Santa Exclusive
Santa gets the hump at first garden centre Grotto opening
Santa en-route to his first garden centre grotto of the year at Baytree Garden Centre... On a camel with Rudolph hitching a lift too...
Date line: Saturday 3rd November, Splading, Lincolnshire. Santa arrives at the Baytree Christmas Grotto on a camel!
Crowds flocked to Baytree Garden Centre on Saturday to see Santas first arrival of the year at a UK garden centre. The crowd were surprised, however, to see him arrive on far from traditional animal transport. While the Baytree reindeer lay down on strike in their plantarea enclosure, the services of two circus camels were enlisted to get Santa to his grotto in time for the 2:00pm opening.
Strike breaking Rudolph, not wanting to miss out on the occaision, hitched a lift aboard the second camel. Both camels feature as part of Pantomime Cinderella by Circus Mondao which will be performed in the Big Top at Baytree during December. In the meantime the circus animals are creating a real zoo display alongside the grotto entrance.
As soon as Santa declared his grotto opened the first Santa queue of the year formed and his trusty elves helped all the excited children to their audience with the big man himself.
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TGCG Chairman starts to build new senior team
Terra Firma and TGCG Chairman Stephen Murphy have moved fast to make new senior appointments...
Terra Fima and TGCG Chairman Stephen Murphy (left) have appointed Kevin Bradshaw (centre) as Chief Executive Officer and Nils Steinmeyer (right) as Chief Financial Officer.
Kevin Bradshaw moves from car rental company Avis UK and joins TGCG on Novembver 19th.
Nils Steinmeyer is already at the financial helm of the group having been at Terra Firma since 2003.
The only director from the previous team at TGCG is now Stephen Pitcher, currently Purchasing Director.
Two non-executive directors make up the board; Lorenzo Levi and Julie Williamson, both from Terra Firma.
With trading experiences from car rental, cinemas, natural gas and virgin group it will be interesting to see what new ideas this team will bring to the garden centre industry over the coming years.
The search is on for the Greatest Christmas teams
This week Garden Trade News launches its search for the UK's top garden centre Christmas teams. The Greatest Christmas Awards - now in their fourth year – reward the outstanding teamwork that has made garden centres the envy of other retail sectors during the festive period...
This week Garden Trade News launches its search for the UK's top garden centre Christmas teams. The Greatest Christmas Awards - now in their fourth year – reward the outstanding teamwork that has made garden centres the envy of other retail sectors during the festive period.
Christmas has never been so important to the garden industry as it is this year after a season most would rather forget.
Garden centres have been pulling out all the stops to make sure festive sales recoup turnover lost this summer, and reports are reaching the GTN Xtra offices of a great start to the Christmas campaign in many parts of the UK.
Garden Trade News recognises those efforts, and The Greatest Christmas Awards are open to all garden centres, regardless of size, and there are three categories to enter – The Greatest Christmas Grotto Team, The Greatest Christmas Display Team and The Greatest Christmas Houseplant Team.
If you feel your Christmas Teams are worthy of a judging visit from The Greatest Awards Team send a nomination email to trevor.pfeiffer@tgcmc.co.uk or call 01733 775700.
And if your customers feel you are The Greatest Garden Centre at Christmas, ask them to vote for you to win The Greatest Garden Centre at Christmas Award. To apply for a voting pack please email trevor.pfeiffer@tgcmc.co.uk or call 01733 775700.
You can also nominate The Greatest Christmas Supplier of the Year.
Judging gets underway this month and will be completed by early December. Closing date for nominations is close of play on Monday, November 26.
The Greatest Christmas Awards will be presented at The Greatest Christmas Party in Harrogate on the evening of Sunday 13th January 2013. To book your tickets contact pat.flynn@tgcmc.co.uk or call 01733 775700
Brookside won gold for their grotto in 2011, who will be The Greatest Grotto Team this year.
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Westland has set aside £1m worth of marketing money to spend on its Peckish bird food range this winter.The campaign includes TV, national and specialist press, and is set to reach over 17m customers nationwide. Adverts have already been placed in the National Press, and they will be appearing in the Specialist Press throughout November. Then TV advert, which was shown for the first time last season, are scheduled to be aired on ITV, Channel 4, Channel 5 and Sky between January 7-13, 23-26, and 30–February 2. If you want a sneak preview of the TV advert then click here
David's Nurseries win again!
