In This Issue
Kingfisher plan 40-plus launches for Harrogate Christmas & Gift
How the Class of 2014 kept us on our toes...
The Top 100 most-read stories of 2014
For the Rising Stars, it's the final countdown
Wyevale facing long wait for Blooms Cardiff re-build?
The Quest for Christmas Greatness - Buy Your Tickets for The Greatest Christmas Party Here
Win a trip to Harrogate Christmas & Gift
Magna Carta bonus for Lincoln garden centre
Scotts president goes - and will not be replaced
Garden centres lag behind in outdoor leisure
Useful Links
Send to a Friend »
Subscribe »
Issue Archive »
Update your Profile »
Print All Articles »
Subscribe to RSS »
Visit Our Website »
Example of a Flyer »
Send us your news and great ideas

Contact us with your news.  Email neil.pope@tgcmc.co.uk, or trevor.pfeiffer@tgcmc.co.uk or call the GTN News team on 01733 775700

 


Kingfisher plan 40-plus launches for Harrogate Christmas & Gift









Kingfisher will be launching more than 40 Christmas products for 2015 when they return to Harrogate Christmas & Gift later this month (stand B15)...

Kingfisher will be launching more than 40 Christmas products for 2015 when they return to Harrogate Christmas & Gift later this month (stand B15).

Kingfisher’s entire festive range of artificial trees, indoor and outdoor lighting, decorations, seasonal novelties and gifts will be on show.

Products being shown for the first time include animated scenes, plush gift boxes, Santa sacks and stockings, traditional plush Santas and an eye catching point of sale display Case ready-filled with baubles packed in acetate tubes.

Visitors to the stand will be able to take advantage of show-only promotions, special offers and pre-season order discounts.

Kingfisher (Bonnington Plastics Ltd) is one of the UK’s largest importers of gardening, leisure and Christmas goods, with more than 2,000 products and its own offices in China. Sales director Sergio Tartaglia says the company has invested heavily to expand the range this year.

Visitors to the stand will be able to take advantage of show-only promotions, special offers and pre-season order discounts.

More launch images: see gallery below.

How the Class of 2014 kept us on our toes...
GTN associate editor Mike Wyatt looks back on a memorable year - one some would like to forget
Whichever way you look at it, the antics of the Class of 2014 made the past 12 months of mixed fortunes a year to rermember.

As the registers were called, there was a handful of names you could never ignore...

Whichever way you look at it, it has been a helluva year – thanks to the antics of the Class of 2014.

As the registers were called, there was a handful of names you could never ignore... Davies N, Breddy M, Yealland R, Pearson M, Bradshaw K, Conroy E, Roper A, Paris C, Mein M, Culpan H, Natar P....the full list would take up many column inches, but these are the ones who stole the headlines, and featured in GTN Xtra’s best-read online stories. They didn’t all make it to the top of the class, but that didn’t stop them making an impact, each in his or her own way.

And what a weather year....mostly in a good sense (although not for the Somerset Levels, where the floodwaters did not recede until March).



As garden centre sales got the year off to a flying start (34% up on the first week of 2013, according to GTN Bestsellers, and record sales in the wettest January ever), our curiosity was still being piqued by the plans of two of the industry’s former ‘captains’. Nick Davies’ shock departure from Solus Garden & Leisure late in the old year was the first hint of troubled times at his erstwhile company. In retrospect, the announcement that Edward Conroy’s Westland were to back him in a new start-up suggested that insiders might already have sussed Scotts’ interest in joining forces with Solus. Westland clearly saw an opportunity to trumpet a major diversification well ahead of any competitive announcement by their rival.

By mid-January we knew that Davies’ new venture was to be called Crest Garden, but it was another month before we learned officially that Scotts and Solus were in talks.

The grapevine rustled with dubious speculation for weeks. However the consensus was that, if Solus – a pivotal supplier on which hundreds of retailers depended – was in trouble, then a tie-up with Scotts was a marriage made in heaven. Both companies have been fêted for their benchmark levels of customer service over the years. Solus had called in Mark Pearson, who had left his CEO post at Gardman the previous October, to oversee the proposed union. As mergers go, this was potentially a momentous one.

