The Last Black Friday?

Black Friday has come and gone and now retailers are yelling for joy. According to reports Black Friday sales we're up 6.6% from last year. It's a success! But wait, all is not good, "some of the biggest and most rapidly growing components of retailing include segments that we don't really think of as shopping. The biggest retail sector is cars and car parts, which account for about 18 percent of the total; they're up 10.1 percent so far this year. Food and beverage stores — i.e. groceries—constitute about 13.2 percent of sales, and they're up 5.6 percent through the first ten months. Gasoline stations alone account for 11.7 percent of total sales, and their sales are up 19 percent so far in 2011, thanks to higher gas prices. Food service and drinking places account for 10.7 percent of total sales." Inflation rears it's head.

I think this Black Friday may be a watershed moment. Brick and Mortar business, which the day was devised for continue to suffer. How can you sustain a business when your giving away stuff for what you paid for it? A $400 TV for $199 doesn't leave much profit, if any to run on. More and more people are shopping online where the threat of being pepper sprayed while shopping is diminished. The violence we see on TV will cause people to avoid the whole day at the mall, and instead shop from home.

I find Black Friday the antithesis of what the season is suppose to be. Christmas, and the assorted holidays are now just dates on the calendar for many people. A time to spend, spend, spend. It's going to be coming to halt real soon. While anything can happen, I feel we are headed into an era of continued store closings. There are just too many retail stores for the need. It's happening in the nursery business, and many other businesses.

Garden centers and nurseries would be wise to position themselves as the antithesis of Black Friday. Places that calm the nerves, inspire the mind, and provide a locally produced product that increases in value over time.

"Hand-Made Plants?"

Interesting article in Wired magazine,"These May Be The Droids Farmers Are Looking For".The article is about robots and technology working for the wholesale nurseries.

It seems the trade continues to fragment along two lines. Large agriculture (wholesale growers)their customers (box stores and mass merchants), and a smaller ("hand made")agriculture for smaller customers. It would seem that we are coming close to a time when we in the smaller garden center businesses will be able to call our offerings "hand-made", distinguishing our offerings from the "robot-produced" goods the competition carries.

Northern California nursery closes after 60 years

What so weird about the nursery closings out here in nor Cal is the ones closing have been around for a long time, and often we're the ones we looked to as the best. The most recent long standing nursery to close is Scenic Nursery in Modesto. After 60 years in business, Jim Rogers who has worked there for the last 50 years, has decided to close the business. Modesto sits smack dab in the middle of The Central Valley, which has been hit hard by the economic downturn and a 15% unemployment rate. As Jim said in an article in the Modesto Bee, “People are just barely hanging on,” he said. And those who aren’t struggling to keep their homes aren’t spending money like they had. People used to have a house that had an equity,” Rogers said. “They would say, ‘OK, I gotta stay home this summer, but we can afford to spend some money on the yard, because look at how much the house is worth.’ People just don’t feel as wealthy.” This is the story of California's Garden Center Business.

The comments concerning the closing show just how hard it is to make ends-meet in this business. One commenter says, "PLEASE DON'T CLOSE!!!!!! I have always loved that nursery, but I could never afford to buy the plants there. JUST LOWER YOUR PRICES. I think alot of people feel that way too. It is an icon. I would just go in there to see the beautiful plants and knowledgeable staff. JUST LOWER YOUR PRICES. I know you will get more business. Where else are we all going to go to get good answers." Where indeed.

Another commenter say's, "My 7 year old son nearly cried when he heard this was going out of business. He said, "Mom, just go there this weekend and give them more money so they can stay open!" We were frequent shoppers at Scenic and my son absolutely adored the kids play area. He also loved all the classes they'd have for children. I disagree with any posts saying their prices were too high. Compared to the cruddy .99 offerings of the big box stores that barely ever survived, Scenic Nursery was a deal! Their knowledge will be missed. I'm not sure where I'll go for help with my tough gardening questions now."

The ripple effects of closing will spread. Scenic bought from Annie's Annuals and is the second Master Nursery to close in just the last month, or two. And really, lowering the prices would have helped? You don't know what your missing until it's gone.