David's Nurseries - Gold Winner of The Sun, customer vote for The Greatest Garden Centre Team with 50 or less staff have also won the title of Britains Best Garden Centre, winning more votes than any other garden centre or retail nursery. The news was announced in Saturdays edition of The Sun which orgainsed the public voting scheme this autumn.
The Greatest Awards continues with it's public voting this month to find The Greatest Garden Centre at Christmas - see story.
To see all of the results from The Greatest Awards 2012 click here.
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The Klondyke Group has opened a new garden centre in Wilmslow, Cheshire, to replace one destroyed by fire in June 2011.
The new build was opened last month following the fire that completely destroyed the original facility on site. The centre encompasses an Aquatics Concession, Craft Shop, Pet Shop and a Coffee Shop facility with 180 covers. Commenting on the re-opening Bob Hewitt, Chief Executive, said: “We are extremely pleased with the new garden centre and have received very positive feedback from the customers. I would like to thank all of our staff for their hard work prior to the re-launch.” The project was planned and managed by Pleydell Smithyman and the main contractor was RH Irving.
Snowmen outsell Christmas hats
Battery-operated products are certainly lighting up the Christmas Chart with significant increases in sales, headed by Premier Decorations’ Cotton Snowman, which has jumped from No 24 to No 2...
Battery-operated products are certainly lighting up the Christmas Chart with significant increases in sales, headed by Premier Decorations’ Cotton Snowman, which has jumped from No 24 to No 2.
Premier have also seen their Eva Snowman re-enter the chart at No 15.
So in the battle for the top battery-operated Christmas products, snowmen are taking the lead over battery-operated hats, as Premier’s Animated Christmas Hat falls back to No 40. We suspect these will be great hits at
Christmas parties though.
Overall Christmas product sales are up 52% on last week, although Top 50 volumes are down on last year – so far sales volumes are more closely tracking Christmas 2010.
History & Heraldry hold on to No 1 spot for another week with their Christmas Money Box still seeing increases in sales. The company has four products in the Top 10 although Snow Globe Decorations (No 3) and Waiting for Santa Stockings (No 5) have slipped places.
Personalised Santas and Bears are back in the chart. Russ Berrie’s Personalised Santa re-enters at No 12 while their Personalised Bear jumps in to No 19. Kaemingk Flock Polar Bear White is also proving very popular
and is the highest climber, moving up 25 places to No 23.
Silk roses on clips for tree decorations from Kaemingk remain popular. There are three re-entries and one new entry – it poses the question: are they being bought for other decorative uses too?
Sales of advent candles on the up – are you making the most of the opportunity? And don’t forget those advent treat calendars for dogs and cats.
See the full GTN Christmas Products Bestsellers Chart here. Subscribers Only
To Subscribe to the full GTN Bestsellers Weekly Charts for only £120.00 per year click here
WARNING the GTN Bestsellers Charts can seriously improve your business. Only subscribe if you want to invest 15 minutes each week in improving your turnover and customer satisfaction.
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Mountain Warehouse, one of the UK’s leading camping specialists, has opened a new standalone store within a purpose built retail building at Wyevale Woodbridge Garden Centre.
The company has installed similar stores into outlets operated by The Garden Centre Group. Developments at Andover Garden Centre and Woodlands Nurseries have also proved successful, both of which were also 'Let from plan' and erected with the sole purpose of bringing complementary retailers to the site.
The Woodbridge store is located off the garden centre car park, visible as you enter the main garden centre entrance found at the bottom of the Plantaria.
There is a growing trend within garden centres to erect purpose-built retail units on their premises as retailers see the advantages of the free parking, day out destination customer experience and affluent core customer base.
Commenting on the completed store, Keith McIntyre (First Franchise MD) said: “Working with both landlord and tenant on this site was an excellent project to be involved in.
"The use of purpose-built bespoke units for other retailers represents the way forward for the development of all garden centres. Mountain Warehouse have been behind the project since we put forward the plan and the finish of both the unit and fit is superb.
"We look forward to developing more of these purpose-built units with garden centres as it is an initiative applicable to all.”
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A surge in sales of orchid cover pots, gloves and garden fleece helped keep garden products sales volumes at the same level week on week despite the worsening weather for gardening.
Scheurich cover pots were the highest re-entries, jumping straight back in at No 8 and No 12. Kaemingk are also a new player in the cover pot arena at No 34.
With daytime and overnight temperatures starting to fall, gardeners are starting to protect their tender plants from the effects of frost. As a result Gardman Gard ‘n’ Fleece Bags have re-entered the chart at Nos
21 and 22. The Gardman Tap Cover is also the highest climber, moving up 37 places to No 11.
