A steady stream of acquisitions by Wyevale Garden Centres over the coming weeks and months could actually lead to a smaller but stronger independent trade, according to Guy Topping (pictured above), of the successful Barton Grange Garden Centre near Preston.

The UK's biggest garden retailer recently bought three businesses in quick succession, the latest being Podington Garden Centre at Wellingborough on Monday. This aquisition followed those of Trelawney@Ashford (North Devon) and Raglan Garden Centre (Monmouthshire) to take Wyevale's property portfolio up to 144.

And there's speculation in the industry that the company could soon reach the 150 mark with the aquisition of a garden centre group in the south of the UK. One potential vendor approached by GTN Xtra yesterday said: There are always rumours. I can't say anything more.

Guy Topping thinks that Wyevale's drive towards an expanding portfolio does offer independent retailers with opportunities: "Wyevale are killing the true independents! Their genuine blandness is sending so many people through our doors we are struggling to cope. 

"Car parks are rammed, coffee shops are jammed and Christmas display areas are crammed.

"Wyevale need to ease off on the acquisitions to give us chance to expand our centres to cope with the extra demand."

Guy added: "I don't see any let up, however, as ageing owners panic sell whilst they can before Mr Hands sees the light and realises what a tired property portfolio he has on his books. 

"The meltdown at Tesco is also likely to lead to an off-loading of non-core activities so Dobbies will very likely be next to go.

"This all spells disaster for suppliers who are going to struggle without a listing at the all-conquering empire formerly known as TGCG. 

"A strong independent trade is vital to retain a sensible supply base and without that the 'indies' will struggle to source an interesting product range that generates a point of difference.

"I imagine we'll see a steady stream of acquisitions leaving a smaller but stronger independent trade in the middle term."

The sale of more stores like Podington (above) to Wyevale Garden Centres this week has led to widespread speculation of who's going to be next. But leading independents like Bents Garden and Home, near Warrington, feel they can take advantage of the changing landscape of the garden centre industry.

Matthew Bent (left) said: "It’s hard for me to comment on whether any more centres will become part of the Wyevale Group, although a lot of the recent acquisitions have been a surprise. 

"We are proud to be family owned and independent and think our customers appreciate the individuality we offer. 

"There may be some impact on suppliers as the group has a large buying power, but I don’t think there will be much impact on independent centres as it is our independence that makes us stand out.

"The acquisition of a centre may initially have a positive effect as it will be seen as being something new, but after a period of time it will become the same as the others. 

"One of the major benefits of being an independent is that we can quickly introduce new ideas and initiatives. We know our customer base very well and can offer a personal service and provide an experience they desire."

Another leading garden centre boss told GTN Xtra: "I find the whole thing quite disturbing. What is going to drive customers into soulless centres that are just full of concessions? Customers have a choice, our customers' cars have steering wheels! I have yet to go into a Wyevale with charisma.

"A well run and ‘driven’ independent will win everytime. If I was a supplier I would keep my options open – just how much business are these places going to do?

"I hope Wyevale realise that this year we were gifted the most amazing spring, they don’t come around very often. If spring 2015 is anything like spring 2013 it's going to be back down to earth with a bump."

Lisa Waim, the Rising Stars finalist from Haskins Snowhill garden centre is firmly focused on the "winning lines" after her year of training on the GCA scheme sponsored by Westland.

"Rising Stars has drawn the focus for me," said Indoor Manager Lisa when GTN Xtra met her this week.  "I personally feel more under pressure when I see my warehouse is full.  The holding area where all the fresh stock is coming in and you’re just trying to hit stock as quick as you can.  But going on the course really made me focus on taking half an hour to look at my figures and go right, there’s the winning lines, I’ve got to make sure I’m getting those out first and prioritising them. But then it wasn’t just me doing that, I then had to get the other guys on board with that too."

Lisa has worked at Haskins since college days when she was on the tills at the Roundstone Store, after a short spell away from Haskins she rejoined the Roundstone team 7 years ago and was promoted to Indoor Manager at Snowhill in 2009.

"As Indoor Manager I oversea the Christmas department which turns into furniture in the summer plus the sundries and gift departments.  I have 12 members of staff in the team, with extra agency temp staff at the moment for Christmas.”

Lisa was nominated for Rising Stars by Haskins Head of Retail Operations, Dean Ridley.   “Lisa has grown so much as a manager in the past few years and we thought this was a great opportunity to continue her development in an environment outside of her comfort zone.”

“Lisa has grown in this process and come back from the workshops with new merchandising techniques and thinking more commercially at how implementing them correctly can drive greater sales.”

Lisa herself has been surprised at the results of implementing the ideas and projects created on the scheme:  “The results were quite surprising for me.  When you really focus on something and get the team on board with it, that’s what I found really worked for me.”

“Initially we made really good headway, and then we hit peak.  We just never could have planned for such a good year and it hasn’t let up either.  That was a real challenge making sure I really took the time to focus on those winning lines and draw it back to that rather than just roll out the stock willy-nilly.”

Lisa has also used learning’s from the Rising Stars workshops to question and change head office promotional plans.  “Ian Boardman really brought it back in with the promo ends,” Lisa explained,  “we have a promo pack that is set out by head office and there were a few things on there I thought personally, that doesn’t ring true having that many products on an end.  So I actually questioned head office about that and said; ‘shouldn’t we be cutting that back? There is too much on the end that is making it confusing for people.’  And they took that on board.”