Occupy the garden!

What is it about the Dig, Drop, and Done campaign that is missing? There is no way to spread the message, since there is no message to spread. When you watch the videos do you feel compelled to forward them to a friend? Do you hear a call to action? Where is the social object that we can use, and help spread? We have a product, bulbs. If you look at a tulip or daffodil bulb they are unique in shape and easily recognized. If this shape where used in a marketing campaign the bulb could become an easily shared "social object". Example: Showing Generation X or Y types under the cloak of darkness planting bulbs in abandoned city lot's, or street medians. Now the bulb is a object that can be used to spread a message.

"OTG" (Occupy The Garden!) might be more fitting for the time and place than Juliana's "On Trend" video.

"Occupy the Garden!" Spread the word.

The "Dig, Drop, and Done" bulb video's are here!

We have talked about the bulb industries new ad campaign, Dig, Drop, and Done here. Now for your weekend entertainment we present the video's you have all been waiting for. Check them out. Let me know what you think. Do they hit the right tone? Do they call you to action? Is this the right direction for garden marketing? More of the videos can be found here. Oh, and it looks like Juliana is suppose to be from San Francisco by that window shot. She would be a better fit for the LA lifestyle than what I see in SF, IMHO.

Don't just stand there, "Plant Something!"

While the folks at the Connecticut Nursery & Landscape Association are putting together focus groups to find out "Why People Don't Buy Plants From Us" The Arizona Nursery Association figures to heck with focus groups. We know what the public needs. They need to be told to "Plant Something". According to the website of the Association, "ANA received a USDA Specialty Crop Grant this last year to promote the nursery industry. To do this, ANA is working with Park & Co., professional advertising firm, to develop a state wide campaign promoting planting and the benefits that go along with it. The campaign debuted at the 2010 Earth Day celebration."

According to The Park & Co. website the campaign is "a fun, semi-radical campaign that sows new perspectives on the importance of greenery into the minds of Arizonans." Semi-radical? That's what the trade needs right now, "semi-radical" action. I am not even sure if those two words can go together. Well, The Arizona Nurseries paid good money for it, so it must make sense.

Our trade is adrift. What amazes me is after all the talk we have had concerning social media these groups continue to attempt the "old-school" method of trying to reach everyone, including people who just don't want to "plant something". What we really need to do is focus on our current customers, and allow them the tools to help spread our message.

Check out this list of participating nurseries.

Why don't people buy plants from us?

Why does the Connecticut Nursery and Landscape Association feel it's necessary to conduct focus groups on how "consumers feel about plants." According to Garden Center Magazine, "CNLA (Connecticut Nursery & Landscape Association)plans to convene four group sessions in a specially-selected, representative sample of consumers throughout the state, using a professional market-research firm." That professional market-research firm will receive "$35,000 specialty crop block grant from the Connecticut Department of Agriculture and the USDA." Now I assume the money is collected from member companies by the Department of Agriculture via dues or some assessment? Kind of like we we're talking about in my last post.What will we get for $35,000? We will find out, "what consumers really feel about the quality of plants, the state's retail stores, service, price points and reasons why they don't buy plants, among others."

Why do you need to spend $35,000 for information that we have already have. Haven't we focused grouped this stuff enough? Does anyone really feel they will gain some new insight from this? Is this just a way to throw money at a problem? Couldn't this be done really cheap through social media? Just create a questionnaire, send it to garden centers, bloggers, media, etc., and ask for a response. It wouldn't be that difficult to do, and it wouldn't cost $35,000.

What is the message?

Do we in the garden businesses need a national advertising campaign to remind people of the benefit's of gardening? That's the message that Danny Takao want's to spread. Danny owns Takao Nursery in Fresno, CA. Danny published an article in Greenhouse Grower, a trade magazine titled, "Danny Takao's National Promotion Idea".He feels, "a non-profit organization serve as the vehicle that collects annual dues from the entire supply chain." He continues, "What if a non-profit organization could be the funding/collecting mechanism via assessed yearly dues? Instead of focusing on one group, we assess the complete supply chain based on annual sales. Let’s say we collect $250 to $1,000. If we spread that over everyone in the industry, no one group or company would bear the cost of this campaign. That should raise a minimum of $1 million, plus enough to get going with our national campaign."