And so the stage was set for the first big upset of the year. On April 2, Scotts CEO Martin Breddy announced that the Solus deal was off, that Scotts’ distribution agreement with Solus had expired, and that retailers should order Scotts products from other wholesalers or direct from Scotts themselves. Then Bayer pulled away, too. All this at peak season.

Unsurprisingly, the news sent shock waves through the industry; despite ‘business as usual’ assurances from Solus while they pursued an alternative investor with the help of business firefighters Grant Thornton.

I must confess that as the pundits, including ourselves, searched for further clues, all trails led to a dead-end...or right back to Scotts. Gardman and its still-new CEO Stewart Hainsworth ruled himself out on the grounds that the timing was wrong. Many were fearful that if Solus ended up in the hands of owners who failed to understand the idiosyncratic nature of the garden industry, more tears would follow. As it happens, the administrators, called in by Solus in May, got Scotts back to the table and July’s news that Scotts had acquired the Solus brands was greeted with a sigh of relief. Wholesale distribution, though, was not part of the deal, offering Decco, Stax and others an unprecedented bonus opportunity.

In retrospect, the decision by the UK’s biggest garden centre chain to set up its own distribution centre was probably a body blow from which it would be difficult for Solus to recover in the short-term.

Which leads us on to Wyevale Garden Centres, as we used to know them and must now know them again, following the Terra Firma management’s decision to ditch The Garden Centre Group branding introduced by Nicholas Marshall in the previous era.

As the year wore on, CEO Kevin Bradshaw’s vision of Wyevale as a major leisure retail chain, not just a collection of garden centres, steadily came into focus. He was building a team with the deepest level of High Street experience the industry has yet seen...names like M&S, Pret, EAT, Britvic, Matalan, B&Q, Asda Walmart, Budgens, Londis, Dixons, WH Smiths and Vision Express were all over the CVs of his new recruits. By re-adopting the Wyevale name, bolting on wide retail skills and experience and extending the group’s national reach through continued acquisition (notably the Garden & Leisure chain in 2014), Terra Firma have clearly set their sights on building a brand capable of realising the kind of value that makes sense to Guy Hands’ equity group.

Meanwhile, it has been relatively quiet over at Dobbies following the arrival of Andy King as MD after the departure of James Barnes in 2013. Barnes set the Tesco-backed group on a course designed to lead to 100 centres, but it’s currently stuck at 35. With Tesco currently pre-occupied with growth and profit issues, it would surprise no-one to learn that garden centre retailing was slipping down the group’s business priorities.

It has been a busy year for Blue Diamond, with an impressive re-build at Redfields turning many heads and the acquisition of Trelawney at Wadebridge and imminent new build at Truro (which will be the group’s 17th outlet). Alan Roper’s approach to empire building is refreshingly different to his bigger rivals, mixing a dash of local autonomy with his own maverick “points of difference” philosophy.

For now, the garden industry is not just all about the big boys. Away from the front line populated by big chains and destination outlets, a host of operators are contributing to the ever-changing garden centre landscape. Boyd Douglas-Davies’ Hillview group now runs nine centres and Paul Chessum’s Home & Garden group bought the fourth of a planned portfolio of 10. No shortage of business to keep buyers and sellers – and their agents – out of mischief then, as a whole generation of garden centre families considers its options.

I had my ear bent at Glee (although it wasn’t my fault) about the shortage of women at the top of garden industry companies. I suppose she was right – so let’s celebrate the ones who are, like Carol Paris (re-invigorating the HTA as a force to be reckoned with) and Heather Culpan, who led Burgon & Ball to GIMA Awards success this summer.

And speaking of Glee, the industry’s much-loved but under-supported showcase may have finally turned a corner with event director Matthew Mein at the helm. If Bayer, Hozelock and Sinclair decide to honour it with their presence next year, it will once again be the show it always should have been.

The Top 100 most-read stories of 2014

It's been another year of momentous change for the garden centre industry - and, predictably, it was the troubles of the former Solus business and the latest re-shaping of the Wyevale Garden Centres group that topped the list of GTN Xtra's best-read stories...

