In This Issue
Kelkay's Easy Fountain picking up on latest trends
Take a look at Westland's 'Lawn Man' TV ad
March sales hit a six-year high
Bedding Geraniums are the top-selling plant
Oh dear... it's GCA Inspectorexit II...
Vitax appoints new sales manager
£12m homes plan for former Dobbies garden centre
Aylings Garden Centre re-opens with original name
Zest 4 Leisure staff complete Manchester Marathon
Mayor opens Castle Gardens’ 30th anniversary celebrations
Communities get chance to win a Chelsea show garden
Get your own copy of GTN Xtra
Growing media sales continue to grow
Lawn care product sales take a boost
Cucumbers top Veg-2-Gro chart
Retailers urged to highlight benefits of feeding plants
Westland appoint new lawncare boffin
Japanese maples are HTA's Plant of the Moment
TV presenter and Johnsons of Whixley team up for RHS Cardiff Garden
Gardman's daffodil campaign aims to raise over £200,000 for Marie Curie
Lobbying success - plant nursery grounds to be exempt for business rates
Bestsellers Top 50 charts every week
Buy your subscription to GTN Bestsellers
All the latest news from the world of garden centre catering
London Coffee Festival serves cupfuls of inspiration
GCA Best Garden Centre Restaurant 2017 - Fron Goch or Squires Shepperton?
Send us your news and great ideas

Contact us with your news. 

Email neil.pope@tgcmc.co.uk, or trevor.pfeiffer@tgcmc.co.uk or call the GTN News team on 01733 775700
London Coffee Festival serves cupfuls of inspiration




Espresso Martini's were the drink of choice for VIP visitors to The London Coffee Festival this weekend.

This trade and consumer event is the place to go for coffee, and tea, inspiration.  It's packed from the start of the day with trade visitors and then opens to the public for the evenings and the weekend.  Coffee really is big business if this Festival is anything to go by.  There are so many coffee barista machines on show, so many different coffee roasters, coffee masters and latte art competitions plus plenty of music and of course coffee.

Below are a few of the things spotted by GTN Xtra that may be of interest to our GTN Food Xtra readers.  If you'd like to attend the festival as a VIP geust next year with GTN, drop an e-mail to trevor.pfeiffer@tgcmc.co.uk and we'll add you to the list of people we can invite next April.

Plant-based milk alternatives



Alpro were one of many Plant based milk alternatives showing at the Festival.  The Almond Latte sampled by GTN Xtra was really smooth and tasty.  Their For Professionals range is thicker than the range we can buy in supermarkets which makes it ideal to serve in coffee shops.  You can request a free sample and a bespoke barista plant based toolkit by e-mailing graham.kelly@alpro.com.  or visit alpro.com/for-professionals 

Allen Reeder, a London based wholesale dairy supplier also had a range of Plenish Organic Dairy-Free M*lks.  www.allanreederltd.co.uk

Re-useable coffee cups



ecoffee cup already sell their bamboo fibre cups with William Morris designs into some garden centre gift departments.  But what about selling re-useable cups in your coffee shops too?  ecoffeecup@toshworld.com



Keep cup had some great glass re-usable cups which could be branded to your garden centre or coffee shop name.

https://uk.keepcup.com/branded-keepcups


Bespoke sourcing, roasting and packing



Lincoln and York, info@lincolnandyork.com, offer bespoke sourcing, roasting and packing.  So if you sell enough coffee or grouped together with other centres you could create your very own brand of coffee.

Coconut Crisps


Looking for a new altenative for childrens snacks?  These lightly salted coconut curls certainly tasted good and could well be a garden centre winner, especially where there are monkey bars for children to play on...  zack@apesnacks.com or www.apesnacks.com


Seeking perfection



A name that's already well know in graden centre coffee lounges, Matthew Algie were at the Festival showing a new range of Synesso Barista Machines which deliver much greater consistency in delivery leading to better service, much less waste and less delays.  ben.minter@matthewalgie.com

Matthew Algie also supply pop-up coffee shops and carts so if you're thinking of adding an extra coffee sales point around your centre or out in the planteria this summer they may be worth a call.

Tips and Training



If you're just starting out on the coffee shop experience or you want some tips on how to make your coffee shop a more vital part of the memorable experience of a visit to your centre you could ask The Coffeepreneurs Andrew and Claire Bowen for help and advice.  Their book The Daily Grind is an Amazon Bestseller and they offer answers covering start up, expansion, profit maximisation, getting customers and selling your business.  You can book a free, no obligation call or Skype session via: www.cafesuccesshub.com/booking

And finally, the area around The London Coffee Festival is a haven of restaurants and coffee shops including a wide array of Street Food in Spitalfields Market.  Enjoy our photos at the end of the gallery below:
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LCF 2017 070417_GTN001.jpg
LCF 2017 070417_GTN001.jpg
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