Lisa is also sharing her new found knowledge with other members of her team.  “When I come back from the garden centre visits and workshops a few keep asking questions:  What’s gone on, what can we learn from it?  They are really keen to hear what it’s all about, it’s made the penny drop and helped them think about how they are working.”

No wonder Dean tells GTN Xtra that Rising Stars has helped Lisa grow in confidence.  “I think Rising Stars is a great opportunity to develop our star players further and give them a chance to learn from other garden centres, network with lots of people in the industry.  And our business benefits as Lisa’s confidence and commercial acumen grows."

Lisa, along with the other four finalists for 2014, will be presenting at the GCA Conference in January. Delegates will then be able to vote for the winner of Rising Stars 2014.

Look out for next weekends GTN Xtra when we will be meeting the final contender, Kirsty Knight from Perrywood. 



The five finalists of the Garden Centre Association Rising Stars Programme, sponsored by Westland Horticulture, are: Kirsty Clark (Perrywood GC), Matthew Fay (Stewarts Garden-Lands, Christchurch), Lisa Waim (Haskins Snowhill), Hannah Mason (Chessington) and Cerys Williams (Perrywood) have all made it through to the final challenge, where they will present at the GCA Conference in Chester on 26 January. The overall winner will be chosen by conference delegates.

The results are the culmination of an eight month programme in which candidates attended three merchandising Masterclasses run by IBBIS director and training facilitator Ian Boardman. Thanks to Ian’s efforts, many of the Rising Stars went on to increase sales in their departments by keeping hotspots fresh, creating clear signage and organising themed displays throughout the year.

Ian Boardman said: “All the Rising Stars who took part in the programme were top notch and I’d like to thank every single one of them for their efforts and praise them for the progress they have made. The results of their achievements in their workplace prove they are all stars in their own right!”

Keith Nicholson, Marketing Director for Westland Horticulture said: “On behalf of Westland I’d like to congratulate the Rising Stars finalists for getting this far. We now face a very exciting GCA conference final where delegates will get the chance to vote for the winner – Rising Star of the Year 2014.”

GCA chief executive Iain Wylie said: “The five finalists have some really exciting presentations prepared for delegates. It is always the highlight of the GCA conference and this year will definitely not disappoint.”

Twenty-eight of the most aspiring young representatives of the horticultural industry kicked off the Rising Stars Programme earlier this year.

The original list of 28 was whittled down to 10 in September before the final five were chosen.

Traditional fertiliser now part of Jack's Magic-al range!

Building on the popularity of its compost, Jack's Magic is introducing a nutrient-rich garden fertiliser to its range for 2015.

Appealing to those with a passion for gardening, Jack's Magic Garden Fertiliser is the perfect all-rounder, a specially blended granular feed delivering outstanding growing results on flowers, shrubs and vegetables.

This premium gardeners' essential is made with a rich organic base and contains added nutrients and trace elements which all plants need to thrive. Enriched with seaweed, a natural growth stimulant and specially formulated into a low dust granular mix, it's a great trade up from straights. NPK 6-8-12.

Find out more from your Westland sales representative or by logging onto the Westland trade website http://trade.gardenhealth.com/

Record sales weeks are being reported as we travel the country meeting teams for The Greatest Christmas Awards.  

By the middle of next week over 140 garden centres will have been visited by one of The Greatest Christmas Awards experts – a record entry for our pretisgious event.  

Without doubt, the teamwork and creativity that has gone into Christmas 2014 is amazing and there are plenty of customers leaving garden centres with beaming smiles and baskets of products.

The GTN Bestsellers aggregated Epos data shows the first week of December as the third highest week of the year for volume sales, but with two weekends left until Christmas we could reach higher levels still before the end of the year.

The GTN team are looking forward to seeing many of you at The Greatest Christmas Awards party in the New Year (January 11). 

Tickets are selling fast, so please reserve yours today to make sure you are there for the announcement of The Greatest Christmas Teams of 2014. You are guaranteed to have a great time.

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

• Garden Products – down 35%
• Xmas Products  – down 16%
• Growing Media – down 8%
• All items index – down 18%

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

Smart Garden Products will be launching over 30 new products at their inaugural attendance of the Harrogate Christmas and Craft Fair. In addition to these exciting new products, they will also be exhibiting their popular battery powered lighting range and a selection of gifts from their extensive portfolio on Stand A32.

The range of battery powered lighting includes a number of seasonal ranges such as Santa and Snowmen String Lights. These festive string lights are suitable for outdoor and indoor use and operate on an auto timer, which means that the LEDs come on for 6 hours each day at a specific time set by the user. The batteries can last for up to 20 days making this product perfect for the Christmas period.

Jonathan Stobart, Smart Garden Products’ managing director said, “We are anticipating a positive reaction to our new seasonal ranges. Our battery powered lanterns are already a top seller with their realistic flickering pillar candles and detailed finish making a popular choice for all year round use.”

Battery powered lanterns light up without the need for naked flames, so are safe and will work even in wet and windy conditions, outside and inside.

Jonathan adds: “All our battery powered lanterns are supplied in full colour retail boxes, so make perfect gifts.”