GTN Xtra Content Popularity 2014
RankStory - Issue No.
1Solus Garden & Leisure goes into administration - Issue 28 2014 - Breaking News
2Scotts Miracle-Gro purchase Solus brands - Issue 41 2014 - Breaking News
3Solus 'close to a deal' with new investors - updated - Issue 26 2014
4Redundancies, resignations and new appointments...it has been a dramatic week at Wyevale - Issue 53 2014
5Comment on the Solus-Scotts situation from leading garden centre owners and buying groups - Issue 21 2014
6Dismay as The Garden Centre Group stores shut at 5pm - Issue 5 2014
7Scotts & Solus partnership off - Issue 20 2014 - More Breaking News
8Scotts and Solus in negotiations to join forces - Issue 12 2014 - Breaking News
9Solus reviews options following Scotts deal breakdown - Issue 22 2014 - Solus update
10Administrators make 91 redundant at Solus to stem losses - Issue 30 2014

It's been another year of momentous change for the garden centre industry - and, predictably, it was the troubles of the former Solus business and the latest re-shaping of the Wyevale Garden Centres group that topped the list of GTN Xtra's best-read stories.

Through the year, we've posted more stories than ever before  – more than 3,000 – to keep readers informed, and on a number of occasions, we were first with the news.

We're pleased to say that GTN Xtra continues to grow in popularity, with around 80% of the email database now opening stories published in the weekly e-newsletter. Many of you tell us you now rely on GTN Xtra as your main source of up-to-the-miniute industry information and especially appreciate our 'breaking news' mailings.

Using the data we collect weekly, we can once again publish the Top 100 Most-Read Stories of 2014 (see below). If you've missed any of these stories just click on those of interest (one at a time) to see them in full or search the GTN Xtra Archive using the link at the top of the page.

1          Solus Garden & Leisure goes into administration

2          Scotts Miracle-Gro purchase Solus brands

3          Solus 'close to a deal' with new investors - updated

4          Redundancies, resignations and new appointments...it has been a dramatic week at Wyevale

5          Comment on the Solus-Scotts situation from leading garden centre owners and buying groups

6          Dismay as The Garden Centre Group stores shut at 5pm

7          Scotts & Solus partnership off

8          Scotts and Solus in negotiations to join forces

9          Solus reviews options following Scotts deal breakdown

10        Administrators make 91 redundant at Solus to stem losses

11        “Thursday was very painful for the family and the staff." Ross Yealland

