our website.

“We only ship B2C for customers who have established a clear process with us and pre-selected a range and they arrange collections by couriers. We are shipping direct and quickly B2B orders for garden centres and others though and our excellent new website shows everything in stock that can be shipped immediately.

“We have suggested training courses for many that are free online should they want to keep developing their skills- e.g. entrepreneur store and coursera.  We have launched a #lookonthebrightside campaign to promote positive initiatives across our customer base

“We are providing social media training free of charge for retailers and over 40 have signed up.

“Yesterday I hosted a webinar on Post COVID-19 Retail and Giftware with over 400 retailers.

“We know that it will be staged return to normal with some surveys showing only 20% of consumers will return to the high street straight away. We are helping retailers plan now by supporting them preparing their stores with new initiatives and hygiene standards to make people feel safe and confident to shop with them again. This will be very important. We feel and companies like Seton and Morplan are providing lots of kit now that people can get ready.

Garden centres are deploying extraordinary tactical agility with a generous dollop of staff loyalty and a large helping of true grit in order to survive writes industry consultant Jane Lawler.

It's been just over three weeks. Seems like a lifetime, but in any normal business timeline it's just the blink of an eye. And yet, some garden businesses have entirely changed their whole business model in that time. I've been trawling the garden centres to find out how they're surviving, what tactics they've adopted and how they're planning to come out of this crisis.

Three factors stand out.

• Extraordinary agility has allowed centres to move mountains to adapt and change how they operate.
  Overwhelming loyalty from employees who want to work, despite the challenges and potential threat to their health.
  The grit and determination of everyone in this wonderful industry to battle on in the interest of customers, staff and their gardens.

But despite all their extraordinary efforts, its clear the current trading activity is not a sustainable solution for more than a few weeks. Maybe the garden sector was just not as well prepared as some other retail segments.

Limited e-commerce capability
When lock-down first hit it was a huge shock for many independent centres - especially the majority who don't have fully operational online shopping solutions. Every retailer has a website, and some offer limited online and home delivery options on selected ranges. But few have a full product and plant online offer, and even those that do could not quickly turn on the picking and shipping capacity overnight to cope with the extraordinary upturn in demand.

It's been truly humbling to see how centres have managed to respond to the challenges. We won't be able to point to a record Spring in 2020, but many businesses will at least be able to say they kept in touch with their customers, supported their employees and moved modest amounts of stock to keep their businesses alive. It's not just financial survival, but the future of their brands and reputations that they're protecting.

Ayletts, for example, have furloughed a significant proportion of their staff. A core team have remained in work to care for the stock, provide customer support and pick and pack home deliveries. But the whole team has really stepped up - they have many more volunteers for remaining in work than they can deploy in the space available whilst maintaining their strict social distancing code.

Centres in the British Garden Centres group each have their own, local active facebook page which are full of snippets of news, images of the centres and comments from the team. This is down to the individuals in the centres who love what they do and simply want to stay in touch with their customers. Judging by the engagement level and the customer comments, it will prove to be a key brand driver for their return to normal trading once restrictions are lifted.

Analogue operations in a digital world
Several centres have trialed a 'call and collect' mechanic with limited success. All reported that telephone calls with customers take a long time, especially for those who are less confident about what they want to buy. And the challenge of maintaining order and appropriate social distancing at collection points has proven to be very tricky and time consuming. It seems that customer collections are proving to be less successful than the home delivery mechanic being adopted by many.

But with home deliveries come other challenges. BGC have been recruiting extra drivers and vehicles to try and meet rising demand. And without fully functioning e-shops, including images, dynamic stock management, pricing etc., helping customers decide what they want to have delivered in the first place is the main bottleneck.
Thetford Garden Centre don't have full listings of products and prices on their non-transactional website. So they've taken to creating gardening 'bundles' of related and relevant products to try and simplify customer selection. And they've used their very well-followed facebook pages to promote these to customers with considerable success.

Just how much impact can all this new trading activity make on a normal Spring gardening season? Ayletts told me that they had around 15 staff working at any one time, with five delivery vehicles managing a hundred orders every day. But the e mail 'inbox' is overflowing with new orders and they're still catching up with last week.

