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Let’s spread a little RHS Chelsea cheer on #FloralFriday
This week on social media, Greenfingers Charity has been sharing some of its favourite photos of The Greenfingers Charity Garden from last year’s RHS Chelsea Flower Show. Designed by Kate Gould and entirely funded by a private donor along with many gifts in kind, The Greenfingers Charity Garden was amongst last year’s highlights. And tomorrow (Friday 22nd May), the charity is asking for its supporters to join in the fun and once again spread a little bit of floral cheer!
Tomorrow the charity will be sharing its favourite Chelsea pics throughout the day and would love you to share yours too.
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Grow your sales with Evergreen Garden Care’s GYO best-sellers
GTN Xtra promotion
Good weather coupled with the COVID-19 lockdown has boosted Grow Your Own search and sales across the UK. Evergreen Garden Care recognises that garden spaces are one of the key sanctuaries for households during this unprecedented time, with more people using their own safe, green retreat to exercise, relax and learn new skills...
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Garden Centres back on the right track - UPDATED - New comment from Barton Grange, Newbank, Langlands and Green Pastures
Trading records broken as garden centres in England and Wales get back to business
GTN Xtra asked garden centres how their first real Saturday of the season had been and how their teams had coped with the “new normal.”
"We’ve sold almost as much in the last 4 days as we did all through the shutdown online!”
"Sales have been between 50 and 60% up on the same days last year. Stocking up again hasn't been straightforward as suppliers are also having to catch up."
"What a docile and well behaved nation we have become in six weeks. I can’t imagine anyone standing in a queue for twenty minutes, back in ‘normal’ times, without there being confrontation."
"“We are expecting 10 days of bank holidays! Pent up demand, money saved up, no holidays this year, time off work furloughed, new interest in the garden!"
Read comment from Coolings, Hilliers, The Gardens Group, Rosebourne, Blue Diamond, InExcess, British Garden Centres, Klondyke, Dobbies, Perrywood, Bosworths, Planters, Bents, St Peters, Baytree, Barton Grange, Newbank, Langlands and Green Pastures
Making garden centres friendly, safe and accessible again
GTN Xtra promotion
Some garden centres have already taken massive steps to reopen safely. Many in the garden industry, and in retail at large, will be keenly watching and evaluating what works and how customers respond. No doubt over the coming weeks there will be refinements and many improvements as it becomes clear things will stay ‘different’ for a long time.
Green Magic Co (Sign-Holders.co.uk) has been beavering away during lockdown to discover, devise and deliver new solutions...
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Northern Ireland garden centres re-open with record sales - UPDATED
Garden centres in Northern Ireland re-opened yesterday and Hillmount Garden Centre reported ""Monday was our biggest day across all stores"...
Read first day of opening comment from Alan Mercer
Bump Up Your Colour Pot Sales
With the increased demand of Perennials over the coming weeks for premium pot colour in Garden Centres, Ball Colegrave have ensured there is good availability on many of our most popular varieties for immediate delivery...
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Massive increase in demand for VegTrug
VegTrug have reported a massive increase in demand for their iconic product range during the Covid 19 crisis with the company taking very early decisions and employing a smart strategy to see them through...
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LifestyleGarden® thanks keyworkers with special giveaway
Running across the company’s social media platforms, the LifestyleGarden® team asked its followers to nominate the keyworkers in their life for the chance to win a set of the company’s rainbow-inspired Nassau dining sets...
Read more and watch video
CSY launch Ecommerce Sites to help Garden Centres during the Covid-19 Panademic
CSY have been pulling out all the stops to help customers during the Covid-19 Pandemic...
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The UK’s Infrastructure Capacity to Reprocess Post-Consumer Plastic Needs to Double by 2022 to Meet Plastic Packaging Tax Demands
The UK could be set to face significant challenges in its ability to recycle household plastic packaging, with reprocessing infrastructure potentially needing to double, according to new research...
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A cut above on ground below
Developed to meet the demands of the commercial market, the new EGO RotoCut attachment has dual sharpened blades made of high strength alloy steel and a cutting width of 23cm...
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Get your own copy of GTN Xtra
with all the news direct to your e-mail inbox...