12        Solus answers key questions

13        New centralised retail operations structure for The Garden Centre Group

14        Solus 'regret' that negotiations break down

15        CEO and sales director set to leave Scotts Solus Brands

16        Crest Garden reveal sales team of '12 knowledgeable, well known and respected agents'

17        Tim Clapp is leaving Wyevale

18        Senior buyers and garden centre staff 'set to leave The Garden Centre Group'

19        Wyevale's expansion could result in a stronger independent trade, says leading garden centre boss

20        The Garden Centre Group adds more High Street talent

21        Wyevale Garden Centres acquires four Golden Acres Group stores to take its number to 148

22        What next for Wyevale Garden Centres?

23        Solus: too much change, too soon?

24        Blue Diamond set to buy 16th centre

25        Westland Rising Stars shine during final masterclass

26        We'll speak to key suppliers next week say Solus administrators

27        Garden centres concerned over supplies after Scotts-Solus split

28        Anxious times for suppliers and retailers waiting for more news of Scotts-Solus deal

29        Scotts-Solus brands aim to restore confidence in service levels

30        The Garden Centre Group to rebrand as Wyevale Garden Centres

31        Boyd adds 6 centres to Hillview

32        More Solus jobs to go as Edinburgh depot closure is announced

33        Redundancy fears as TGCG undertake staffing review at Garden & Leisure centres

34        Are The Garden Centre Group about to change their name?

35        Wyevale's Christmas displays unveiled – first pictures!

36        Dobbies U-turn over bid to charge charities £400

37        Solus administrators admit to being "hopeful of completing a sale"

38        Wyevale Garden Centres acquires Raglan Garden Centre

39        Nick Davies unveils his new business...Crest Garden Ltd 

40        Solus would be sorely missed, says Westland boss

41        Big changes imminent at Garden & Leisure as TGCG carries out major restructure of the business

42        "We’ll be at £200 million in 10 years" - Alan Roper, Blue Diamond

43        Sale of Solus Garden & Leisure edges closer

44        Jury dramatically discharged in Thomas Hayes trial for a second time

45        Trelawney makes it sweet 16 for Blue Diamond…and 17th is on the way

46        Solus merger talks 'making good progress'

47        Wyevale Garden Centres acquires Moreton Park Garden Centre

48        Choice group drops Chapelwood birdcare brand 

49        Gardman save the day as garden centre is let down on Chapelwood delivery

50        Timing wrong for merger with Solus implies Gardman CEO

51        Terra Firma to stay as owners of Wyevale Garden Centres...for the time being

52        Bayer Garden ensures security of supply

53        Stagecraft founder Tom Davis dies aged 66 

54        Gardman exploring sale options

55        Wyevale Garden Centres appoint new Head of Garden 

56        David's is No.5 for Home & Garden group 

57        Van Hage Peterborough soon to have supermarket neighbour

58        Wyevale Garden Centres acquires Podington Garden Centre

59        Scotts Solus Brands shows off linked sales opportunities

60        Garden centre boss resigns after being jailed for 18 months

61        Announcement on sale of Solus due next week

62        Tesco trial Dobbies offering at 10 stores

63        Growing trend for centres to de-stock outdoor plants in winter 

64        Choice stick with Solus but plan a back-up

65        Smart Solar reorganises sales team to manage sharp increase in sales

66        Chessington's Rising Star is full of confidence

67        Scotts head off fears over Solus deliveries

68        Blue Diamond offer 'confidential talks' in quest for growth

69        Scotts create "the biggest sales force in UK gardening" 

70        Gateacre Garden Centre in Liverpool closing down as owners concentrate on award-winning Burleydam

71        Terra Firma intends to add to TGCG's growing number of garden centres, reveals chairman

72        Solus brands: give us time, urges Scotts MD

73        Undercover intern shakes up garden centre for TV show

74        Littleheath makes it 9 for Hillview

75        Decco and Glee look to be the initial winners following the Solus Scotts breakup

76        Van Hage work with Waitrose on re-development plan for Great Amwell

77        Suppliers taking the strain

78        Autumn promo gets Crest Garden off to flying start

79        “Focussed, adrenalin pumping,” that’s Stewarts Rising Star

80        Carol Paris enters into the festive spirit dressed as Santa

81        TGCG announces new Non-Executive Board Director

82        Haskins Garden Centre chain eyes national expansion

83        More reaction to the destocking-in-winter debate

84        The Garden Centre Group acquires Brooks in Bude to bring its number of stores to 140

85        Trial of Thomas Hayes to resume with new jury

86        William Sinclair issue trading statement announcing disappointing sales

87        Revenues at The Garden Centre Group increase by £17m

88        Bradley Garden Centre to close with loss of 18 jobs 

89        Trelawney deals make it sweet 16 for Blue Diamond…and 142 for Wyevale?

90        Kaemingk win The Greatest Christmas Supplier Award

91        QD group buy 10th garden centre

92        Oakham is new group's fourth site - and target is 10

93        Wyevale Garden Centres acquires Trelawney Ashford Garden Centre

94        Choice switches to Gardman for core gardening products as well as wild bird care

95        The Garden Centre Group poaches director from Gap Inc

96        Rebranding is a possibility for The Garden Centre Group, admits marketing director

97        Proposed new garden centre would create 300 jobs

98        Will the supply chain pull through? We speak to leading distributors

99        Statement on supply issues likely from Solus on Monday

100      Scotts Miracle-Gro purchase Solus brands

Analysis from Newsweaver compiled by Trevor Pfeiffer, managing director, The Garden Communication & Media Company Ltd

 



For the Rising Stars, it's the final countdown
After eight months of hard graft, the five finalists in the Garden Centre Association’s Rising Stars programme, sponsored by Westland, are preparing to face their ultimate challenge...



Above: last year's joint winners, George Bishop, from Squires Woking, and Will Michieli, from Monkton Elm, presenting to the 2014 conference.


After eight months of hard graft, the five finalists in the Garden Centre Association’s Rising Stars programme, sponsored by Westland, are preparing to face their ultimate challenge.

