In This Issue
Safe Trading Guidance for all garden centres published by HTA
It’s #FloralFriday, our favourite day of the week!
GrowNation announce FREE ecommerce websites for Garden Centres with local delivery route optimisation
James Stamp to the rescue
Garden centre re-opening gains high attention
Introducing Cleaner Retail – helping retailers to stop the spread of Covid-19 with a one-stop solution for safe trading
Say “Thank You” to our NHS with bedding plants!
National Gardening Week is the perfect time to get involved in #FloralFriday
Find plant deliveries online with ‘Plants Near Me’ - over 450 business listed
Rosebourne appoint Carol Paris as Chief Executive
PFMA supports the HTA’s Garden Centre Reopening Campaign
A third of UK growers will be out of business before the end of the year reveals new industry survey
Dobbies supports National Gardening Week
Let your free time grow on you
Evergreen Garden Care, helping hands to combat coronavirus
Gardener’s World Mark Lane joins forces with Jeyes to launch “The Great British Garden Spruce Up”
HortAid-20 Gardening Competition, supported by Suttons and panel of well-known judges, kick starts Perennial’s emergency Covid-19 appeal
Keeping the community growing, The Gardens Group donates stock to charities, hospitals and schools
LifestyleGarden donates product to the NHS Nightingale Hospital
AQUA 2021 takes on an even more crucial role
Get your own copy of GTN Xtra
MSC advises garden centres to maximise relief grant opportunity and challenge rateable values
EGO’s new battery powers gardeners through the day
The trade fair Plantarium 2020 has been cancelled
GTN Xtra - Send to all
The best of last week's
How are suppliers faring during lockdown - Westland, Smart, Evergreen Garden Care and others are getting ready for re-opening of garden centres
Analogue survival for garden centres in a digital world
Behind the scenes at Baytree Click & Collect
Garden Leisure suppliers living in an on-line world but anticipating garden centres re-opening
Greenfingers Charity’s #floralfriday continues to bring a little floral cheer to the nation
Garden Centre Photo Tours
Haskins Snowhill re-opens after £15m re-vamp
Bestsellers Top 50 charts every week
Buy your subscription to GTN Bestsellers
Send us your news and great ideas

Contact us with your news.

Email trevor.pfeiffer@tgcmc.co.uk or call the GTN News team on 01733 775700


Garden Leisure suppliers living in an on-line world but anticipating garden centres re-opening

How are Garden Leisure suppliers faring during lockdown?  Here's feedback from suppliers who are adjusting to an on-line supply chain while anticipating the re-opening of garden centres.

 

John Athwal OBE, Premier Decorations: “What a shocker, which I personally have been dealing with since early January, when our China office had to go into lockdown. So fortunately, we had some insight into what may be coming our way, though of course we were praying like mad that the virus may be contained in China. Sadly, it wasn't and so even during Spring fair, it was sneaking up on us. We were nervous during the fair and I have never used the toilets so much previously to wash my hands.

 

“Early March it was evident that this was going to hit us, but still we had not realised to what extent. Preparations were made to facilitate our staff to work from home should the worst happen and we had just started a contingency based two shift system that would isolate any cases that may crop up in our own organisation, when the UK Government stepped in with their stay at home measures. As soon as the lockdown was announced we moved to the second phase of our contingency, with our Head Office staff members working remotely from home, enabling Premier to continue to process customer orders.

 

“We were already isolating some of our more vulnerable staff before the Government advice to stay at home and had also provided masks for them and their families. Though not cultural to be wearing masks here in Europe, I had taken advice from our China office.

 

“Throughout the lockdown period we have been operating somewhat normally (all things considered) and although our showrooms are closed, our Sales Accounts Managers are available and have been contacting customers.

 

“With regard to the summer business, our deliveries are as usual and we have stocks on the floor for those customers that require them.

 

“Our online web ordering portal is also open 24/7. Orders are creeping in and our advice to customers is to keep the confidence, as we will be back to a more normal trading style soon.

 

“Our diligent team have all necessary communication channels provided to them so they can operate as usual and we have remote meetings as necessary.

 

“So Premier is very much open for business, whilst keeping our staff and customers safe.

 

“My belief has always been that garden centres and DIY shops will be amongst the first "non-essential" retailers to open as this will give the public things to do during the lockdown period. This is why the online traders have done so well during the last month.

 

“Premier are well positioned to continue operations whenever the government allows us to go back to our offices, but we are mindful that it is getting late now for some factories to schedule production for additional orders. Premier’s orders were placed early but we are selling through the stocks currently on order. Our relationships with our factories are long standing and strong and all will be done to assist supply, but guarantees cannot be given on late additional requirements.

 

“We urge everyone to stay strong, stay safe and keep well, there will be plenty of time for trading.”

 

Debbie Waudby, Norfolk Leisure: “We are running a skeleton operation, a few staff furloughed, most staff working from home and a couple of staff working from site, but as the site is so big they are reasonably isolated.

 

“We are open for business and yes business is okay.  We are running a pretty extensive drop ship operation. Quite a few Garden centres have added a lot of lines to their online catalogue which we are delivering direct to customers, through the normal delivery channels. Online shopping is unbelievable at the moment, it is hard to keep up with the volume of small and single product orders coming though.  This is keeping the 'wheels greased' but not near the cash volume we would normally see with bulk orders and container shipments into garden centres.

