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An attendance of more than 250 at this week’s HTA Catering Conference in Coventry was proof, if any were needed, of how increasingly seriously the garden centre industry now takes its catering credentials. It was by far the association's best attended catering day to date.
Delegates from garden centres big and small enjoyed presentations embracing best-practice in coffee shop and restaurant management, case studies and consumer trends.
HTA chief executive Carol Paris opened the day with a reminder of how far garden centre catering had developed in the past few years. In 2007/2008, 40 per cent of HTA members had catering of any sort, with an estimated turnover of £130m. Now, she said, catering at member centres totalled £200m of direct household spending and accounted for 15% to 20% of turnover. ”But the real value of our catering is more to do with how you differentiate your garden centre,” she added.
Trends to watch included ethical consumption, local sourcing, the ever-growng coffee culture and baking, affordable treats and gourmet food. Catering was an “opportunity to drive footfall – there are few better ways to do it” – and had already provided garden centres with a way through the biggest economic crisis since 1929.