More glove lines from Town & Country have become bestsellers this week – they have new entries at Nos 23 and 37, with their Triple Packs of Ladies Gloves climbing 20 places to No 13.
Solar lights continue to shine a beacon on garden centre sales. Gardman’s Wind Chime Light has moved up to No 3, while the Smart Solar Owl Light re-enters at No 42. The Smart Solar Happy Hens Solar Spotlights are a new entry at No 48.
See the full GTN Garden Products Bestsellers Chart here. Subscribers Only
To Subscribe to the full GTN Bestsellers Weekly Charts for only £120.00 per year click here
WARNING the GTN Bestsellers Charts can seriously improve your business. Only subscribe if you want to invest 15 minutes each week in improving your turnover and customer satisfaction.
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Gardening retailers who would like their plants to have added value can benefit from a product being offered by one of the UK’s largest horticultural design and print companies.
Floramedia has created Pot Wraps, a versatile labelling product that offers instant visual impact, as well as increased value without the expense of printed pots or large plant sleeves.
Nick Mathias, Managing Director of Floramedia, which is based in Colchester, said: “Pot Wraps from Floramedia are a cost effective way to add impulse buys and value to products. They are a great alternative to printed pots and plant sleeves and can be supplied flat, glued or already ‘clicked and stacked’ to save you time.
“Pot Wraps are produced on three grades of paper based finish, as well as on durable polypropylene. PMF Basic is a splash-proof material, which is ideal for a fast moving product.
“PMF UV is also splash-proof and offers a beautiful sheen while PMF Plus provides a sturdy high gloss finish.”
The Pot Wraps enable retailers to change displays quickly and easily. Plants can be marketed for different occasions, such as Mothering Sunday or Christmas, only by altering the wraps, which are simple to fit.
Floramedia has one of the UK’s largest range of stock labels with more than 10,000 to choose from. There are nine different label shapes, providing an extensive selection of possible solutions for customers. The forward-thinking company is constantly improving and expanding its range of labels too.
The company prides itself on providing the most cost-effective, complete labelling, point of sale, marketing, design and packaging service in the UK. It feels it leads the way in innovation, quality and service.
Floramedia is consistently at the forefront for introducing new and innovative ideas. It also has a picture library with more than 250,000 images that are available for garden centres to use to create their own marketing materials.
Nick added: “We are craftsmen in printing. Floramedia is made up of a team of professional, committed people with extensive expertise and knowledge of horticultural print, creative design, garden centre retailing and commercial plant production.
“We draw on these skills to provide the best and most effective products, sales and marketing support to growers, nurseries, garden centres and retailers in the UK.
“By working closely with our customers, we are dedicated to building long-term relationships with them. We are committed to innovation, service and reliability in everything we do. We are specialists focused solely on the marketing of plants.”
For further information, please call Floramedia, which is located at Axis Two, Brunel Way, Severalls Business Park in Colchester, on 01206 771040, email sales@floramedia.co.uk or visit www.floramedia.co.uk
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Monkton Elm announce scarecrow winners
Raoul Parnici from Durston was presented with a £50 gift voucher after winning a scarecrow competition held by Monkton Elm Garden & Pet Centre...
Raoul Parnici from Durston was presented with a £50 gift voucher after winning a scarecrow competition held by Monkton Elm Garden & Pet Centre.
The three-year-old scooped the top prize in the contest with his scarecrow, which was modelled on a little girl.
Andrew Pitman, Plant Manager at the independent, family-run garden centre at Monkton Heathfield in Taunton, said: “We challenged people of all ages to produce the best scarecrow for us to put on display outside our Pondside Café. Congratulations go to Raoul for winning the competition.
“We were amazed with the variety of entries we received, all of a very high standard. Everyone put in a huge amount of effort.”
The judging panel, which included Allan Cavill, Regional Director of the National Allotment Society, chose Raoul’s entry as the best. He received a £50 gift voucher to spend at Monkton Elm Garden & Pet Centre.
Andrew added: “Congratulations also go to 12-year-old Annabel Crow from Bampton who came second with her Bradley Wiggins scarecrow. She received a £20 gift voucher.
“Niamh Cave, aged five, and her sisters Molly, 11, and Megan, 13, from Cotford St Luke came third with their entry. They received a £10 gift voucher.
“This is the first year we have run a scarecrow competition and we hope it will become an annual event at the garden centre. We are already looking forward to seeing next year’s creative entries.”
