Despite reports in the US and UK that private equity firm Terra Firma are ready to sell Wyevale Garden Centres, a source with knowledge of the matter confirmed to GTN Xtra there is no sales process for the company at this time.

News of a possible sale was reported by New York-based Bloomberg on Wednesday.

Bloomberg reported that Terra Firma had held talks with potential advisers about a sale or a public floatation, which could value the company at up to £700 million.

GTN Xtra contacted both Terra Firma and Wyevale Garden Centres but no one was prepared to comment. 

It wouldn't be a surprise that as a private equity firm, Terra Firma sold or floated the business on the stock exchange at some point in the future. They bought the company - then called The Garden Centre Group - two years ago and have increased the number of centres to 140 throughout the UK.

GTN Xtra understands that Terra Firma would favour the stock market route and that 2018 would be a target date. However, things can change quickly in business and it would seem that Spring would be an ideal time to put the company on the market.

Earlier this year in an exclusive interview with GTN, Wyevale's CEO Kevin Bradshaw said his senior management team were committed to the long-term future of the business no matter who owned the company.

He added that the strategy for Wyevale was to keep growing, so don't be surprised to see the company adding to its 140-centre  portfolio in the near future. Watch this space.

How will the battle for the Bestsellers of 2015 shape up at Glee?

As we receive news of all the new products and new exhibitors that will be at Glee in a couple of weeks time we’re starting to speculate on where the new Bestsellers for 2015 will come from.

After many years of low or relatively no watering products at Glee there is potential for a water fight as Karcher, Gardena, Crest and Morphy Richards throw their stones into Hozelocks’ pond. Once again Hozelock are NOT at Glee.

Garden lighting, part of the growing garden decoration category, is set to highlight huge sales potential with new launches from Smart Solar, Gardman and Luxform, plus the European giant Phillips is now looking to gain a share of the UK market.

And on the garden tools front it could be spades at dawn between Crest and Scotts Solus Brands as garden centres look forward to seeing what they have a choice of retailing for 2015.

Let’s hope the Glee New Product winners are real Bestsellers this year. We look forward to the announcements at 10.00am on Sunday 14th September.

Look out for the September issue of Garden Trade News for our comprehensive Glee Preview with detailed company profiles and the watch your in box for The Glee Daily News, first issue out soon!

GTN Bestsellers Top 50 sales volumes compared to the same week last year

• Garden Products – up 19%
• Veg 2 Gro – down 22%
• Growing Media – down 20%
• All items index – down 8%

To subscribe to GTN Bestsellers, the only weekly sales information source for garden products, email karen.pfeiffer@tgcmc.co.uk or follow the links below:

More than 300 retailers have taken up the first promotion offered by Crest Garden, the new supplier set up by Nick Davies with backing from Westland Horticulture

Crest said that has revealed that in its first month of trading, more than 800 pallets of their autumn seasonal range were delivered to retailers in August, with many more coming on board since.

Nick Davies says Crest Garden is focussing on ranges with a real point of difference to make them stand out from the competition. “We are creating brands designed to add genuine value for money and grow business for our customers. Our investors have the power and expertise in the industry which will ensure that the brands are strongly marketed through advertising, PR and dynamic point of sale displays,” he added.

Three key categories will be unveiled at Glee. Kent &Stowe is a brand new range of top end crafted quality garden tools. Designed in the U.K. they are unashamedly traditional to reflect a British heritage and engender a sense of pride of ownerership. The range comprises digging, cutting and hand tools in stainless steel and carbon steel. The stainless steel range will be engraved with the Kent & Stowe name. The cutting tools are a premium range of secateurs, loppers, shears and pruning saws with tempered steel blades.

A brand new range of watering products is being marketed exclusively by Crest in the UK under their newly-created Flopro brand. Manufactured by one of Europe’s highest quality producers, it comprises hoses and fittings, an aluminium folding hose cart with fittings, four types of sprinkler, spray guns and a lance. The hoses come with either a 15 or 25 year guarantee depending on model. The two tone colourway has strong visual impact at point of sale.

Finally, Plantpak by Crest is a joint venture between Desch Plantpak and Crest Garden aimed at revitalising the grow your own retail propagation market (see separate story).

The new Crest Garden ranges will be launched at Glee (Hall19, Stand H23).

* An in-depth interview with Nick Davies appears in the September issue of Garden Trade News.

For another week, lighting products are brightening up the GTN Bestsellers Garden Products chart, with wood effect lines from Gardman still showing up well.