It's not sustainable for very long, and certainly not a profitable model. But at least it is liquidating stock, maintaining staff morale and building customer loyalty. Ayletts will be well positioned to take advantage of demand when restrictions are lifted.

90% of Thetford Garden Centres' team are on furlough and there is just a skeleton team taking calls and making deliveries. But they've cranked up their delivery service from around 15 orders a week to over 500 and dropped their free delivery limit to £30 within 5 miles. It's not about turnover, however, they really just want to support the local community. Their customers, some of whom are NHS workers, have been very grateful with one sending the team a large bag of jam donuts to say thankyou.

Another centre told me that, despite having a functional e-commerce site, in their first week of trading exclusively online as a result of the restrictions, their turnover was a tiny fraction (less than 1%) of the previous week's normal retail trade. Part of the problem is the logistics and the challenge of cranking up for a more than tenfold increase in demand with existing facilities and staff.

More than one of the independent centres I've spoke to have taken the decision to temporarily suspend the online shopping aspect of their websites to allow them to cope with the outstanding order book. Some have blocked all incoming telephone inquiries and substituted a recorded apology message because the number of calls has become entirely unmanageable.

And a quick tour around one or two larger garden centre online shops revealed limited availability, even on plants, as well as extended delivery timescales of up to 3 weeks. Demand from consumers is clearly outstripping capacity, even for the more sophisticated online operators.

Lessons for the future
A failure to invest in scaleable online trading functionality and the fulfillment capability to support it is now a real problem. Many centres have historically justified the decision by pointing to their 'destination' status and the importance of their restaurants and cafes. But the decision to hold off investing adequately in e-commerce alongside their bricks and mortar operations is now forcing suppliers and brand owners down a 'direct to consumer' and Amazon routes. They have no other option if they are to survive.

For some garden centres the financial assessments and employee health considerations have led to a complete suspension of all trade. From a purely financial perspective, they may come out of this crisis in a very similar position to those who have doggedly struggled on. But, they'll need to work hard to attract back customers who have found alternative suppliers in the meantime. They too will wonder if the provision of a really efficient online offer might have protected them from the worst of the crisis and helped to build a loyal online following.

The experiences of the past few weeks should make centres review their approach to online trading and question if a fully e-commerce enabled model might give them better protection for the future. Maybe an opportunity for a serious third party fulfillment party who can cope with the fluctuating volumes?

Centres who diligently collect and manage information on their customers through loyalty schemes will be benefiting now. Re-enforcing brand loyalty, prioritising orders and deliveries with a known customer is targeted and more manageable. Targeted marketing activity and offers can significantly improve conversion rates and increase basket size which in turn improves profitability. Insightful management of sales and marketing activity based on segmentation and understanding of the customer is a well established profit driver. Amazon, Facebook and Google are testament to this fact and garden centres will need to embrace similar use of data to drive their own strategies post-covid.

For now, centres seem to be prioritising four key issues

• managing operations to keep staff safe
  maintaining the customer-brand relationship
  looking after perishable stock
  controlling costs

As soon as we are through this, garden centres might do worse than consider developing their whole digital sales and marketing approach. Maybe this crisis is the wake up call we needed.

Jane Lawler 

jane@lawlerassociates.co.uk

 A trip to our local garden centre, Baytree at Spalding, for essential pet supplies meant we were able to peek behind the scenes (observing proper social distancing of course) at their click and collect and delivery service.

The benefits of a large family mean that while almost all of the staff are on furlough leave, family members are working all hours to keep their 3 delivery vehicles and a steady stream of click and collect customers supplied.

"We got right down to having only 1 bag of multipurpose compost left last week, but just as that was sold the Westland lorry turned up and we were able to keep supplying, almost directly off the artic while it was unloaded," explained Nigel Wallis. " Our compost sales are almost on a par with our normal volumes for this tie of year, it's just been a lot more effort getting it to customers."

In the Pet department, open for Essential supplies, only 2 customers are allowed in at any one time, and sales have been up to 1/3rd of normal pet trading.

With the demand constantly growing other members of the team are being un-furloughed next week to get more people on the end of a phone taking orders from customers.

How are Garden Leisure suppliers faring during lockdown?  Here's feedback from suppliers who are adjusting to an on-line supply chain while anticipating the re-opening of garden centres.