NOMA are making a big show of their new products for 2015 and are ready to share all their exciting plans with retailers. As well as having a bigger presence at the Harrogate Christmas and Gift Fair in January, NOMA are inviting customers to their recently opened showroom at Hinxworth in Hertfordshire.

“We’re really excited about our 2015 Christmas range and we want our garden centre customers to see all the new products for themselves,” said Frank Kaminski, NOMA’s Sales and Marketing Director.

“A lot of time and effort has gone into producing the new range and we thought the best way to unveil the products was in a specially designed showroom. We’ll also be exhibiting at Harrogate with a larger stand than last year, so retailers will have a great opportunity to see how far we’ve come with NOMA.”

Garden Trade News was given a sneak preview of the new products during a tour of the showroom by Frank and LeisureGrow Chairman Richard Grimmer, and the 2015 Christmas range is quite staggering. Here's some pictures to whet your appetite.

Greenfingers trustee and HTA CEO Carol Paris led the Christmas charge for Greenfingers by taking part in the London Santa Run last weekend.

Carol was joined on the route by others from the industry including:

Paul Ormond, Greenfingers trustee; Adam Wigglesworth, HTA Vice President and Director of Ayletts Garden; Pat Adams from the HTA; Chris Ramsden from Suttons; Al Sheppard from Burgon and Ball; Andrew Burton from Cedar Associates; industry consultant John Mosley; Craig Hall from Deco-Pak and Tara Ballinger from Williams Sinclair.

Two VIP four-legged guests also joined the team of runners – no, not Rudolf and Blitzen – but Carol Paris’s two spaniels Max and Murphy.

All of the Santa Runners completed the route dressed in Father Christmas outfits (including Carol’s dogs) as they ran either 5km or 10km,.

Money raised from the Santa Run will directly contribute to the gardens Greenfingers hope to build in 2015 including at Ellenor Lions Children’s Hospice in Kent where there are currently no dedicated outdoor facilities for the children and families who spend time there.  

The charity is hoping to raise £5,000 from the run, and the 'running' total stood at £4,484 on Friday. There's still time to donate at www.justgiving.com/greenfingerssantarun

Or text 70070 with the code SANT61 and the Ј value of donation]

The Santa Run 2014 took place at Victoria Park in London on Sunday 7th December with over 3,000 Santa runners taking part.

Staff at Suffolk seedsman Mr Fothergill's entered into the Christmas spirit on Friday by each paying a fee of £2 for the privilege of wearing a Christmas-themed jumper to work.

The national Christmas Jumper Day initiative was set up by the Save the Children charity.

The event at Mr Fothergill's was organised by Ben Roden, who commented that the company's directors appeared to have the largest range of 'tasteful' knitwear. 

The final total raised by Mr Fothergill's staff will not be known until the proceeds of a raffle are included and counted.

The quest for The Greatest Christmas teams is nearly at the finishing line.  The expert team of judges have already visited over 130 garden centres to meet teams nominated in this years The Greatest Christmas Awards, with more to be met during this week before the final judging meetings.  

You’ll find out who are The Greatest at Christmas this year by joining us at the first awards event of 2015, The Greatest Christmas Awards Christmas Party, sponsored by Premier Decorations, on the night of Sunday January 11^th at The Majestic Hotel, Harrogate.

Our annual awards presentation and Christmas party is an event not to be missed whether you are visiting the Harrogate Christmas and Gift show or just want to have another great Christmas Party with some great garden centre people.

Tickets are now on sale for the party, which includes reception drinks, a 3 course meal with wine, the awards presentation and dancing the night away to a live party band.

Early Bird Ticket prices for The Greatest Christmas Awards Party, sponsored by Premier Decorations.

Please call The Greatest Christmas Awards team on 01733 775700 or e-mail harry.sinclair@tgcmc.co.uk to book your Early Bird tickets today – or buy on-line using these links:

Prices below include VAT

Tickets

1 Ticket £100.80 GBP2 Tickets £201.60 GBP3 Tickets £288.00 GBP4 Tickets £384.00 GBP5 Tickets £456.00 GBP6 Tickets £547.20 GBP7 Tickets £638.40 GBP8 Tickets £729.60 GBP9 Tickets £820.80 GBPTable of 10 £864.00 GBP

The sponsors for The Greatest Christmas Awards are:  

The regional winners of the Garden Centre Association’s annual Christmas display competition have been revealed this week.

Thirteen garden centres have been named as having the best Christmas overall displays in their individual regions.

Iain Wylie, GCA Chief Executive, said: “I am delighted to announce the area winners of our Christmas competition. The winning centres are now being judged by Neville Stein from Ovation Business Consultantsto determine the national winners. Congratulations to all the winners so far and thank you to everyone that entered, and to our band of judges who volunteered to visit them.”

The two overall national winners will be announced later this month and presented with their awards at the GCA annual conference in January.

The results are as follows for the Destination Garden Centre (DGC) and Garden Centre (GC) categories: Bents (DGC) in Cheshire and Fron Goch (GC) in North Wales came top in the North West. Garsons Esher (DGC) in Surrey and Castle Gardens (GC), Dorset (pictured above) were the winners in the South Thames region.