 

“Staff morale and safety is our priority, we have a great deal of communication with everyone, normally group facetime chats, so you can see 'faces' , social facetime meets are frequent too as well as business meetings.  We also produced a guide to working from home which was sent out to all staff. We have made sure they are as comfortable at home too, most have the 'full' office PC set up at home, not just a laptop. Homeworkers also have their own office chairs sent home, so not working from dining room chairs. Our staff are wonderful and have really stepped up and worked with the unique challenges thrown at them.

 

“There is no let up or relaxing at the moment, the continuing unknown means that we are constantly reviewing operations / planning / finance.

 

“Like the rest of the industry, we are hoping that the restrictions will be lifted in garden centres early enough to recover some of the lost business but we want everyone to stay safe.

 

“For suppliers it's a long-term recovery plan, 2-3 years to get back to pre-Covid 19 levels.  How do we present our new 2021 collections? Will Garden Centres carry too much stock? Will they have cash to order for 2021 or will we be looking at 2022? We have had many conversations on these subjects, and we have plans and options but need to see what the coming weeks bring.

 

“At the moment we are working on building our warehouse stock so we are able to immediately support our customers better when they open again.

 

“Strategies are changing daily and we are hoping we are reacting and adapting quickly enough in a positive way.”

 

Mark Osbourne, Outback: “Outback is open for business and our e-commerce customers are experiencing big demand.

 

“Fortunately, 90% of our stock arrived from China before they got hit in January so we are in a great position to satisfy demand when lockdown starts to be released.

 

“There has been plenty of chatter about BBQ’s in the garden while families have time at home.  Retailing BBQ’s on-line and by local delivery could be a great opportunity this year!”

 

Joe Shrimpton, Extreme Lounging: “We are open for business in a limited way but keeping our head above the water, supplying online retailers, retailers with online channels and also retailers offering click and collect, which is proving to be incredibly busy.

 

“We are offering a drop ship service for garden centres.

 

“We all keep regular contact and have skype chats. One on one and group chats.

 

“If garden centres are to open first I think we as suppliers will benefit massively, I believe people will be scared and cautious for some time so social places will not be a priority, people want to be safe in their homes, and now we are reaching summer, the gardens will be the place to be and invest in. We are already seeing this with online channels for garden centres.”

 

Nigel Lawrence, Pacific Lifestyle: “I am delighted to tell you that we continue to trade through lockdown, albeit with limited staff. We have had to furlough a number of people owing to the huge decline in turnover as the majority of our customers closed their doors, but we kept on a limited number to meet the needs of those that continued to trade, mainly online.

 

“We have representation in Sales, Finance, Stock Control and Buying / Design all working remotely form home. We then have a limited number of warehouse pickers and packers working under very strict social distancing guidelines.

 

“We also offer a Direct Home Delivery service and again work with a professional network of couriers who are also working to strict distancing guidelines.

 

“So, in a nutshell we have good stock of outdoor (with more on the way), we are operative and here to help.”

 

Paul Cohen, LifestyleGarden: “LifestyleGarden continues to fire on all cylinders to meet retailer needs during lockdown.

 

“During the last four weeks, deliveries have been flooding out of our Essex-based warehouse, ensuring that online retail partners, and those that have been quick to adapt to offer online or click & collect services, are fully stocked with the company's market-leading ranges.

 

"It's safe to say that at the end of lockdown that the UK will be full of beautifully designed garden spaces based on the demand for product that our garden centre customers are reporting! It's great that people are engaging so much with gardening and outdoor leisure during this time, and that so many of our customers have been able to respond so quickly - long may it continue. For now, we'll continue to work to get stock out to customers to meet this demand, whilst also ensuring that our warehouses are fully stocked for the inevitable post-lockdown rush.

 

“We're firing on all cylinders - whilst following all government advice on social distancing - to make this happen, so a huge thank you to the whole team for their continued dedication."

 

Christo Mckinnon-Wood, Kadai by Wilstone: “Well we are very much still up and running, although over half our 22 staff are furloughed we have had to bring 3 back full time to help with the increase in demand from our web sales and also supporting and supplying to an increasing number of Garden Centres and other Kadai outlets that have switched to online sales.

 

“We have updated our dropbox image bank for stockists to access for their websites and Jenny is on hand to help with any enquiries.  We also just for this period offered a direct drop ship service for stockists that do not hold stock, this includes Kadai’s, accessories to Greenhouses one of which has just been sold today by a garden centre and we are delivering next week.

 

“I kept on board both marketing girls who are working flat out on improving the Kadai and Wilstone websites but mainly using social media as people have more time at home they have more time to search the web and read articles. We are setting competitions with prizes: This weeks’ will be who can design the best cocktail using a Kadai in some way or other, also working in partnership with top chefs to create now ideas for barbecuing.

 

“We support the Sambhali Trust in India and next week giving 10% of all sales to the trust for them to help fund feeding 300 families in need across the That desert in Rajasthan that have been most badly hit by the lock down and lack earnings.

 

“We are also very busy planning for when the restrictions are lifted by printing brochures, designing POS and visual merchandising plus looking at our stockist map with the intention of immediately having four people on the road visiting as many stores as possible to help them get set up and running again.

 

“We have enough stock here to be able to supply so this is not an issue.

 

“The Wilstone Potting Table is a finalist for Chelsea Product of the Year which has been announced today and is now on the RHS website.”

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