John Athwal OBE, Premier Decorations: “What a shocker, which I personally have been dealing with since early January, when our China office had to go into lockdown. So fortunately, we had some insight into what may be coming our way, though of course we were praying like mad that the virus may be contained in China. Sadly, it wasn't and so even during Spring fair, it was sneaking up on us. We were nervous during the fair and I have never used the toilets so much previously to wash my hands.

“Early March it was evident that this was going to hit us, but still we had not realised to what extent. Preparations were made to facilitate our staff to work from home should the worst happen and we had just started a contingency based two shift system that would isolate any cases that may crop up in our own organisation, when the UK Government stepped in with their stay at home measures. As soon as the lockdown was announced we moved to the second phase of our contingency, with our Head Office staff members working remotely from home, enabling Premier to continue to process customer orders.

“We were already isolating some of our more vulnerable staff before the Government advice to stay at home and had also provided masks for them and their families. Though not cultural to be wearing masks here in Europe, I had taken advice from our China office.

“Throughout the lockdown period we have been operating somewhat normally (all things considered) and although our showrooms are closed, our Sales Accounts Managers are available and have been contacting customers.

“With regard to the summer business, our deliveries are as usual and we have stocks on the floor for those customers that require them.

“Our online web ordering portal is also open 24/7. Orders are creeping in and our advice to customers is to keep the confidence, as we will be back to a more normal trading style soon.

“Our diligent team have all necessary communication channels provided to them so they can operate as usual and we have remote meetings as necessary.

“So Premier is very much open for business, whilst keeping our staff and customers safe.

“My belief has always been that garden centres and DIY shops will be amongst the first "non-essential" retailers to open as this will give the public things to do during the lockdown period. This is why the online traders have done so well during the last month.

“Premier are well positioned to continue operations whenever the government allows us to go back to our offices, but we are mindful that it is getting late now for some factories to schedule production for additional orders. Premier’s orders were placed early but we are selling through the stocks currently on order. Our relationships with our factories are long standing and strong and all will be done to assist supply, but guarantees cannot be given on late additional requirements.

“We urge everyone to stay strong, stay safe and keep well, there will be plenty of time for trading.”

Debbie Waudby, Norfolk Leisure: “We are running a skeleton operation, a few staff furloughed, most staff working from home and a couple of staff working from site, but as the site is so big they are reasonably isolated.

“We are open for business and yes business is okay.  We are running a pretty extensive drop ship operation. Quite a few Garden centres have added a lot of lines to their online catalogue which we are delivering direct to customers, through the normal delivery channels. Online shopping is unbelievable at the moment, it is hard to keep up with the volume of small and single product orders coming though.  This is keeping the 'wheels greased' but not near the cash volume we would normally see with bulk orders and container shipments into garden centres.

“Staff morale and safety is our priority, we have a great deal of communication with everyone, normally group facetime chats, so you can see 'faces' , social facetime meets are frequent too as well as business meetings.  We also produced a guide to working from home which was sent out to all staff. We have made sure they are as comfortable at home too, most have the 'full' office PC set up at home, not just a laptop. Homeworkers also have their own office chairs sent home, so not working from dining room chairs. Our staff are wonderful and have really stepped up and worked with the unique challenges thrown at them.

“There is no let up or relaxing at the moment, the continuing unknown means that we are constantly reviewing operations / planning / finance.

“Like the rest of the industry, we are hoping that the restrictions will be lifted in garden centres early enough to recover some of the lost business but we want everyone to stay safe.

“For suppliers it's a long-term recovery plan, 2-3 years to get back to pre-Covid 19 levels.  How do we present our new 2021 collections? Will Garden Centres carry too much stock? Will they have cash to order for 2021 or will we be looking at 2022? We have had many conversations on these subjects, and we have plans and options but need to see what the coming weeks bring.

“At the moment we are working on building our warehouse stock so we are able to immediately support our customers better when they open again.

“Strategies are changing daily and we are hoping we are reacting and adapting quickly enough in a positive way.”

Mark Osbourne, Outback: “Outback is open for business and our e-commerce customers are experiencing big demand.