Meanwhile in the Wales and West area, Whitehall Garden Centre (DGC) at Lacock in Wiltshire and Raglan (GC) in Wales are in pole position with Van Hage Great Amwell (DGC) in Hertfordshire and Squires Shepperton in Middlesex coming out top in the North Thames region.

In the North East, Langlands Shiptonthorpe (DGC) in Yorkshire and Armitage’s (GC) Birchencliffe Garden Centre both in West Yorkshire came first and in the Midlands the winners were Webbs (DGC) in Worcestershire and Fairways Ashbourne (GC) in Derbyshire.

In Northern Ireland the overall winner was Creative Gardens Galgorm Castle (GC) in County Antrim.

Iain added: “Once again, congratulations to everyone who took part and good luck in the finals to all our regional winners.

“The garden centres are judged on the innovation, inspiration and excitement created from the way their Christmas products are displayed. The range of products available, accessibility, how easy it is for customers to find and select products and ‘wow factor’ are also taken into consideration.

“We will be announcing the overall winners later this month and they will then receive their prizes at the GCA annual conference, which takes place at the De Vere Carden Park in Chester from January 25 until 28.”

Schools from Somerset can put themselves forward to receive between 50 and 100 free young trees this New Year (January, 2015).

Monkton Elm Garden & Pet Centre is offering schools saplings for projects they are running.

Andrew Pitman, Store Manager at the award-winning, independent, family-run garden centre at Monkton Heathfield near Taunton, explained: “To celebrate the start of the New Year, we’ve got 2,015 small sapling trees to give to any schools that would like them for projects they are running in 2015.

“We are allocating them on a first come, first served basis, so we urge people to submit requests as soon as possible. The closing date for requests is 5pm on Friday, February 20, 2015.”

Schools that apply for the trees must write in to Andrew Pitman at the garden centre giving details of their project and why they think they deserve to receive a group of saplings.

The successful applicants will be invited to come and collect their trees from the garden centre at a mutually convenient time. By entering the giveaway, the winner or winners have agreed to take part in publicity.

Requests for the saplings should be posted to: Andrew Pitman, Store Manager, Monkton Elm Garden & Pet Centre, Monkton Heathfield, Taunton, TA2 8QN.

For more information, please call the garden centre, which is located just off the A38 at Monkton Heathfield between Bridgwater and Taunton, on 01823 412381, visit www.monktonelmgardencentre.co.uk, log on to www.facebook.com/Monktonelm or follow the company on Twitter by visiting www.twitter.com/Monktonelm.

Pictured: (from left to right) Nine-year-old William Painter and 10-year-old Daniel Griffiths, both from Monkton Heathfield, Andrew Pitman, Plant Manager at Monkton Elm Garden & Pet Centre and 10-year-old Lex Plant from Monkton Heathfield with donated saplings from earlier this year.

Benjamin’s is one of twins but his mother didn’t take to him. There appeared to be little hope for the baby boy so in stepped Tom. Tom has been hand rearing the baby goat day and night and now he has turned a corner and really healthy.  Benjamin follows Tom everywhere at Pot House Hamlet, he meets and greets the customers and loves to skip and jump around the place.

The BBC visited Pot House Hamlet to produce a segment for the news which went viral and had over 16 million views in 72 hours.




Since then, Benjamin and Tom have made a visit to the BBC News studios, with interesting outcomes, and now the original video has had over 30 million views from all over the world including 9 million people in America and 1 in 26 people in Australia have seen the footage too.

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Read more on the Pot House Hamlet Blog

Our client is looking for a dynamic Chef for their busy garden centre

Key Responsibilities are to:

• Assists the Head Chef to plans menu to achieve and maintain the budgeted food cost / gross profit. 
• Ensures that all equipment and fittings are cleaned and maintain in a safe and proper manner and record on the cleaning schedule.  
• Keeps work stations, surrounding work surfaces and floor, clean, tidy and organized at all times. 
• Adheres to the company’s Purchasing Policy. Ensures supplies are properly issued, used and accounted for. 
• Carries out stock takes and food rotation procedures under the supervision of the Head Chef.
• Maintains records relating to food production activities and supplies information as required by the Restaurant Manager and Head Chef.
• Prepares and participates in special functions, which may be outside normal working hours.
• Have a hands-on approach for all Kitchen staff and to get involved in many aspects i.e. cleaning duties etc.  
• Report any issues with food quality and freshness to the Head Chef / Restaurant Manager
• Follow the Stock Labelling and Rotation System to ensure the products are identifiable and used in the correct order
• Help to establish the Kitchen area as a positive work environment for all

.  Please call 01780 480530 and speak to Dianne Saunders or apply with your CV, quoting reference #DS6902 to info@morepeople.co.uk

Our client is a well-known Nursery stock grower who are looking for an experienced candidate to come and joint their team.

The role will be to:

• Plan, organize, direct, control, and coordinate activities of workers at all stages of growing, harvesting, packing, distribution and selling to the highest standards of quality.
• To be responsible for the provision of timely and quality support at a time and place which meets the requirements by ensuring there is a safe and adequate provision of materials and equipment, to budget and in consultation with the Nursery manager.
• To be co-responsible for coordinating Health and Safety issues, such as risk assessments within the Horticulture unit. 

The work is increasingly complex, requiring managerial, business and IT competence.

A good background in commercial production is essential.