He sums up the problems we face, and they are daunting. To end the article Danny say's, "I know this is blue-sky thinking but I can't think of a better time to get this going. As past president of OFA, I've heard it all – from those who see the vision to those who do but say they can't afford to contribute. My thinking is we can't afford to sit on the sidelines. The wait-and-see approach is not a good one for our industry."

This has caused quite a stir in the garden center world. At our Independent Garden Center Facebook page and our Retail Garden Center, Vendor, and Media page the comments are on both sides of the fence. Everyone agrees that the trade faces some challenges. Some would love to jump all over this while others reject the idea of a "assessment" on their business, or that a national ad campaign will even help.

My question is, "What is the message that we wish to have spread?", and "who are we wishing would hear the message?

Hello Kitty plants are here!

According to FloraHolland.com "Flora Holland, in cooperation with Clayrton's Design and Packaging and ten reputable growers, has developed a unique retail concept called Hello Kitty Plants." According to FloraHolland.com, "The target group of Hello Kitty Plants, which consists of young girls and women, constitutes a large potential market for flowers and plants. Hello Kitty's ubiquitous pink and overall image go together well with flowers and plants, and because of its global presence, the Hello Kitty Plants concept has sales potential in every country."

It would seem everyone want's to get in on the "branding" bandwagon. Sunset Magazine recently announced it's new, "Sunset Western Garden Collection" that according to the website Plantdevelopment.com, "is an exclusive plant collection specifically designed for landscapes of the West." This follows HGTV's recently announced plant collection. Agricola Management Group say's, "The new plant line, featuring everything from high quality perennials, annuals, shrubs and trees to seeds, bulbs and more, comes to market backed by the media power of HGTV and its own high impact marketing program, supported by hgtv.com."

Work at Annie's Annuals

Here is a great opportunity to work at one of the more dynamic nurseries around. Annie's Annuals in Richmond Ca., is looking to fill three different nursery positions. You can check them out here. According to Elayne who works at the nursery, "we're quirky, offer good health benefits and pay fairly. We work really hard - but we also have a lot of fun!" If I wanted to build or continue a career in garden center retail this would be a great place. Frankly, there are not that many places around that afford this kind of opportunity in our trade. Learn and work with people who are leading the way in garden retail.

Garden Elements and True Value Hardware

At my post titled, "The Finest Independent Garden Centers"? I indicated that Master Nursery Association entered into an agreement with The True Value Company to sell Master Nursery brand "Garden Elements" through True Values Home and Garden Showplaces. I received a letter from Bill Jameson, who is the President and CEO of The Master Nursery Garden Centers, Inc. Bill say's, "...the Garden Elements plant brand will not be sold at True Value Hardware Stores." He continues, "Only the Home & Garden Showplace Members (approximately 200 across the United States)will be afforded the opportunity to purchase and promote the Garden Elements plant brand in their Independent Garden Centers ("IGC'S') This brand will not be available in hardware stores!"

My confusion arose from this quote in Greenhouse Grower, "True Value’s Home & Garden Showplace is working closely with their membership to provide more products and information on how to run a profitable garden center. True Value also recently announced a licensing deal with the Master Nursery group to help their members with more efficient buying and give them access to the Garden Elements plant brand. Look for these hardware companies to open hundreds of new garden centers over the next several years."

Just because it's a hardware company that owns the Home and Garden Showcase brand does not mean a Home and Garden Showcase Garden Center is also a hardware store. My mistake and I am glad Bill took the time to set it straight.

Likely more to come

The Sacramento region has been hit hard by nursery closings. The Sacramento Bee has the story here.It is a trend that likely will continue for the foreseeable future. So many of the nurseries here rode the home equity bandwagon for years. People with increasing home values took out equity loans to finance a style of living that was unsustainable. It's not just poorly run stores, but operations that we're considered, "The Best" that are closing. Two of the nurseries closing were well respected, and voted "The Best" in a local magazine poll. So its clearly a matter of too much supply and not enough demand, not necessarily poor business practices.

