I just read this short item about Jo-Ann Fabrics. I'm not sure what I think about this promotion. Does anyone have any thoughts, comments, ideas for ways to translate this to garden retail? It seems like this could have some application in the independent garden center, but in a more creative way.
Jo-Ann Launches Promotion to Celebrate Anniversary
HUDSON, Ohio--Jo-Ann Fabric and Crafts Stores is marking its 66th anniversary in business with a special offer.
The sewing- and crafts-products retailer will designate 66 of its best customers across the nation and give them $100 Jo-Ann gift cards from their local stores. Travis Smith, chief operating officer, said the campaign is a way of saying thanks to some of its most loyal customers, and a recognition of their creativity in making their own crafts and fabric items.
Founded in 1943, Jo-Ann now has more than 750 locations across the United States.
Thursday, August 6, 2009
Monday, August 3, 2009
More From PANTS
I didn’t get a lot of opportunity to walk the floor at PANTS, but I did get to visit a few booths before our Revolutionary 100 panel discussion. I stopped at the Organic Mechanics booth, which is a line of organic potting soils. This company has private labeled soils for American Plant, an all-organic, multiple-store garden retailer in Bethesda, Md. It also just launched a new all-organic planting mix to add to the line. That will be available in Spring 2010.
I also saw a new option for growers and retailers looking for biodegradable pots. Fertilpot is a spruce fiber pot that allows roots to poke through the pot. Consumers plant the whole thing in the ground. There’s also a shrink-wrapped label that can be branded or it can have generic variety information on it. The shrink-wrapped label gets torn off and can be recycled.
At the Spring Meadow Nursery booth I learned more about Bloomerang, a new lilac variety developed by breeder Tim Wood. It’s a dwarf lilac that reblooms three times - once in spring, once around July and then again in the fall before the frost. Amazing, right? And it retains its well-known scent. Initially it was to be released in Spring 2010, but apparently it’s growing so well that some could be available this fall from some Gold Key growers.
And finally, I heard more about Nema Globe, a new product being introduced from Canada into the U.S. It’s a retail version of nematodes to prevent pests, and can be mixed into a Nema Globe nematode sprayer to be watered into a lawn or garden. Nematodes don’t harm pets or children, and are friendly to beneficial insects like bees or earthworms.
I also saw a new option for growers and retailers looking for biodegradable pots. Fertilpot is a spruce fiber pot that allows roots to poke through the pot. Consumers plant the whole thing in the ground. There’s also a shrink-wrapped label that can be branded or it can have generic variety information on it. The shrink-wrapped label gets torn off and can be recycled.
At the Spring Meadow Nursery booth I learned more about Bloomerang, a new lilac variety developed by breeder Tim Wood. It’s a dwarf lilac that reblooms three times - once in spring, once around July and then again in the fall before the frost. Amazing, right? And it retains its well-known scent. Initially it was to be released in Spring 2010, but apparently it’s growing so well that some could be available this fall from some Gold Key growers.
And finally, I heard more about Nema Globe, a new product being introduced from Canada into the U.S. It’s a retail version of nematodes to prevent pests, and can be mixed into a Nema Globe nematode sprayer to be watered into a lawn or garden. Nematodes don’t harm pets or children, and are friendly to beneficial insects like bees or earthworms.
Great Ideas From PANTS
We conducted our first Revolutionary 100 Panel discussion at the show and it went great. The panelists were Steve Gallion from Stauffers of Kissel Hill, Denni Jones from County Line Landscape Nursery, Stephen Barlow III of Barlow’s and Frank Fernicola of Fairfield Garden Center.
One big highlight included Frank’s before and after pictures of the inside garden center store that received a coat of white paint this winter. It was amazing, appearing as though he adds tons of new lighting. But all they did was paint the ceiling and support beams white and lower the sight-lines of the fixtures a couple of feet. What a difference!
The panelists also talked about their plans for 2010, which for three out of the four included reducing inventory in the area of big-ticket items like statuary and furniture. They also talked about shoring up labor to make sure they’re watching labor costs, as well as using events and educational seminars to promote gardening. Denni Jones focuses heavily on relationship-building with customers via her e-newsletter and direct contact with customers. Barlow’s has begun to focus more on children’s activities and events in the hopes of bringing in families and moms to shop.
And finally, Stauffers of Kissel Hill has used a program called a detached-address label through its local Clipper coupon book to mail out direct-mail pieces at a fraction of the cost of a regular direct mail piece. To learn more about this program, click here.
One big highlight included Frank’s before and after pictures of the inside garden center store that received a coat of white paint this winter. It was amazing, appearing as though he adds tons of new lighting. But all they did was paint the ceiling and support beams white and lower the sight-lines of the fixtures a couple of feet. What a difference!
The panelists also talked about their plans for 2010, which for three out of the four included reducing inventory in the area of big-ticket items like statuary and furniture. They also talked about shoring up labor to make sure they’re watching labor costs, as well as using events and educational seminars to promote gardening. Denni Jones focuses heavily on relationship-building with customers via her e-newsletter and direct contact with customers. Barlow’s has begun to focus more on children’s activities and events in the hopes of bringing in families and moms to shop.
And finally, Stauffers of Kissel Hill has used a program called a detached-address label through its local Clipper coupon book to mail out direct-mail pieces at a fraction of the cost of a regular direct mail piece. To learn more about this program, click here.