Any of Fire Safety Trained, First Aid Certificate and FEPA P.A 1&6 would be advantageous but not essential.

Please call 01780 480530 and speak to Dianne Saunders or apply with your CV quoting reference #DS6907 to info@morepeople.co.uk

Our client runs a small design and build landscaping company that also carry out garden maintenance of the landscapes that they build and due to expansion of the business they are now looking for an experienced Hard & Soft Landscape Operative

Working on residential and commercial throughout Kent. As an experienced Hard Landscape Operative you would be responsible for carrying out a wide range of manual landscaping duties under the guidance and direct supervision of the person you are responsible to.

Whilst you will generally be working with others you will at times need to work under your own initiative without close supervision. The work is physically demanding and you would be working outside in all weathers.

We have teams that undertake hard landscape works, soft landscape works and grounds maintenance operations. The contracts that we undertake are very varied and the industry is seasonal by nature and so whilst you will primarily be involved in hard landscape works, there are likely to be occasions when you will be required to undertake soft landscaping and garden maintenance.

KEY TASKS

At all times: 

• Promoting the company's professional image on site and working in accordance with the Company Health and Safety Policy.
• Work to a high standard without constant supervision.

The key tasks of the position can be broadly summarised as follows:

• Hard Landscaping
• Undertaking minor demolition works.
• Assisting in the construction of stone or brick walls, retaining structures, laying kerbs, timber edgings, setts, slabs, stone paths/surfacing's, concrete slabs etc.
• Erection of various garden structures
• Assisting in the erection of various types of fences and timber structures
• Assisting in the installation of land drainage and surface water drainage systems
• You may be required to use a wide range of power tools such as disc saws, drills etc. and to operate many different items of plant including mini excavators, dumpers, rollers and the like whilst undertaking the above works.

Soft Landscape Works

• The cultivation and preparation of ground for turfing, seeding or planting.
• Taking delivery of and planting trees, shrubs, ground cover and herbaceous plants.
• Mulching planted areas with bark, mushroom compost, manure or similar materials.
• Completing turfing and seeding works.
• Lawn mowing
• Hedge cutting
• General garden maintenance

Working Hours

• The basic working hours are 08:00 to 17.00 Monday to Friday with a half an hour lunch break (unpaid) and a 15 minute unpaid morning and afternoon break.

Experience Required

• Ideally the successful applicant will have gained previous experience within the landscape industry however applications will be welcomed from candidates who have gained relevant experience through working for building, groundwork's or civil engineering contractors.
• training and qualification is hard landscape, patios, paving and fencing

Please call 01780 480530 and speak to Dianne Saunders or apply with your CV, quoting reference #DS6832 to info@morepeople.co.uk

Our client is looking for an experienced manager to head up their domestic landscaping division. As the General Manager of this unit you will  report to the Sales and Marketing Director and will be responsible for the general running of that division 

The General Manager will:           

• With the Sales and Marketing Director and the Managing Director, agree an annual budget for the division that is achievable and in-line with the aspirations of the Company.
• Working with the Sales and Marketing Director, agree a Marketing Plan for the division that is capable of generating the level of sales expected for the division.    
• Be responsible for the financial control of the Division in line with the Division’s budget. 
• Act as the first point of contact for all enquiries received by the Division.           
• Where appropriate, arrange for design and costing skills to be contracted in by the Division in response to such enquiries.
• Ensure that an appropriate, costed, quotation is  provided by the Division in reply to each enquiry received.              
• Ensure that all such quotations maintain the Division’s expectation of margin on labour and materials costs              
• Co-ordinate and control the Division’s labour resource to ensure that work is carried out in a timely and efficient manner, in line with the costings relating to each job.       
• Ensure that the purchasing of materials is controlled and in line with the costed budget for each job undertaken              
• Ensure that adequate records are kept to allow complete control of all work undertaken and that such record keeping is acceptable to the Company’s Finance Director. 
• Ensure that staff working within the Division do so in accordance with the Company’s policies, including those of Health and Safety and Environment.
• Ensure that all machinery and equipment used by the Division is used and maintained safely and responsibly and in accordance with any related policies of the Company, including those of Health and Safety
• Ensure that all staff disciplinary issues are conducted in accordance with the Company’s employment policies  
• Ensure that all staff working for the Division do so in a way that will uphold the good reputation of the Company.

Suitable candidates will have experience in:         

• The practical aspects of landscape construction
• Compiling quotations for landscaping projects                
• Management of staff in landscape construction  
• Cost control in a management position
• Face to face negotiate and discussion with clients 

The successful candidate will be able to demonstrate: 

• basic understanding of business finance and  familiarity with Profit and Loss accounts.    
• strong  management and organizational skills      
• good communication skills         
• understanding of the high quality standards required of high-end domestic contracting     
• the ability to work well with colleagues and other members of the management team in a larger organization.

Please call 01780 480530 and speak to Dianne Saunders or apply with your CV, quoting reference #DS6861 to info@morepeople.co.uk

The Hermitage Coffee Shop, located within the grounds of Hillier’s Garden Centre near Newbury, is closing after 30 years. Hillier’s wants to run its own café at the centre and is not renewing the lease for The Coffee House, owned by local residents Beryl and Richard Pocock.