“Fortunately, 90% of our stock arrived from China before they got hit in January so we are in a great position to satisfy demand when lockdown starts to be released.

“There has been plenty of chatter about BBQ’s in the garden while families have time at home.  Retailing BBQ’s on-line and by local delivery could be a great opportunity this year!”

Joe Shrimpton, Extreme Lounging: “We are open for business in a limited way but keeping our head above the water, supplying online retailers, retailers with online channels and also retailers offering click and collect, which is proving to be incredibly busy.

“We are offering a drop ship service for garden centres.

“We all keep regular contact and have skype chats. One on one and group chats.

“If garden centres are to open first I think we as suppliers will benefit massively, I believe people will be scared and cautious for some time so social places will not be a priority, people want to be safe in their homes, and now we are reaching summer, the gardens will be the place to be and invest in. We are already seeing this with online channels for garden centres.”

Nigel Lawrence, Pacific Lifestyle: “I am delighted to tell you that we continue to trade through lockdown, albeit with limited staff. We have had to furlough a number of people owing to the huge decline in turnover as the majority of our customers closed their doors, but we kept on a limited number to meet the needs of those that continued to trade, mainly online.

“We have representation in Sales, Finance, Stock Control and Buying / Design all working remotely form home. We then have a limited number of warehouse pickers and packers working under very strict social distancing guidelines.

“We also offer a Direct Home Delivery service and again work with a professional network of couriers who are also working to strict distancing guidelines.

“So, in a nutshell we have good stock of outdoor (with more on the way), we are operative and here to help.”

Paul Cohen, LifestyleGarden: “LifestyleGarden continues to fire on all cylinders to meet retailer needs during lockdown.

“During the last four weeks, deliveries have been flooding out of our Essex-based warehouse, ensuring that online retail partners, and those that have been quick to adapt to offer online or click & collect services, are fully stocked with the company's market-leading ranges.

"It's safe to say that at the end of lockdown that the UK will be full of beautifully designed garden spaces based on the demand for product that our garden centre customers are reporting! It's great that people are engaging so much with gardening and outdoor leisure during this time, and that so many of our customers have been able to respond so quickly - long may it continue. For now, we'll continue to work to get stock out to customers to meet this demand, whilst also ensuring that our warehouses are fully stocked for the inevitable post-lockdown rush.

“We're firing on all cylinders - whilst following all government advice on social distancing - to make this happen, so a huge thank you to the whole team for their continued dedication."

Christo Mckinnon-Wood, Kadai by Wilstone: “Well we are very much still up and running, although over half our 22 staff are furloughed we have had to bring 3 back full time to help with the increase in demand from our web sales and also supporting and supplying to an increasing number of Garden Centres and other Kadai outlets that have switched to online sales.

“We have updated our dropbox image bank for stockists to access for their websites and Jenny is on hand to help with any enquiries.  We also just for this period offered a direct drop ship service for stockists that do not hold stock, this includes Kadai’s, accessories to Greenhouses one of which has just been sold today by a garden centre and we are delivering next week.

“I kept on board both marketing girls who are working flat out on improving the Kadai and Wilstone websites but mainly using social media as people have more time at home they have more time to search the web and read articles. We are setting competitions with prizes: This weeks’ will be who can design the best cocktail using a Kadai in some way or other, also working in partnership with top chefs to create now ideas for barbecuing.

“We support the Sambhali Trust in India and next week giving 10% of all sales to the trust for them to help fund feeding 300 families in need across the That desert in Rajasthan that have been most badly hit by the lock down and lack earnings.

“We are also very busy planning for when the restrictions are lifted by printing brochures, designing POS and visual merchandising plus looking at our stockist map with the intention of immediately having four people on the road visiting as many stores as possible to help them get set up and running again.

“We have enough stock here to be able to supply so this is not an issue.

“The Wilstone Potting Table is a finalist for Chelsea Product of the Year which has been announced today and is now on the RHS website.”

The third #floralfriday (Friday 17^th April 2020) saw floral creations galore as garden lovers, young and old, once again donned their favourite floral attire or shared floral pictures across social media. 

The prize for last week’s most creative post went to amateur gardener Tim Howell who put the FUN into FUNdraising by sharing his fabulous array of floral shirts on Instagram.