The highest new entry is Smart Solar Golden Pearl Mosaic Stake Light (pictured) at No 7.

• The Gardman Solar Black Nickel Glass Marker Light is also a chart newcomer.
• The highest climber accolade goes to another lighting product – Gardman Projection Hanging Lantern, moving up 17 places.
• Apta Terracotta Pot 11cm is the highest re-entry while the 15cm version is a new entry.

To subscribe to GTN Bestsellers email karen.pfeiffer@tgcmc.co.uk

A joint venture announced this week by Desch Plantpak and new suppliers Crest Garden is designed to re-kindle interest in the UK ‘grow your own’ retail propagation market...

The products will be marketed exclusively under the ‘Plantpak by Crest’ brand name. The range will include traditional Plantpak favourite retail products such as seed and gravel trays, propagators and plant pots together with several new additions including heated propagators and plant raising kits.

A number of other innovations for 2015 are to be announced shortly.

Desch Plantpak MD Chris Clarke said the collaboration would combine a number of well known brands into an offering :”tailored to inspire gardeners”.

Nick Davies, MD of Crest Garden (a venture backed by Westland), said the deal was strategically attractive for both parties. “Plantpak is a respected brand in the UK horticultural industry with a long tradition of manufacturing for the professional and amateur markets. Crest Garden has the resources and expertise to ensure that the products are available to an even larger number of retail garden outlets.”

The new range will be launched on the Crest stand at Glee (Hall 19 Stand H23).

The Garden Centre Association (GCA) and Westland Horticulture Rising Stars 2014 Programme is holding its third and final Masterclass at Van Hage Garden Centre in Peterborough next month.

The remaining 11 ‘rising stars’ will each present to the group on their experiences over the last six months of the programme, giving examples of how they have put this learning into practice in their own garden centres and how they measured the impact.

Once the presentations are over, they will be taking part in various shop floor exercises at Van Hage, led by Ian Boardman, IBBIS Director.

The programme, run by Westland Horticulture and the GCA is now in its sixth year and has been hugely successful to date, welcomed by the industry and participants alike.

Five successful Rising Stars will be selected from September’s Masterclass to attend the GCA Conference in Chester in January, where they will make a presentation on what they have achieved over the year. A winner will then be chosen by conference delegates before being presented with his or her prize at the GCA’s annual gala dinner on Tuesday 27 January 2015.

Keith Nicholson, Marketing Director at Westland Horticulture said: “The standard we have seen in this year’s Rising Stars is exceptional and shows that the industry is attracting great talent. This final session will allow the Rising Stars to showcase what they have learnt and to understand in more detail the importance of merchandising.

Ian Boardman said: “This year the competition is really tough, they will have to really apply themselves to get through to the finals!”

Iain Wylie, Chief Executive of the GCA, said: “We’re really looking forward to welcoming the five finalists to present at January’s GCA Conference. We just need to find out who they are now!”

Above: 'Rising Stars' hopefuls looking around Westland products at the previous masterclass, held at Baytree Nurseries and Garden Centre in Spalding. 

Haskins have appointed Matt Hill as general manager at their Ferndown centre near Bournenouth.

For Matt, it's a case of returning to his roots. He started there as a retail assistant in 1995, the year after it opened, and for the past eight years has worked at the group’s Southampton centre as assistant manager, then general manager.

Son of well-known local horticulturalist and sweet pea expert Chris Hill and a former horticulture student at Kingston Maurward college, he will be responsible for 150 staff at Ferndown, which gained a Highly Commended certificate and six merit awards in Garden Centre Association inspections this year, the centre’s 20th anniversary year.

Julian Winfield, Haskins chief executive, said: “As our longest established purpose built centre, the pressure is always on to ensure that the high standards which are appreciated by our loyal customers are maintained. Matt’s successful leadership qualities demonstrated in Southampton will ensure the ongoing success at Ferndown.”

The Ferndown centre was opened on the 10-acre site in March 1994 and now boasts a turnover of more than £10 million.

Below: Haskins chief executive Julian Winfield congratulates Matt Hill on his new job.

The number UK households with gardens could be declining, according to the latest HTA analysis.

Around 1.5 million fewer people than in 2007 claimed to  have a garden or allotment, although the report (2014 HTA Garden Market Retail Analysis) the picture is skewed by findings in Greater London, wheres 40 per cent of the fall was recorded.

Ther report identifies size of gardens and the levels of home ownership as key factors that will impact the market over the coming years.