The Coffee House team marked the imminent closure with the presentation of £1,000 to the Thames Valley and Chiltern Air Ambulance (TVCAA), taking its fundraising total for the charity to more than £18,000 since the cafe opened.

Mrs Pocock said: “We have loved every minute of it, we’ve had brilliant times. We don’t want to leave, but we have got no choice.

“We have had such a lot of support. It has been my life and I feel very, very lucky that I have had a job for over 30 years that I loved doing.

“We weren’t quite ready to give it up.”

A farewell party is being held at the café on its final day of trading, on Sunday, December 21, at which all food and drink will be free.

“It’s our way of saying thank you,” added Mrs Pocock. “It’s going to be a very sad day.”

Suttons have announced what they claim is the world’s first fully blight-resistant tomato.

'Crimson Crush' (pictured) is exclusive to Suttons Seeds for 2015 and will be available to consumers through the Suttons January catalogue or on their website (www.suttons.co.uk) from 9 January.

Two resistance genes against blight, PH2 and PH3, have been bred into the variety, making it resistant to all common blight strains in UK including ‘Pink 6’ and ‘Blue 13’, which have decimated outdoor tomato crops in recent years.

It has generous yields of fine-tasting, large, round tomatoes (each weighing up to 200g) and bred for outdoor growing.

Garden lights continue to shine in the GTN Bestsellers Garden Products chart. In the first week of December there are 10 garden lighting lines in the Top 50.

Although Christmas lights are now selling through in much higher volumes as trees are decorated, garden lights continue to be the sales phenomenon of 2014.

• Gardman Wood Effect Square Border Light is the highest chart re-entry at No 19.
• Smart Solar Bright Eye Penguins jump 5 places to No 3.
• Scheurich Cover Pots in Glossy Cream are the highest chart climber, up 23 places.

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

The general health of children could be greatly improved with increased exposure to nature, scientific studies have found. Due to modern indoor-based, ultra-clean living children’s immune systems aren’t as robust or strong as they are when exposed to natural bacteria while exploring the outdoors and playing with animals.

Wildlife World aims to encourage children back into nature with a range of innovative wildlife products suitable for school and at home that are both educational and easy to use.

Combining nature expertise and over 15 years of experience designing and manufacturing sustainably sourced wildlife products, Wildlife World hopes to re-ignite children’s fascination with the natural world to increase their understanding of its importance with improved children’s health being one of many secondary benefits.

There has been a notable increase in the number of children suffering with autoimmune diseases such as asthma and hay fever. It is widely believed that the cause of this is over-cleaning and under exposure to dirt and natural bacteria early on in life leading to allergies developing as the immune system hasn’t learnt how to control everyday invaders such as dust and pollen.

By encouraging children to engage with nature at an early age they are exposed to natural bacteria that will help develop their immunity to everyday pathogens, in turn reducing their chances of developing allergies. It also helps to strike the right balance between ‘screen time’ and outdoor exercise.

Wildlife World has developed an innovative educational range that is suited for classroom based teaching as well as taking the classes outside to interact with insects and animals and learn about the habitats and their importance in maintaining a healthy ecosystem. The Pyramid Insect Hotel is a large wooden structure standing 1.2 metres tall that includes a series of habitats that attract and harbour a variety of mini beasts and beneficial insects.

The design cleverly incorporates an integrated solar lamp that attracts moths, as well as professional cardboard nesting and viewing tubes, allowing for easy bee management, and removable inspection cassettes to monitor overwintering butterflies, moths and insect cocoons.

Other products in the Wildlife World educational range include Trail Packs that focus on engaging youngsters to explore nature in a variety of ways.

The Trail Packs are available in various stages: ecology, hands-on learning, study/learning & ultimate, providing an outdoor wildlife experience for all ages and levels of learning.

The packs contain nesting habitats and feeders for beneficial insects, bees, butterflies, birds and small mammals with packets of wildflower seeds to ensure an attractive wildlife friendly environment is produced.

The various feeders and nesters, which include hedgehog homes, bird feeder stations, interactive bee nesters, can be scattered around the outdoor area and using the extensive range of guides from Wildlife World, children can follow the trail and learn about the ecosystem first hand. The more advanced packs include wildlife cameras systems that allow nature to be studied undisturbed and provide another dimension to the children’s learning and understanding of wildlife.

Wildlife World also has a range of box sets that are suitable for using at home. The Minibugs sets are small functioning habitats specifically designed for children to use and are available in four different sets for bugs, bees, butterflies and ladybirds.

Each set is supplied with an activity book that children can follow as their chosen habitats are established.

The nature specialists also supply a Birdy Bites kit that allows kids to create cakes and feed shapes out of a ‘no-cook’ recipe to encourage birds into their gardens.

Further information is available from Wildlife World on 01666 505333, by emailing james@wildlifeworld.co.uk or by visiting the company’s website at www.wildlifeworld.co.uk

Stockings, lights and artificial snow are the big movers in the GTN Bestsellers Christmas Chart in the first week of December.

Will Santa Hats be the big movers next week as we move into the Christmas
party season?

• Premier Stocking with Snowflakes, Snowman & Penguin is the highest new entry at No 18.
• Kaemingk Snow Spray Non-Flamable 400ml is the highest chart climber, up 27 places to No 19.
• Premier Mini Gutter Hooks (pack of 24) see a sales increase of over 200% as lights go up around houses across the country.
• History & Heraldry Spinning Tree Decoration remains on the top spot.