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Smart Face Masks
Smart Garden have tapped into their extensive Chinese supply chain and are importing a large quantity of 3-ply disposable, medical-grade, face masks...
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Solex Exhibition – Cancelled
Solex has been cancelled for 2020...
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The Commercial Horticultural Association is supporting and promoting its existing British exhibitor group for GreenTech and preparing for the rescheduled show on 20-22 October
The GreenTech show in Amsterdam, The Netherlands, has been rescheduled to 20-22 October 2020 and the Commercial Horticultural Association (CHA) is organising the British Pavilion at the event, supported by the Department for International Trade (DIT)...
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RHS Chelsea Garden Product of the Year to be judged during Virtual RHS Chelsea
The Royal Horticultural Society (RHS), has announced it will host the prestigious RHS Chelsea Garden Product of the Year Competition and a special People’s Choice vote for RHS Chelsea Plant of the Decade during its first ever virtual show, taking place from 18-23 May...
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Safe Trading Guidance for all garden centres published by HTA
The HTA have launched the HTA Safe Trading Guidance for all garden centres. This is to allow garden centres to prepare and implement when the Government gives the go-ahead for stores to reopen...
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The best of last week's
If you missed last week's GTN Xtra, below are the most-read stories...
Green light for garden centres to re-open on Wednesday in England - UPDATED - Comment from James Barnes at HTA and Alan Titchmarsh MBE
A green light has been given for garden centres in England to re-open on Wednesday May 13th. In new "Staying alert and safe (social distancing)" guidance, published this afternoon by the Cabinet Office it says "Food retailers and food markets, hardware stores, garden centres (from Wednesday 13 May) and certain other retailers can remain open...
Read comment from HTA and Alan Titchmarsh MBE
St Peters staff in tears after council serves Prohibition Notice
After receiving hundreds of plaudits from customers staff at St Peters Garden Centre in Worcester were left in tears after Wychavon District Council served a Prohibition Notice on the business following the re-opening of their food hall and pet departments...
Read more and watch the St Peters Social Distancing measures video
Wales - Monday, England - Wednesday or June 1st?, Scotland and Northern Ireland?
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All of the lobbying and media activity about garden centres re-opening appeared to be bearing fruit with the Welsh Government announcing garden centres in the province could open from Monday and plenty of media comment on Sunday that garden centres in England would be able to open from Wednesday 13th May. However, the omission of any mention of garden centre's re-opening in the Prime Ministers address on Sunday evening leaves possible doubts as to when re-opening will be possible in England.
The only mention of shops re-opening in the address came as part of step two "– at the earliest by June 1 – after half term – we believe we may be in a position to begin the phased reopening of shops and to get primary pupils back into schools, in stages, beginning with reception, Year 1 and Year 6."
Boris Johnson said he would be "setting out more details in Parliament on Monday afternoon and taking questions from the public in the evening" so we will have to wait for a few more hours...
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Getting ready for business - feedback from Coolings, Planters, The Gardens Group, Blue Diamond, Green Pastures, Fron Goch and more
Last week we asked garden centres what their plans were for getting back to business with particular reference to policies for staff safety, and we also asked for feedback on how they would welcome reps calling on them when they re-open...
“We had a work party on a couple of evenings and then all (unfurloughed) staff came in on Saturday to help with the last push in re-organising. They then posed as customers and we tested the one way systems and the till are to see how our modifications worked..."
"We will need all the help we can get! If I can till train a rep then we would do that too!..”
"We accept that restaurants will be amongst the last to open and we accept that come the end of June our catering team is facing redundancy..."
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“Stay Alert” - make sure your customers and staff have a safe and enjoyable garden centre experience
Yesterday afternoon, in advance of garden centres re-opening today in England, I went to Megaplants in Doddington, Cambridgshire. Megaplants is a small plant centre that got permission to re-open two weeks ago...
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Garden Centre Photo Tours
If you've missed one of our popular photo tours of garden centres then click on the links below:
Haskins Snowhill re-opens after £15m re-vamp
Haskins Garden Centre in Snowhill, Crawley, has opened its doors to customers following a 12-month refurbishment costing £15m...
Read more and see GTN Xtras photo tour of the new centre
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