GTN Xtra - GTN Xtra - Issue 35 2015

“We want Chapelwood to be the biggest brand in bird care in 3 years.” That is the success criteria set by Scotts Miracle-Gro UK General Manager Sheila Hill..

Read our GTN Xtra interview with Sheila Hill

Doncaster garden centre wins Best in Show at Chelsea - more GTN highlights from the world famous flower show

Garden Centres and suppliers were basking in success on Friday at Chelsea Flower Show...

See GTN Xtra's Friday picture gallery and read more

Wyevale Keston GC put on a Chelsea Display...and win a bottle of champagne

Keston, a Wyevale Garden Centre, near Bromley in Kent is the first winner of a bottle of champagne in the GTN Xtra Chelsea Display Challenge...

See pictures from Ayletts and Gouldings too

Smart Garden Products acquires Outside-In Designs

Smart Garden Products are on the move again with the recent acquisition of Outside-in Designs, the UK gardening industry’s most successful range of home and garden clocks...

Dobbies brings an American gardening craze to the UK

Dobbies Garden Centres are helping to bring a new American craze called 'parklets' to the UK where the public can enjoy an urban garden in an area previously used by cars. The first parklets have been created in the centre of Edinburgh...

Gardening media frenzy over Chelsea boosts sales...

As Chelsea grabs the headlines and gardening gets incredible amounts of air time, the GTN Bestsellers All Products Index moves above the last two years for the first time in the past five weeks...

Peter Burks takes up the reins at Blue Diamond's Fermoy's Garden Centre

Immediate past Chairman of the GCA, Peter Burks, has taken up the position of Manager at the Blue Diamond Group's Fermoy's Garden Centre in Devon...

Buyers Power List introduced at Glee 2015

New for Glee 2015, the Buyers Power List is designed to provide suppliers and retailers with a platform to recognise the individual buyers and buying teams who have gone above and beyond to make a difference, and whose decisions are helping the garden retail industry to thrive...

PetQuip Business Village comes to Glee 2015

With 70% of UK garden centres featuring a dedicated pet section, and this number growing year-on-year, pet products offer not only a substantial profit opportunity, but they can also help any garden centre to achieve a wider ‘one stop shop’ reputation. Recognising this, the organisers of Glee have confirmed that this year’s event will benefit from the introduction of the PetQuip Business Village...

Homebase on the hunt to find Britain’s next generation of talent

A ground-breaking training scheme is returning for its third consecutive year to offer young people a once in a lifetime opportunity to kick start a career in gardening. The Garden Academy was set up in 2013 between Homebase and multiple award-winning garden designer Adam Frost (pictured at Chelsea) to help raise the profile of a career in gardening and inspire the gardening talent of the future.

Gardman's Moulton Mill tools help to build gold medal winning Chelsea garden

Tools from Gardman’s top-quality Moulton Mill range helped the RHS Chelsea Flower Show’s youngest design team to win their second gold medal...

Turn the Summer Bank Holiday into a worthwhile business trip to Germany

If you’re having a great time selling garden furniture and BBQs this year then you’ll probably be looking for even more great ideas, inspiration and new products for 2016. That’s what the team at spoga + gafa 2015 in Cologne have on offer for you – eight halls of garden living, one hall of garden unique premium garden furniture and for the first time this year a complete hall full of BBQ and grill exhibitors...

All the latest news from the world of garden centre catering

Book now to benefit from extended early bird rate for HTA Catering Conference

Latest food trends, integrating catering into your garden centre offer, managing people and the growing gluten free market are just some of the key topics for discussion at Catering Matters – the HTA Catering Conference, dinner and exhibition. This popular event, sponsored by Vision Commercial Kitchens, takes place at The Belfry, Sutton Coldfield, West Midlands on 9 and 10 June...

Jason Danciger, of Wyevale Garden Centres, is one of the guest speakers on day one of the HTA Catering Conference.

Catering tip of the week: Does your menu taste of summer?

If your menu is not celebrating the seasons then you are missing a trick argues Garden Centre and Catering Consultant Doug Stewart...

Apologies - and watch out for The Greatest Awards ON TOUR 2015

We apologise for the late publication of this weekends issue. Unfortunately internet connectivity issues have delayed e-mailing.

Watch our for special issues of GTN Xtra over the next few days - The Greatest Awards ON TOUR 2015 is about to be launched.

Make sure your catering, plants sales, outdoor leisure and other garden centre team leaders get their own copies of GTN Xtra so they see all of the entry details. Sign them up to GTN Xtra here

GTN May 2015

Garden Trade News

£3m revamp plans for ‘Gateway to Harrogate’ garden centre

Ambitious plans to demolish and rebuild a £3m garden and antiques centre on the “gateway to Harrogate” in Yorkshire have been unveiled...

Petition in support of garden centre gains momentum

Thousands of people have signed an online petition which urges Wokingham Borough Council to withdraw the enforcement notice that could lead to Hare Hatch Sheeplands Garden Centre being permanently closed...

Comfy furniture and sizzling BBQ sales boost April’s figures

Furniture and barbecue sales at garden centres across the country were on the rise during April, according to the Garden Centre Association’s Barometer of Trade (BoT) results. Sales were up 26.73% compared to the same time last year...

2015 BBQ season is sizzling for Napoleon Grills

Napoleon Grills has reported 2015 sales to date exceeding all expectations. By the end of the first week in May the company had already overtaken its total sales figure for 2014...

Hanging basket activity boosts garden product sales

The GTN Bestsellers Garden Products chart shows signs that more gardeners are getting out and active in their gardens. While solar lighting sales remain high there are notable increases in sales of plant feeds, pest control and weed killers. Hanging baskets look to be in favour too with six liner lines in the Top 50...

Herbs join in the Veg-2-Gro bonanza

There’s no sign of the demand for veg plants abating just yet. This week sees three 1 litre herb plants enter the GTN Bestsellers Veg-2-Gro chart in the Top 20...

Growing activity to peak this Bank Holiday?

Growing activity continues to build as we move towards the last Bank Holiday weekend of the spring. In previous years GTN Bestsellers data has shown peak sales of growing media have occurred around the Whitsun Bank Holiday and with the continued increased veg plant sales activity and good weather forecast there’s every chance this year could be no exception...

Roses are HTA's Plant of the Month for June

Complete your customers’ gardens this summer with a beautiful rose, one of the most popular garden plants and the Horticultural Trades Association’s Plant of the Month for June...

Ben promoted to Product Development Coordinator at Wyevale Nurseries

Ben Gregory from Worcester has been promoted to Product Development Coordinator at Wyevale Nurseries in Hereford...

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