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

Bark products for mulching and decorative uses are the star performers in the GTN Growing Media chart as sales really tail off for Christmas.

The number of bark lines in the Top 50 doubled, with four products seeing significant sales increases on last week.

• Arthur Bowers Cocoa Shells were the highest new entry at No 36.
• Westland Bed And Border Chipped Bark (70 litres) increased sales by 100% to re-enter at No 22.
• Highest chart climber of the week is Growise Multipurpose Compost (56 litres), up 31 places to No 19.

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

A bid by a garden centre owner to convert part of a potting shed into a cafe and local produce shop has been successful.

Paul Stephenson wants to improve trade at his Foundary Plant Centre, off the A140 at Tasburgh, Norfolk.

It is hoped the coffee shop will extend trade, particularly in winter months, while the shop would sell locally sourced fruit and vegetables.

Notcutts Group, which operates 18 garden centres in the UK, has reported revenue growth despite a challenging environment and weather woes in its latest financial year.

Stewart Garden has launched its Stewart Garden Schools campaign for 2015. Now in its third consecutive year, the campaign encourages children across the UK to begin growing their own fruit and vegetables.

Bradley Barton Primary School took first prize in 2014 with their Wizard of Oz inspired garden, and the challenge is on to create something special in 2015 as part of the celebration surrounding Stewart Group Holdings 70^th anniversary as a UK manufacturer of gardening products. Based on the popular musical, this years winning creation featured scarecrows, floral rainbows and woodland made of peas. The pupils also created a wormery to break down old leaves for compost.

The Stewart Garden Schools Campaign challenges schools to be creative with Stewart Garden products. Every entrant in this year’s campaign studied growing seeds and explored the differences between electric and non-electric propagators.

Almost 200 schools across the UK have participated in the campaign this year. Participating schools receive garden products worth over £400 and three varieties of easy-grow vegetable seeds from Pippa Greenwood’s range. Compost was donated by professional growers’ specialist, J Arthur Bowers, and participating garden centres.

Building on previous years success, the top ten entrants in the 2015 campaign will receive a generous amount of prize money. The winning school will receive £1,000 to spend at its local garden centre, and the nine runners-up will each receive £100.

In partnership, J Arthur Bowers will donate £500 worth of vouchers to the winner. The global electronics giant, Brother, is again supplying its GL200 garden label printer.

Nigel Thompson, sales director at Stewart Garden, said: “The Stewart Garden Schools Campaign has really captured the imagination of school children over the last 2 years. We’re looking forward to seeing what ideas our entrants will come up with in 2015.”

The Stewart Garden Schools campaign 2015 is open to school pupils aged 6-11 years.

To inspire young people and give your local school the chance to win £1,000, nominate yourself or a school near you. Contact Emma De Maio on 07921 160 134 or email emma@redheadpr.co.uk.

The winner of the inaugural hospice garden design competition run by Greenfingers and KLC School of Design was announced at a ceremony hosted by KLC at Chelsea Harbour.

Entrants were asked to design a ‘teenage space’ for a children’s hospice garden, and the top prize went to former KLC student Rachel Parker Soden, whose ‘Halcyon Daze’ teenage garden won plaudits from the team of expert judges.

Back in Spring 2014, alumni from the acclaimed KLC Diploma in Garden Design were invited to enter the competition by submitting a plan for a teenage garden, which will be used in a garden scheme at a hospice in the future.  The brief called on entrants to think about what would appeal to teenagers in an outside space, giving them a dedicated area to indulge in every day activities such as spending time with their friends and listening to music.

The standard of entries to the competition was extremely high and shortlisted candidates were invited to present their designs to a panel of expert judges comprised of Emma Hanford, Greenfingers Garden Projects Manager, and esteemed garden designers Ann-Marie Powell and Clare Matthews.  It was from this pool of finalists that Rachel Parker Soden’s design impressed the judges.

Emma Hanford from Greenfingers commented: “We were delighted with the quality of the entries; particularly how much the candidates had considered the challenges of building a garden for hospice children and their families.  Rachel’s design has a festival vibe and included so many elements that will appeal to teenagers, including a den, tipi, fire pit and communal spaces where they can relax with friends and family.”

Speaking of her win, Rachel said: “This competition is such an amazing opportunity and I feel incredibly privileged to have had my design selected as the winner.  Being totally in awe of the work that Greenfingers do, I am ridiculously excited to be working with them to make the design concept for the teenage garden become a reality!”

Rachel’s winning design will now go on to be incorporated in one of Greenfingers’ future children’s hospice gardens, giving her a chance to see the garden become a reality and work on a major design project which will have a very real impact on the lives of children and teenagers who spend time in hospices.

Following the success of this year’s competition, Greenfingers and KLC were delighted to announce that the hospice garden design competition will become a regular event for KLC students.

Annie Guilfoyle, Director of Garden Design at KLC School of Design, said of the collaboration: “Bringing together KLC and Greenfingers for this competition has provided our students with an exciting platform for their design ideas.  It offers them a fantastic opportunity to see their designs have a lasting and positive effect on the lives of children and young people in hospices. We look forward to the competition going from strength-to-strength and becoming an established feature for KLC students.”