Monkton Elm Garden & Pet Centre is celebrating its 30th anniversary this year. The award-winning garden centre was launched in 1982 and is run by the Bellman family with the help of nearly 100 staff. Some have been with the business for more than 25 years.
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Greatest Pumpkin Contest at Groves
School children around Bridport have been busy growing pumpkins to enter into the first ever greatest pumpkin awards held at Groves Nurseries...
School children around Bridport have been busy growing pumpkins to enter into the first ever greatest pumpkin awards held at Groves Nurseries.
Back in April Groves Nurseries provided local schools with pumpkin seeds, pots, compost and some growing guides and asked to grow the best pumpkins that they could. Unfortunately the summer turned out to be one of the wettest on record sonot a great year for growing pumpkins but that didn’t deter the entrants that took part. Some of the pumpkins were grown in school gardens but a lot were taken back to the children’s homes and grown there.
The competition was divided into six categories – widest circumference, heaviest pumpkin, best carved pumpkin, best dressed pumpkin, the perfect pair of pumpkins and the tastiest edible produce.
The pumpkins were judged by Groves Nurseries' very own accredited show judge Cyril Whitlock and each category was awarded a first second and a highly commended.
The pupils then won gardening vouchers for their school, £10 for every first prize, £5 for every second prize and £3 for every highly commended.
Burton Bradstock took away the most in vouchers with a grand total of £51 to spend on their school garden. This was closely followed by Salway Ash in second, Powerstock in third and St Catharine’s in fourth.
Garden Centre Manager Charlie Groves said: “It was unfortunate that the weather wasn’t kind to us in the first year that we decided to run this competition. That said it was great to see so many entries from all of the schools. Hopefully the children enjoyed growing pumpkins from seeds and creating something interesting from them.”
All of the pumpkins were on display at Groves garden centre from Halloween up until Sunday the 4th of November.
Groves Garden Centre were silver winners in this year's Greatest Garden Centre Awards.
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Recruitment and business training experts MorePeople are teaming up with garden centre specialists Garden Retail Success to offer their ‘Making it Happen’ mentoring programme in the UK.
Already a proven success in New Zealand, Australia and Ireland, the ‘Making it Happen’ programme offers a unique mixture of site based consultancy, training and KPI monitoring that’s designed to give small to medium sized garden centres access to the type of expertise and knowledge that’s normally the preserve of larger organisations or those that are part of a larger group.
The ‘Making it Happen’ programme focuses on providing practical assistance to prioritise activities and initiatives to highlight those that are proven to produce the best returns.
The man actually making ‘it’ happen in the UK will be former Garden Centre Association Chairman Steve Myatt.
Steve has over 30 years experience in the industry, having owned and developed the Warbeck Garden Centre in the North West before successfully selling that business in 2009.
Having been through the programme and witnessed the results it has achieved with some of the leading garden centres in Ireland - including helping several achieve Bord Bia’s much coveted ‘5 star’ status – Steve has the knowledge to help like-minded owners here in the UK achieve similar results.
MorePeople Director Guy Moreton said: “There are many excellent consultants operating in the garden centre arena but by the very nature of what they are often tasked with doing, they generally offer ad hoc solutions to ad hoc ‘problems’.
"What attracted us to the ‘Making it Happen’ mentoring programme was that it fits with our own approach to training and development. It’s a ‘programme’ that offers a clear, structured approach for owner managers and their senior staff to follow and provides a mechanism for tracking results so that real progress can be monitored. It’s also a programme that’s based on a network of like minded garden retailers so offers them the opportunity to work in small groups and discuss major topics of interest and share ideas. That’s a great support network for any small business owner to have.”
For more information visit www.gardenretailsuccess.com or contact Steve Myatt at steve@gardenretailsuccess.co.uk or 07710 804593.
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Yeoman launches a new Garden Shed Accessories range
Keeping sheds tidy and stocked with the latest accessories has just got even easier with the introduction of the new, affordable garden shed offering from Solus’ market leading garden tools brand, Yeoman...
Keeping sheds tidy and stocked with the latest accessories has just got even easier with the introduction of the new, affordable garden shed offering from Solus’ market leading garden tools brand, Yeoman.
The new Garden Shed Accessories range features a host of essentials that gardeners would be lost without this coming season. From yard and path maintenance to garden essentials, Yeoman’s new collection is the perfect addition to the brand's already proven product offering.