The market was slightly down in 2013 with plant sales hardest hit due to the very cold March and April weather.

Falls in home ownership are now “very significant” among under 35s compared to the historic levels back to 1987. Renters tend to spend around 55% of the amount that home owners do on gardens. Increasing home ownership levels through the late 80s and early 90s helped fuel the Ground Force ‘boom’ in garden spending. “Indeed as these consumers continue to enjoy gardening, opportunities may emerge for providing products and services to enable them to continue to enjoy gardening into old age,” say HTA.

The report looks at what falling levels of home ownership among the under 35s today could mean for garden spending in 10 and 20 years time, when these consumers reach the ‘core gardening’ age groups (35-64). The projected fall in spending among the 35-64s in 10 years time attributable to falling home ownership equates to approximately 2% of market value, rising to approximately 6% of market value in 20 years.

HTA chief executive Carol Paris said: “Given that per capita spend on gardens tends to be higher in some countries on the continent where home ownership is low, this is as much an opportunity as a threat at this stage to engage renting households in their gardens.”

Easy and portable solutions that enabled people to take their garden with them when they move would become even more important as we encourage younger gardeners to enjoy their outdoor space, she added.

Future building polices and developments such as the Garden City initiative would also provide further potential if the wide benefits of plants and gardens to society and the environment were taken into account.”

The 2014 report includes a breakdown of data for the regions plus Scotland and Wales on garden spend, access to gardens, changes in age profile of the population and home ownership.

Price £395 for HTA members, £795 for non-members. Members who purchased the 2013 report will receive a discount.

More details (and free executive summary download): the-hta.org.uk/marketinformation

Westland’s Gro-Sure All Purpose Liquid Plant Food has achieved a Which? Best Buy.

The liquid concentrate plant food was trialled trial alongside seven others and fed to dahlias every five days, with, apparently, spectacular results and a host of blooms from July to October.

Jo Wilkinson, marketing manager at Westland, said: “Westland prides itself on delivering quality products to gardeners that perform well, it’s great to get confirmation on this in another Which? Best Buy.”

Other Westland products to have achieved a Best Buy Status in 2014 include Gro-Sure Tomato Food, Jack’s Magic All Purpose Compost and Resolva Bug Killer.

My client is a small garden centre group based in the London area. 

They are looking for an experienced garden centre manager to lead the team of a large destination style garden centre based in a scenic and historic part of London.

You will have site management experience previously and be ready to take on a challenging role in a very competitive environment.

There is an opportunity to grow with the business. 

Please call Brad Peck on 01780 480530, or apply with your CV quoting reference #6156 to info@morepeople.co.uk

Our client is an award winning mailorder / e-commerce business who have a high and longstanding reputation of providing the amateur gardener with outstanding varieties of fruit and vegetables. They are currently seeking a top buyer who can buy, range plan and category manage. Someone who is retail commercial aware and can build on their current success and continue to stimulate growth in the 'Grow your own' sector. 

The ideal candidate will have considerable experience within the e-commerce and or retail buying. Have experience within the live plants and horticultural sector and preferable at chain or supermarket level. Must be a superb team leader who can lead from the front.

Please call Dianne Saunders on 07929 013910 or apply with your CV quoting reference 6536 to info@morepeople.co.uk

My client is a large independent garden centre with an award winning pedigree.

This vacancy will be working along side the centre management team and will have direct responsibility for the product range of this department. I am looking for an ambitious individual who wants to have a sense of ownership over the retail area.  Retail experience is a must and garden centre retail experience is preferred.

Applicants must have experience of staff management, with a minimum of 1-2 years experience, and be able to lead and inspire a team of up to 13 staff.

They must also have proven buying experience and an ability to successfully negotiate with suppliers.

They must operate with good standards of merchandising and presentation, coupled with an element of creativity.  

Norfolk Leisure is a successful garden & leisure supplier highly focused on our brand development.

We are seeking an additional sales executive to maximise our team’s coverage of the UK market.

This is an outstanding opportunity for a Sales Executive to sell the company’s full range of garden furniture and leisure products to targeted independent garden centres, buying and marketing groups and leisure product retailers.

The successful candidate will work on his or her initiative as part of a growing friendly team whose objective is rapid but profitable growth. Reporting to a Sales Manager. Good sales experience combined with first class communication and organisational skills are essential.

The preferred area to be covered would be the Northern Territory but this is flexible for the right candidate.

An above average salary, bonus and car is available to the right candidate who can demonstrate the required skills and experience.