Friday, July 24, 2009
Great Story About Independents In BusinessWeek
BusinessWeek recently celebrated the best independent retailers in the country with a slideshow story. It's a nice piece that highlights why people love independent retailers, but I was a little sad that it didn't include any garden centers.
I'm not sure if that's because there are none on their radar or if they just didn't think any were worthy, but I think there are quite a few garden centers that equal retailers on their list in success and notoriety.
Check out the story here: http://images.businessweek.com/ss/09/06/0619_best_independent_stores/1.htm
Monday, June 15, 2009
My Eventful Uneventful Sunday
It was an interesting Sunday at Gali's Garden Center this past weekend. I've worked there since 2001, and I always forget when the bottom drops out for sales. This Sunday, the bottom did in fact drop out for a few 15-minute spans in the afternoon. There were times when the empty parking lot called for a roaming tumbleweed.
It has always amazed me at how fast a garden center parking lot can fill up...and in the same breath, how fast it can empty out as the season begins to wane. Luckily for us, an empty parking lot coincided with a not-so-busy Chagrin Blvd. at around 5:40 p.m. We, the staff, were wrapping up things inside the property lines - sweeping, watering, closing vents, etc.
On the other side of the curb, well that's another story. We received a phone call from a couple drivers/customers of Gali's. "One of your carts is in Chagrin." This doesn't happen too often, but it has happened, where one of our annual carts positioned in our parking lot snuck out and rolled its way into a usually busy street. No one was hurt, no cars damaged, no plants lost. Phew! Just looking at the photo above, you can see we're big risk-takers.
Other than our end of the day excitement, a couple new things to hit Gali's are worth a mention. How about these Serenity White Bliss African Daisies. I remember seeing these in one of our Variety Central sections, but this is the first time I've seen them up close. Kinda cool.
Also, the new cardboard dumpster. Chris Murray, one of my pals (and a manager) at Gali's, has been pushing for this dumpster for a while now. He's done plenty of research on the benefits of it and I'm happy to see they've made the leap.
Speaking of Chris, he showed me this email he received from one of the big nurseries he orders from. I love the Lemon Daddy. My parents stopped into Gali's a couple weekends ago and I peer pressured them into buying one for their yard. They said, "We don't have the space." To which I replied, "It doesn't matter, the yellow leaves are really cool." Spoken like a true generation Y-er. I digress.
Look at this ad! And look at the Lemon Daddy...the one in the suit, not the hydrangea. This is just one of those ads that doesn't answer any questions and doesn't get you excited to buy, it simply succeeds in making you laugh...and also wonder, what were they thinking.
Lastly, I know there's Cockadoodle-doo, and Moo-Nure and even Zoo-Doo, but I learned of one more this weekend. We had a female customer come up to the counter asking us if we had any "sheep poo." I'm not too familiar with it, but I guess it was call BahBahDoo. Hilarious. Her husband chimed in, "It was really bahhhhhd."
Lastly, I know there's Cockadoodle-doo, and Moo-Nure and even Zoo-Doo, but I learned of one more this weekend. We had a female customer come up to the counter asking us if we had any "sheep poo." I'm not too familiar with it, but I guess it was call BahBahDoo. Hilarious. Her husband chimed in, "It was really bahhhhhd."
Friday, June 5, 2009
Cautious Optimism
The recession didn’t entirely slam the retail garden industry the way it did the rest of retail. But there are some signs that retail in general is looking up - or at least looking better than it did before.
Retail Forward is reporting that despite deterioration of same-store sales in May (except for Wal-Mart, of course), it appears shoppers are showing signs of letting up from the current "belt-tightening behavior." Shoppers reported in Retail Forward’s May ShopperScape survey that they are less inclined than last year to limit their spending, seek deals or trade down to lower-priced brands and retailers in response to the economic downturn.
Did you see customers "trading down" this spring? We were hearing reports of foot traffic increasing but average ticket decreasing. Did this hold true for you? And if it did, do you think customers will stick with this type of spending for a while?
Retail Forward is reporting that despite deterioration of same-store sales in May (except for Wal-Mart, of course), it appears shoppers are showing signs of letting up from the current "belt-tightening behavior." Shoppers reported in Retail Forward’s May ShopperScape survey that they are less inclined than last year to limit their spending, seek deals or trade down to lower-priced brands and retailers in response to the economic downturn.
Did you see customers "trading down" this spring? We were hearing reports of foot traffic increasing but average ticket decreasing. Did this hold true for you? And if it did, do you think customers will stick with this type of spending for a while?
Wednesday, June 3, 2009
GroGood Campaign
Check out these veggies!
I visited the Scotts Miracle-Gro Co. headquarters in Marysville last week with Rick Welder, our sales account representative on Today's Garden Center. While we were there, we took a quick look at the raised bed gardens the company created as an internal contest and as part of the GroGood campaign to donate fresh produce to local food banks.
It's a great cause, and it looks like lots of Scotts employees have gotten into the spirit by planting rows of veggies to care for throughout the summer. The one bed that really caught our eye, though, was the one planted by the research and development team (the picture above). The rest looked pretty meager compared to the giant, leafy veggies being cared for by these guys.
I think I might have an idea who's going to be winning that company-wide contest!
Want to know more about the GroGood Campaign? Here's the link: http://www.scotts.com/grogood
~Jen
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