From a Block Paving Brush & Scraper and Litter Grabber, to a handy Scoop, Tool Hooks, Woodcare Brushes, Knee Pads and Kneelers, Yeoman’s Garden Shed Accessories range fills the gaps in every gardeners arsenal of tools.
Rob Giles, brand manager for Yeoman, said: “Yeoman has always offered a comprehensive range of products, but with the Garden Shed Accessories range we have strengthened it even further.
"What’s more, many products are supported with dedicated point of sale, making it even easier to take stock into store. But even more than this, all products in the range are priced at under £10, making it even more affordable for end users to get all the right tools for jobs around the garden and in the shed.”
For more information about visit www.yeomangarden.com or call 01905 791984.
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Nurserymen urged to seize the initiative
Nurserymen will be urged to seize on every opportunity that comes their way during difficult trading conditions when they meet at the Contact 2013 conference in January.
Nurserymen will be urged to seize on every opportunity that comes their way during difficult trading conditions when they meet at the Contact 2013 conference in January.
Contact 2013 is the biennial conference for the hardy stock industry and takes place on 16 and 17 January 2013 at the Holiday Inn, Bromsgrove.
It has been a tough year for nurserymen and Contact 2013 will be a timely reminder that everyone needs to focus and build upon their strengths and seize the opportunities that come their way.
Contact 2013 - Inspiration to Grow will help nurserymen and women address the issues and capitalise on their assets to make the most of 2013 and beyond. It's a conference designed for nurserymen by nurserymen and is all about bringing colleagues (young and old) to find out the latest about this exciting industry. The programme will cover a wide range of subjects and hear from top speakers from within the industry including Charmay Ball from Lovania Nurseries on how people can make a career in the nursery stock industry and Garry Greuber from Cultivaris on the future of new plant development. Delegates will also hear from expert speakers from outside the industry, including Ross Cameron from Sheffield University, who will give an insight into the research into the social, health and environmental benefits of plants, and Adam Pasco on how to get your products noticed in consumer gardening media. For further information about this event visit www.contact2013.co.uk or email events@the-hta.org.uk
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Trees are Plant of the Month for November
While most of nature is hibernating in the colder months, winter is the prime time to get new trees into the ground, making them the ideal HTA Plant of the Month for November...
While most of nature is hibernating in the colder months, winter is the prime time to get new trees into the ground, making them the ideal HTA Plant of the Month for November.Trees are the ultimate architectural plant adding structure and essential height to gardens of all sizes – there are even ones suitable for small, modern estate gardens. By planting trees you can reduce or improve your carbon footprint and generally enhance the environment. Trees can transform an area by introducing welcome shade, protective shelter and wildlife and are an investment for future generations. Research from HTA’s Greening the UK campaign has shown that just a 10% increase in tree coverage in urban areas will counter the predicted 4°c temperature over the next 100 years caused by climate change and the urban heat island effect. While limited space obviously rules out planting majestic oaks and beeches, there are plenty of smaller, but equally beautiful trees to choose from. Malus and prunus, betula and sorbus are good choices for the average gardener who has a little space in their garden. HTA Ornamentals Committee member Frank P Matthews nursery based in Worcestershire, has supplied nearly 60,000 trees so far this autumn, and expect this to double before Christmas. Two thirds of those sent are fruit trees and a third being ornamental trees Matthew Thomas of HTA member Frank P Matthews said: “Autumn is by far the best time to plant trees because the roots have time to establish during the winter months enabling them to absorb more moisture when new growth emerges in the spring. As well as providing a natural head start, trees planted in the autumn will experience much less stress and will require less watering and aftercare than trees planted in spring or summer. We would always advise customers to plant in the autumn whenever possible as it helps produce a stronger, healthier and happier tree.” Frank P Matthews have recently launched ‘Tree Source’, a new website that helps you find the perfect tree for your garden and lists the garden centres and nurseries that have taken delivery of that tree within the last 100 days. The website can be found at www.tree-source.com Nominated and agreed upon by British growers and retailers, the HTA’s Plant of the Month campaign highlights the plants that are widely available and looking especially good in garden centres each month. Different varieties are recommended together with simple planting and care hints and tips. Plant of the Month point of sale materials can be purchased through HTA partners Hortipak and Floramedia. The plants included within Plant of the Month have been nominated and agreed by the HTA Ornamentals Committee and the HTA Retail Management Group to ensure the campaign meets the needs of both growers and retailers. The aim of the Plant of the Month campaign is to make it easier for gardeners by selecting a plant on a monthly basis that will be looking great, is widely available from UK nurseries and easy to maintain in the garden.
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