For a full Job Profile, please contact Debbie Waudby, Director at Norfolk Leisure Lifestyle Limited

Apply in writing with a full CV to Debbie Waudby,
Norfolk Leisure Lifestyle Limited, Garage Lane,
Setchey, Kings Lynn, Norfolk PE33 0BE

Tel: 01553 811717 Fax: 01553 811818
Email: debbie@norfolkleisure.co.uk

Our client is an award winning mailorder / e-commerce business who have a high and longstanding reputation of providing the amateur gardener with outstanding varieties of fruit and vegetables.

They are currently seeking a Junior Buyer to form part of their buying team. Ideally someone from a good horticultural background who is keen and driven and can work within this fast paced business that buys seeds, onion sets, live-plants and garden sundries for a catalogue driven market. 

The ideal candidate will have 2-3 years post college experience within a retail or commercial horticultural business. Experience of buying is desirable but not essential. Good IT and communication skills.

Please call Dianne Saunders on 07929 013910 or apply with your CV quoting reference 6537 to info@morepeople.co.uk

Taylors Bulbs have jumped on the success of The Great British Bake Off and the popularity of container gardening by using names of cakes for their unique “Containers of Colour” bulb packs.

Lemon Drizzle, Iced Bun, French Fancy, Carrot Cake, Fruit Cake and Madeira are the names of pre-packed bulb collections ideal for planting in pots, troughs and baskets.

“Ideally they will be sold alongside suitable pots, even as a linked sale with bulb fibre” Adam Taylor told GTN Bestsellers as the 2014 Garden Radio Taylors Bulb campaign was recorded last week.  “These packs could also make great gift ideas and we hope garden centres have some fun with the Bake Off theme”

Handy Distribution will become the sole UK distribution partner for 2015 on Flymo products and will handle all customers outside of Husqvarna Groups own existing customer base. Handy Distribution is already the sole UK distribution partner for 2 of Husqvarna’s other global consumer brands Gardena & McCulloch so the addition of Flymo makes perfect sense and will put all the brands under one roof.

The timing of this appointment comes just days after Handy Distribution announced it is to open a new £3m distribution centre in Swindon to accommodate its fast growing business and reinforce its position as the UK’s number 1 garden machinery wholesaler.

Handy managing director Simon Belcher comments “We are delighted to be appointed as sole distribution partner for Flymo products and it fits perfectly with what we already do with Husqvarna’s other consumer brands, distribution has changed a lot in the last 20 years in our industry and this appointment reflects the commitment we have put in and the high level of customer service we able to offer”

“Flymo are one of the biggest brands in the UK and a leading brand in lawnmowers and line trimmers and we are proud of a portfolio of the biggest brands and excellent customer service” 

Handy have a team of area managers covering the whole of the UK and ship products around the country with next day delivery, Flymo have a complete range of electric & cordless mowers, grass trimmers, hedge trimmers as well as the professional XL500 petrol hover mower which is based on the original Flymo, the type of machine that made the brand famous.

Handy Distribution will be exhibiting at Saltex with the XL500 and McCulloch products and 2 weeks later at GLEE with the entire range of Flymo, McCulloch and Gardena.

Farplants Rhubarb Victoria (9cm) is the highest re-entry in the GTN Bestsellers Veg-2-Gro chart, returning to the Top 50 at an impressive No 8 spot.

• The highest climber is Quantil Lettuce Winter Cos, rising 26 places to No 16.
• Quantil also have the highest new entry in Chinese Cabbage at No 21 while their Corn Salad is also a newcomer at No 24.
• Other new entries are Mr Fothergill’s Fine Curled Cress and Gardeners Kitchen Common Sage.

To subscribe to GTN Bestsellers email karen.pfeiffer@tgcmc.co.uk

Handy Distribution is to open a new £3m state-of-the-art distribution centre in Swindon.  The UK’s largest garden machinery wholesaler and supplier of garden machinery replacement parts and accessories are due to move to the new facility later in the year. The new site will become the companies head office as well as its main distribution centre.

By giving an increase in both storage and operation space of around 50% it will help the fast growing business serve both its existing and future customers even better while improving efficiency in the supply chain and logistics of the business to drive down its carbon foot print.

Handy Distribution topped “DIY Weeks Wholesale Leaders” league table earlier in the year for the second consecutive year underlining the strength and efficiency of the business.