They will take the stage at the GCA’s annual conference in Chester later this month, to face a discerning audience of garden industry delegates – who will then choose an overall winner.



The five finalists are: Kirsty Clark (Perrywood GC), Matthew Fay (Stewarts Garden-Lands, Christchurch), Lisa Waim (Haskins Snowhill), Hannah Mason (Chessington) and Cerys Williams (Perrywood).

They will present at the GCA Conference in Chester on 26 January – the finale of an eight month programme in which 28 young candidates attended three merchandising Masterclasses run by IBBIS director and training facilitator Ian Boardman. Thanks to Ian’s efforts, many of the Rising Stars, even those who did not make the final cut, 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.”

Read the stories of all five finalists by clicking on the ‘associated articles’ links below.



2014 joint winners George Bishop and Will Michieli presenting to last year's conference.

Wyevale facing long wait for Blooms Cardiff re-build?
Wyevale Garden Centres could be facing a long wait before the Blooms Garden Centre at Cardiff, which was destroyed by fire in November 2013, is re-built...


Wyevale Garden Centres could be facing a long wait before the Blooms Garden Centre at Cardiff, which was destroyed by fire in November 2013, is re-built.

The Blooms brand is owned by Wyevale, who leased the store from Blooms Properties Limited Partnership.

Planning permission for a new garden centre was originally granted in 2010 but re-approved in November to allow for a full replacement following the fire. That permission is due to expire in March - but, according to an item on Wales OnLine, planning consultancy Nathaniel Litchfield & Partners has asked the local planning authority to renew the planning permission to allow the landlords another five years to start the project.

The centre, at St Mellons, was reduced to a skeleton of metal girders when 35ft-flames engulfed the building.

The planning application sought to build a garden centre with an 8,000 sq.m. main building, 1,000 sq.m. of open-sided space and a 4,000 sq.m. outdoor area “of a similar design that is fit for purpose and able to satisfy the demands of modern day garden centre customers”.

The developers asked for parking for 200 cars and 22 bikes.

The original centre also hosted a number of concessions, including Edinburgh Woollen Mill, Cotton Traders, The Works, Pampurred Pets and Ponden Home Interiors, but the future of these under the new plan is unclear.

Nathaniel Litchfield & Partners said in a covering letter to the planners: “The planning application for the site was submitted before the economic crisis and gained planning permission during the heart of the economic downturn.

“Implementation during economic unrest has proven to be difficult but now the economic climate has recently become more stable our client is keen to ensure that the extant employment permission is kept alive.”

Cardiff Council are expected to make a decision on the renewal before the end of January.

Wales OnLine report a spokeswoman for Wyevale Garden Centres as saying:  “We have been working closely with our landlord in progressing the re-build of Cardiff Blooms following the devastating fire in November 2013.”

 
The Quest for Christmas Greatness - Buy Your Tickets for The Greatest Christmas Party Here
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.  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 next Sunday.  Buy your tickets now...

The sponsors for The Greatest Christmas Awards are:  

         
      
      

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.  

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 11th 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.

Early Bird Tickets

Price

Per person ex VAT

Single

£84 + VAT

£84.00

3

£240 + VAT

£80.00

5

£380 + VAT

£76.00

Table of 10

£720 + VAT

£72.00

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


The sponsors for The Greatest Christmas Awards are:  


                     
 
Win a trip to Harrogate Christmas & Gift
Garden Trade News in conjunction with the organisers of the Harrogate Christmas & Gift Fair are offering you an opportunity to win a VIP visit to this fabulous event...

Harrogate Christmas & Gift Fair is the UK’s only dedicated event for Christmas and celebration products. It is the show where garden centres from all around the UK visit to select products for retail and Christmas displays for the year ahead (with one eye on The Greatest Christmas Awards!) 

Taking place at the Harrogate International Centre, 11-14 January 2015 in the beautiful, historic spa town of Harrogate, it’s the first event for the industry in the whole of Europe and a perfect way to help give your business a leading edge in the New Year. Garden Trade News in conjunction with the organisers are offering you an opportunity to win a VIP visit to this fabulous event. 