A hot tub entrepreneur who counts pop stars and footballers among his customers is launching a new range for garden centres. 

Daniel Thomas set up Danz Spas eight years go and until recently has sold solely online.

In the last six months he’s opened his own showroom from his base in the Midlands and is now planning to team up with leading garden centres.

Daniel will be offering them a hot tub to use for display purposes, with his team handling the ordering, delivery and installation - meaning the garden centre will not need to hold stock.

Danz Spas will also handle all warranty and after sales care on the tubs for three years. The range will feature two tubs – the six-seater Destiny and seven-seater Ultimate Plus.

The six-seater Destiny offers the very best in design. Its features include directional jets, contoured seating, lighting and a Bluetooth sound system.

The Ultimate Plus is the largest hot tub with features including directional jets, LED lighting, two LED lit water fountains and a LED backlit waterfall.

It boasts 123 jets, offering the best in hydrotherapy technology, with rotating therapy jets and seven shoulder jets to help ease aches and pains.

With garden centres extremely popular with shoppers, Daniel believes this is the perfect route to market for his product.

He said: “Customers want to be able to see it and climb inside the hot tub before making the decision on whether to buy. Since we opened our showroom, we’ve seen a big jump in sales and are confident working hand in hand with garden centres will grow both their business and ours.”

Daniel continued: “Our customer base is very broad. It can range from couples and families wanting something fun in the back garden to older people with health issues who benefit from the directional jets.

“Our range is also popular with celebrities, such as Sophie Ellis Bextor, Dizzee Rascal and footballer David Stockdale.”

Daniel set up the business in 2006 and since then has seen his company grow steadily.

He now employs seven members of staff and has hit the £1 million turnover barrier.

Daniel concludes: “Teaming up with third parties like garden centres is a decision we’ve made in order to grow the business. It seems a natural fit and we’re looking forward to seeing what these partnerships will bring.”

Gardenex  has arranged a special exhibition stand discount for its member companies wishing to exhibit at the Outdoor Design & Build Show which takes place from 13-15 April 2015 at the Dubai World Trade Centre.  

The show, now in its third year, focuses primarily on products and services for the design, build and landscaping of public parks, private and palace gardens, green spaces within urban areas and major residential developments.  The exhibition is hosted and fully backed by Dubai Municipality and is the only dedicated international platform in the Middle East that caters to the entire spectrum of hard and soft landscape products and services.

Commenting on this export opportunity for British companies, Amanda Sizer Barrett, the director general of Gardenex, said: “The UAE construction industry is experiencing a period of fast track growth that includes investment into appropriately designed and built outdoor space.  

“This provides an excellent opportunity for British suppliers of products and services in the landscaping and other selected sectors of the garden market.  Gardenex has developed close links with key garden product buyers from Dubai in recent years and several of the Federation’s member companies have benefited through export sales.

“Special exhibition discounts, such as the discount we have negotiated at the Outdoor Design & Build Show, are one of the many services provided by the Federation for its member companies to help develop their international trade.”

Companies wishing to learn more about exhibiting at this show should email Ms Anju Hanish on anju@smg-online.com at organiser's Streamline Marketing Group, visit the show’s website at www.theoutdoorshow.ae; or telephone Eleanor Wigram at Gardenex on  01959 565995.

Tim Briercliffe, Secretary General of the AIPH (International Association of Horticultural Producers), is the latest name to be added to the HTA’s Contact Conference next month.

Tim, a familiar face to those in the industry, will speak after the conference dinner to an audience of growers and nurserymen at the biennial event which takes place on 14 and 15 January at JCB World Headquarters in Rocester, Staffordshire.

Other new names joining the impressive line up of speakers include Caroline Jones of Pershore College who will provide an overview of the courses and learning methods available including apprenticeships and on-the-job training.

The event also welcomes Sarah Mayne of ADAS who will provide an update on the MOPS project findings and highlight some of the key control options that have the potential to asset growers with managing their crops sustainably.

Other speakers include Guy Moreton from MorePeople and David Frost from Produce World who will give advice on recruitment in the first session entitled ‘People’.

Graham Spencer of Plants for Europe will talk on how growers exploit the opportunities that new plant varieties represent, whilst David Denny of the HTAwill lead a session on how to develop trade based on the findings of the HDC project to export plants to 25 countries.

There will be a supplier and buyer discussion hosted by Wayne Eady from Delamore Young Plants, Tim Clapp, former head of horticulture at The Garden Centre Group, Adam Dunnett  of  Wyevale Plants, Charles Carr, Lowaters and Marcus Cousins of Aylett Nurseries where delegates will be able to pose their questions to industry experts.

David Green from Chapel Cottage Plants, Chris James, Wyeplants and Lewis Normand from Coblands Nurseries have been confirmed as session chairs, whilst Amanda Sizer Barrett and Charlie Parker and from Gardenex will also speak.

The conference dinner takes place on the evening of 14 January at the Radisson Blu Hotel at East Midlands Airport, and will feature some charity fundraising for Perennial.

Day two of the event will include a tour of the JCB factory and JCB Story where delegates will see the process of how a machine is built from the delivery of the sheet steel to the finished product, with workshops on topics including “Making Horticulture Attractive”, “Understanding the Value of Research” and “Using Market Trends to Develop Plant Promotions”.  

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 Christmas 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.