Here is a interactive map where you can hold your cursor over your county and see what the unemployment status is. Here in El Dorado county our unemployment rate is 10.9%, which is slightly lower than the state wide average of 11.4%. In Sacramento the rate stands at 11.9% which explains the continued closing of so many small businesses in the valley.

The trend of nursery closings will likely continue until some type of equilibrium is established. I guess we just built too many garden centers during the boom times, and now the the bill has come due.

"The finest independent garden centers"?

My last post concerning the partnership between Master Nursery Garden Centers and True Value got the conversation going at our Retail Garden Center Group on Facebook. The question for current Master Nurseries. How do you feel about your private plant brand, Garden Elements being sold out of True Value hardware stores? IGC's (Independent Garden Centers) built the brand and are now going to have it sold through the local hardware store, which may have a location close to a current Master Nursery. Is "the ability to choose from among True Value Company’s 60,000+ warehouse-stocked products", worth it? At the Garden Elements Facebook Page a recent post say's, "Garden Elements the next big plant brand Only available at Master Nursery Garden Centers and now , new this year, Home & Garden Showplaces. The finest independent garden Centers." So a True Value Hardware by carrying "Garden Elements" from Master Nursery is now one of the "finest independent garden centers"?

Curious if this is looked at as a win-win situation, or is someone getting a bigger slice of pie than the other party?

"Hundreds of new garden centers"

An interesting trend is starting to emerge in the garden center trades. According to Garden Center Magazine, "Master Nursery Garden Center members will be able to make merchandise purchases through Home & Garden Showplace, a business unit of True Value. The alliance will directly and immediately benefit Master Nursery retailers by providing Master Nursery Garden Centers the opportunity to purchase from among True Value Company’s 60,000+ warehouse-stocked products. For current Home & Garden Showplace retailers, the alliance will bring the ability to participate in Garden Elements, a proprietary program of Master Nursery Garden Centers including both a branded annual program and a new line of organic plant foods." A program for independent garden centers is now being offered through a hardware store chain. According to Greenhouse Grower, "True Value’s Home & Garden Showplace is working closely with their membership to provide more products and information on how to run a profitable garden center. True Value also recently announced a licensing deal with the Master Nursery group to help their members with more efficient buying and give them access to the Garden Elements plant brand. Look for these hardware companies to open hundreds of new garden centers over the next several years." Hundreds of new garden centers over the next several years. These will be garden centers attached to the hardware store, not stand alone garden centers. This of course follows the trend set by The Box Stores with their own garden centers.

There may be something to this trend of garden centers as a part of a larger overall theme. As the nursery industry continues to real from the recession, and stand alone garden centers continue to close down, this trend has room to grow. In many locations across the country people want to garden, but not in the numbers required to sustain many of the stand alone garden centers that exist today. A return to the one stop, local hardware store/feed store/garden center may return. The key is in having a garden center that looks like it wasn't just an after thought to the main business of hardware. Does this mean the demise of stand alone garden centers? No, but it does foretell of a time soon when their are a lot fewer of them.

Garden Writers Today calls it quits

Garden Writers Today, is pulling the plug. This website was run by Cool Springs Press. Ray Wolf, publisher had this to say. "Effective October 31, 2011, Garden Writers Today website and newsletter will cease publication. Originally, GWT was conceived as a way to build a community among garden writers. As I look back on that goal today, it seems to me that, given the technological advances that have taken place since GWT was launched, other forms of social media have taken over the role of community builder and facilitator. Garden writers have many more gathering places today than they did when GWT was launched. Plus, the granddaddy of them all, Garden Writers Association, is stronger than ever."

The question is, are writers going to migrate from Garden Writers Today to The Garden Writers Association? We're they already members of both organizations? Or will more small niche oriented organizations develop? My guess is the latter. The trend is more niche oriented sites that mach up with the participants views.

Have you noticed the similarity between the logo saying for Garden Writers Today, "Dig, Plant, Grow" and the bulb campaign, "The Dig, Drop, Done" Ladies? Interesting. Garden Writers Today used the saying first.