The prize includes: 

  • Two nights bed and breakfast at the luxury Majestic, Harrogate’s leading hotel. 
  • Dinner for two on Saturday evening (up to the value of £80) 
  • Two places at the prestigious Greatest Christmas Awards on Sunday evening, organised by Garden Trade News and supported by Christmas & Gift Harrogate 
  • A bottle of champagne 

There is also a runners-up prize of two tickets for GTN’s fabulous Greatest Christmas Awards Party, which is held at the Majestic on the first evening of the show. The prize includes a superb three-course meal and dancing to a great live band. 

As well as leading companies such as Premier Decorations, SnowTime, Festive Productions and Kaemingk displaying all their new lines, there will be a host of new companies all offering something new for the very first time. 

Harrogate Christmas and Gift Fair is one of the UK’s fastest growing trade show with visitor numbers increasing every year. 

“The influx of garden centre buyers has created a new dynamic which in turn has attracted new exhibitors with product ranges for the entire year,” says show organiser Simon Anslow. 

Harrogate Christmas and Gift Fair is the event to kickstart your new business year, combining business and pleasure. For the perfect way to kick-start the New Year, find out more by visiting www.harrogatefair.com  

How to enter 

To enter the free prize draw simply answer the following question: 

When did flashing Christmas lights get introduced, the 1930s or 1950s? 

Email your answer to: mandy.atkin@tgcmc.co.uk 

Entries close Tuesday, January 6, 2015. The winner will be announced in a GTN Xtra awards special on Wednesday 7 January 2015.

Good luck!

Magna Carta bonus for Lincoln garden centre
A Lincoln garden centre could benefit from a 500-space car park for a planned temporary park and ride service...

A Lincoln garden centre could benefit from a 500-space car park for a planned temporary park and ride service.

Lincolnshire County Council says a planning application for the car park, at Whisby Garden Centre next to the A46 bypass, has been submitted, to cater for the anticipated surge in traffic created by this year’s Magna Carta 800th anniversary celebrations.

The service could start in April and run for up to three years, with a review after 12 months. It could pave the way for a permanent facility in the future.

Councillor Richard Davies said a shuttle bus would run from Whisby to Lincoln Castle, taking some of the pressure off city centre routes. “The facility is on-track to be ready in time for next April's opening, and we’ll be able to share further details once final arrangements have been agreed," he added.

A new £22m centre at Lincoln Castle will be the centrepiece of the proposed Magna Carta programme, which is expected to attract 100,000 visitors.

"We have applied for permission for three years as we have a world class facility and not everyone will be able to see it this summer,” said Cllr Davies.  The scheme would provide some indication of the best place for a park and ride and the potential demand.

The Highways Agency has objected to the plan because of “a lack of information”.

 
Scotts president goes - and will not be replaced
President and chief operating officer Barry Sanders is the latest executive to leave in an on-going ‘slimming down’ process at the Scotts Miracle-Gro company’s US parent...

President and chief operating officer Barry Sanders is the latest victim of an on-going ‘slimming down’ process at the Scotts Miracle-Gro company’s US parent.

Sanders, who has been with the business for 15 years,  is to leave the company at the end of January and will not be replaced.

Jim Hagedorn, chairman and CEO, promised shareholders in 2012 that the company would focus on enhancing profitability. “We continue to deliver on this guarantee,”  he said. “The decisions we have made over the past year have often been tricky, but none a lot more challenging than this one.”

Senior management has been reduced by 25%, with the equivalent of eight jobs lost, in Hagedorn’s drive to make the business “leaner and smarter. Chief financial officer Larry Hilsheimer left the company last spring.

Garden centres lag behind in outdoor leisure
Garden centres account for only 10% of the outdoor leisure market, according to the Leisure & Outdoor Furniture Association (LOFA)...

Garden centres account for only 10% of the outdoor leisure market, according to the Leisure & Outdoor Furniture Association (LOFA).

The latest release of LOFA’s annual research suggests that online retailers are now taking the lion’s share at 27%, with department stores (24%) and DIY stores (23%) close behind.

However, the data also reveals that more than half of purchasers research products before they buy – and 42% of these go to a garden centre.

LOFA says the outdoor furniture market grew by 18% last year to £1.15bn, with LOFA members outperforming the category as a whole, 36% ahead of the previous year. Members’ barbecue sales were up 12%.

Email Newsletter Software by Newsweaver