Tim was closely followed by the wonderful Adam Taylor who was affectionately named by colleagues as the industry’s #daftboss!

During these challenging days of isolation and social distancing, Greenfingers Charity would love to see many others spread a little bit of floral cheer on Friday (24^th April) and are once again offering a prize to the most inventive and creative picture or video posted on social media! 

For your chance to win £50 worth of National Gardening Gift Vouchers, here is what you need to do…

On your favourite social media platforms simply:  

• post a photo of yourself in your favourite floral shirt, dress, hat, shoes, tie, pjs or similar (or your favourite floral photo)
• use the hashtags #floralfriday #hortindustry #greenfingers
• nominate your boss, a friend or colleague whether working from home or at work to do the same
• add this story into your customer communications so that your customers can get involved by spreading a little floral cheer

You and those you nominate can make a donation to support the work of Greenfingers Charity by:

Texting FLORALFRIDAY to 70085 to donate £5 or by

Texting FLORALFRIDAYTEN to 70085 to donate £10

Haskins Garden Centre in Snowhill, Crawley, has opened its doors to customers following a 12-month refurbishment costing £15m.

The new centre boasts a retail space of 11,813 sq.m., including an outdoor plant area and 440-seat restaurant complete with a newly installed pizza oven. Additional space has also been created to accommodate 170 restaurant guests on an outdoor patio.

Up to 70 new jobs have been created to accommodate the centre's expansion. Car parking has increased to 346 spaces.  See GTN Xtra's photo tour of the new centre below.

Chief executive Julian Winfield said the Snowhill team worked tirelessly to ensure the centre was able to remain open for the majority of the project, with minimal disruption.

“We can't wait to receive our customers' feedback on our new and improved facilities,” he added. “Over the years, we have built a loyal customer following and we are proud to be able to give back to them in this way with our new expanded centre.”

Haskins acquired the Snowhill site in 2003, inheriting a number of ageing buildings.

Haskins also has centres in Ferndown in Dorset, West End in Southampton and Roundstone in West Sussex. The family business recently acquired Forest Lodge Garden Centre, Bird World and Garden Style in Farnham.

Pictured (left to right): Julian Winfield, Jamie Haskins, Ally Haskins (married to Jamie) and Warren Haskins, the group's chairman. 

The opening event was attended by the current GCA Chairman Mike Burks and three past Chairs; Warren Haskins, Sue Allen and Julian Winfield.

Every week GTN receives and analyses epos data from a number of UK garden centres to produce the GTN Bestsellers charts and weekly bestsellers sales tips.

The full charts which provide useful insight into product sales peaks, new trends and new link sales opportunities are published in the weekly GTN Xtra newsletter.

As the year goes on we give sales volume comparisons with 2018 as well as 2019 to allow your teams to see variations over a three year period.

Access is by subscription only.  For £145.00 per year you and your team can have access to the most up-to-date gardening sales analysis that has already helped many UK garden centres increase their sales.  To subscribe call 01733 775700, e-mail karen.pfeiffer@tgcmc.co.uk or buy on-line using this link.

Highlights of the GTN Garden Products Bestsellers chart for this week are here

Highlights of the GTN Garden Plants Bestsellers chart for this week are here

Highlights of the GTN Growing Media Bestsellers chart for this week are here

Highlights of the GTN Wild Bird Care Products chart for this week are here

Highlights of the GTN Veg-2-Gro chart for this week are here

WARNING the GTN Bestsellers Charts seriously improve the business of our subscribers.  Invest 15 minutes each week in improving your sales using the GTN Bestsellers charts and your turnover and customer satisfaction will improve too.

Get the GTN Bestsellers charts in full every week in the GTN Bestsellers newsletters for only £145.00.

GTN Bestsellers is the only industry source of weekly garden centre sales information, collating Epos data from centres with an aggregate turnover in excess of £100m.

Use the weekly Garden Products and Growing Media Top 50 sales volumes charts to plan your hotspot and other promotions and ensure you have the right products in stock to satisfy the needs of your customers.

For further information contact karen.pfeiffer@tgcmc.co.uk or call 01733 775700.

Buy your subscription today and start receiving the GTN Bestsellers charts this week.