Former Garden Centre Association inspector Liz Hutson is running a series of 'The ‘Grow Your Own Profits’ roadshows over February and March next year, designed to help garden centres maximize sales of bulbs, seeds, plants, garden sundries, irrigation and bird care.
This week Liz explains what you can expect at one of her innovative and informative events...
If customers don’t know what, when or why they should buy something they have no reason to purchase. For some product lines it is either obvious or quick to convey. It is more complicated in many core gardening and environmentally linked areas, but essential to optimize sales.
We assume customers know much more than they do; often a simple revelation can have a big impact on sales. Many areas of core gardening and bird care are not at all obvious to the average customer. Once they realize the benefits of doing or buying something they’ll do it or buy it. The trouble is, in many cases, they don’t.
How many customers know even the ‘basic’ things like the benefits of products such as cloches, fleece, cold frames and grow houses? Would they know what vegetables are the easiest to grow, the most economical, how to extend the season and have a continual supply of home grown produce throughout the year? Would they know which fruit and vegetables they could grow in containers or what the most endangered species of birds and wildlife are, just how serious the problem is and how they can help? Explaining ‘what’ ‘when’ and ‘why’ is the first step and the more motivational it is the better.
You can also initiate more general interest in activities like grow your own by communicating key messages that resonate with the modern consumer. There are increasing concerns about not only the heavy use of pesticides on commercially grown crops, but also the quality of the soil they are grown in. Due to intensive growing methods, this is significantly lower in quantity and range of minerals than it used to be. Not only does this affect flavour, it reduces the nutritional value of the crops which has a knock on effect on human health and nutritional status, eg:
- To get the same amount of iron you got from one apple in 1950, by 1998 it was estimated that you’d have to eat 26 apples
- The recommended daily allowance of Vitamin A could be met by eating 2 peaches in 1950; by 2002 this had gone up to 53 peaches!
Health benefits of home grown produce likely to attract younger consumers.
The desire to look and feel good is a powerful buying motivator and there is potential to attract more of the green smoothie brigade into growing their own. If their green smoothies were that much better for them and they realized it was possible to harvest the greens all year round from their own garden, that would certainly attract many more health conscious consumers. The old-fashioned image of allotment gardening is gradually shifting.
According to the National Society of Allotment and Leisure Gardeners there is a 90,000 strong waiting list for allotments and a higher and growing proportion of younger allotment holders generally. Companies like Agralan and Maxicrop are also seeing a different, much younger breed of customer, indicating the growing interest in organic gardening amongst the young.
Many potential motivators will be discussed on the Roadshow, as well as the best ways to educate both consumers and staff about plants, products and activities using materials provided in order to make the most of them.
Education, communication, co-ordination
Staff need to be knowledgeable to sell effectively and customers are put off trying new things if they lack skills and confidence. Making complicated things easier to grasp without losing important content takes thought and time. It also requires skill and planning to communicate strategically without having a sea of signage and leaflet dispensers.
Co-ordination of activities is essential to multiply results and target as wide a range of consumers as possible. Delegates attending the Roadshow will benefit from the time and planning that has gone into the course and materials to help them fast track results back at their centres.
Who should attend and why
The roadshow will be beneficial for:
- Shop floor staff as they will learn about activities, products and effective selling in addition to getting merchandising and display tips.
- Marketing staff will benefit through increased horticultural knowledge and ideas for how to use this and the materials supplied.
- Management staff will see the opportunities and rationale first hand and be in a better position to co-ordinate among departments.
The materials include full course notes, appendices for quick reference, dozens of monthly tips applicable to many areas of trading, numerous ideas and images for social media, factsheets that may be personalized, sample press releases and wall planners to help co-ordinate, one of which will be partly completed as guidance.
Whilst there is supplier support the majority of the material is non brand specific. The main aim is to inject new life into core gardening and support the retail trade.
Dates, venues and cost
Prices start at £80 per person depending on numbers attending. This includes refreshments, lunch and all training materials. Dates and venues are as follows:
- Maidstone – 16th February
- Guildford – 18th February
- Cambridge – 23rd February
- Birmingham – 25th February
- Chester – 29th February
- Perth – 2nd March
For further details and booking
Contact Liz Hutson 01531 631592, liz.hutson@ledburybband.co.uk
To book online visit www.bookwhen.com/growprofits