Handy Distribution managing director, Simon Belcher, said: "We are now in an even better position to enhance our customer service, respond more quickly to our customers needs, and use our increased capacities to attract new customers, whilst at the same time increasing local employment”

"These further improvements in our service and the fast availability of products will give us a valuable edge in our market needed to sustain future growth."

“We represent some of the biggest brands in our industry and the new facility reflects the quality of the products we do, our loyal and highly skilled workforce will benefit also from our move and we are adding around 10% more jobs later this year”.

“This has been 2 years in the planning and it finally all came together earlier this year and after 7 months of hard work on the site we are looking forward to the next chapter for our business which was originally founded in 1938. This site will see us well into the future as we have scope to further expand there when needed”.

Handy Distribution is planning to open the new site on 1^st Dec 2014 pending completion of the project on time.

The Garden Industry Manufacturers’ Association launched a £5,000 seed corn fund earlier in the year to encourage new businesses, designers and innovators to enter the market.

The winner, which has now been picked, is to receive funding and help with the development and marketing of their product, together with support from experts within the industry.

The identity of the winner, as well as four runners up who will receive a highly commended award, will be revealed at Glee on Sunday the 14^th September.

GIMA Director Vicky Nuttall said: “The Innovators’ Seed Corn Fund very much captured the attention of a wide range of designers and innovators, drawing entries from all corners of the UK.  Choosing the winner was a very hard decision to make as the calibre of entries was so strong, but ultimately we chose the company that demonstrated true innovation, with a product that addresses a common garden task in a completely new way.”

To find out who has been awarded the inaugural Innovators’ Seed Corn Fund join GIMA on-stand at Glee 2014, Hall 20, stand F40 at 11:30am.

Sales of growing media are significantly up on last week, and noticeably higher than the same period in 2012 but down on last year. 

• Westland Top Soil (25 litres) is the highlight of the week, becoming the highest re-entry in the GTN Bestsellers Growing Media chart.
• Arthur Bowers have the highest climber with Mini Bark Chips.
• Scotts Miracle-Gro All Purpose Compost has had a good week.

To subscribe to GTN Bestsellers email karen.pfeiffer@tgcmc.co.uk

On the 20^th anniversary of the Sunday Trading Act, the HTA has renewed its call to the government to exempt garden centres from what it sees an as an outdated law.

Raoul Curtis-Machin, head of horticulture at the HTA, says the Act is an anachronism.
Especially outdated, says HTA, is that garden centres are covered by the Act purely due to their size – which needs to be large size to display their live products.

Whilst having restricted Sunday opening hours causes significant economic implications for garden centres, families and hobby gardeners also suffer from this “unnecessary regulatory burden on their enjoyment”, argues HTA.

“Garden centres play important roles as leisure destinations for families and hobby gardeners, supporting 20 million people throughout the UK who enjoy gardening,” says an HTA statement. “As we all know, gardening is a healthy, family activity which encourages outdoor exercise, and helps us nurture our relationship with nature, wildlife, and the natural food we eat.”

However, the current Sunday trading restrictions are making it more difficult for families and gardeners to enjoy their hobby as they only have a very limited time period on Sundays during which they can get supplies and plants from garden centres. By calling for Sunday trading restrictions to be abolished for gardens centres, the HTA is not seeking to undermine the arguments for keeping Sundays special, but believe that gardening is an important leisure activity enhancing peoples’ free time and contributing to healthy and happy family living.

“The idea that garden centres should be treated the same as large supermarket chains is further compounded by the false belief that garden centres only require staff during shop opening hours,” the statem,ent goes on. “However, as garden centres are handling live products, staff continue to work to maintain and water the plants and flowers and re-stock shelves, whilst not being allowed to open the tills to willing customers.”

Evidence has suggested that there is no substantial difference in working hours between Scottish garden centres, where there are no trading restrictions in place, and garden centres in England and Wales, where the Act is still in force.

The 1994 Sunday Trading Act is “particularly out of touch in light of the growing 24/7 internet trading culture. The Government should be looking to support them to thrive in this economic climate, particularly SMEs, which the majority of garden centres are”.

Curtis-Machin said: “The Sunday Trading Act is an anachronism in this day and age, especially with 24-hour internet retail on the rise. Gardening is an important and healthy hobby which should be supported by government rather than be affected by unnecessary bureaucratic burden.”

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 printed newsletter.

As the year goes on we give sales volume comparisons with 2012 as well as 2013 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 upto 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 Veg-2-Gro Products Bestsellers chart for this week are here

Highlights of the GTN Growing Media Bestsellers 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.