Explore Home Décor
Decorating a house has become more than simply hanging a few framed pictures on a wall and putting down an area rug; it is now a $270 billion industry that includes kitchen items, housewares, furniture, home textiles, appliances and more. It’s no wonder people are taking an interest in decorating their homes: They spend more time there than any other place.
A 2003 AH&H Research report found 50 percent of the average American’s day is spent at home (less than one-third is spent at work or school). This is especially true in an age of travel concerns and high fuel costs. These days, many consumers are more interested in nesting, which includes updating their living spaces and incorporating unique and trendy home accents.
Take a look at your consumers’ demographics. If you are serving a large number of homeowners, carrying home décor items might be a good idea for your garden center. Traditionally, home ownership increases spending on a person’s living space. According to AH&H, home ownership is likely associated with higher long-term spending on all home items, which is not the case with renters. Purchases are at the highest for consumers soon after purchasing a home, but though purchasing slows, it still continues for years after.
Overall, houses are also becoming larger. This means people need more to fill them up: The U.S. Census Bureau reports the average total square feet of a single-family home in 1973 was 1,650; in 2002, it was 2,300.
Stock The Trends
Like most retail industries, home décor is ruled by trends, some of which stick around for only one season while others endure for many. Pamela Graves, editorial director of Home Fashion & Furniture Trends magazine, has noticed plenty of new trends in color, texture and motif for spring 2007 while traveling to shows and conferences related to the home décor industry. You can implement them in your garden center in a number of ways. Anything from stocking a few key accent pieces in popular colors to carrying entire rooms worth of trendy furniture and fabrics can satisfy your customers’ needs for new décor.
When it comes to color, “Watch for neutrals, neutrals, neutrals! Browns, taupes, beiges and creams are ruling the spring 2007 season and are complemented by purples, reds and oranges,” said Graves. Black and white is a classic color combination that continues to be popular. “People love the classics and can dress this combination up with silvers and red,” explained Graves.
Texture is currently dominating home décor textiles while beads, stones and feathers are on the way out. “Nubby fabrics and offerings with ‘feel’ are leaders now,” explained Graves. In terms of motifs, geometric shapes, primarily circles, are popular, with furniture offerings even taking on circular designs. Floral designs (which would complement garden centers nicely!) are also a dominant trend. For those who like an exotic look, animal prints still play a role in home décor as well, said Graves.
Display Your Wares
From plants to stepping stones, garden centers are in the business of promoting outdoor décor; some additional promotion on indoor décor should be a natural progression for most centers. In fact, many garden accents are appropriate for both indoor and outdoor use and can be cross merchandised as such. Try creating two displays (one geared for inside and one for out) using the same products to show customers the versatility of your décor merchandise.
Home décor displays are important selling tools: Set up displays as though you were really decorating an area of a house. For this, take your cues from large-scale home décor retailers such as Crate & Barrel and Pottery Barn. Each of them will create a display scene using décor items and stock the items used in the display nearby. That way, customers can see the items “in use,” get ideas for their own homes, and easily find and purchase what they want. This display tactic can work for all areas of the home: bathroom, kitchen, living room, bedroom and office. Imagine the impact a fully set dining table (complete with dinnerware, candle sticks, cloth napkins and more) would have as a focal display in your store.
Don’t forget to bring the outdoors in, too, by incorporating live plants into your indoor décor displays. By doing so, you reinforce the idea that flowers and plants are appropriate ornamentation for all areas of the home both indoors and out.
Do-It-Yourself Workshops
The popularity of home decorating TV shows such as Trading Spaces and Decorating Cents is another indication of consumers’ interest in revamping their homes and it is also an indication they want to do a lot of the decorating themselves. While not everyone may want to reupholster their own furniture, there are quite a few who would like to learn more about some of what the home decorating shows do, and you can show them how at your garden center.
With topics such as making pillows, arranging interesting votive displays or creating wall ornamentation, do-it-yourself decorating workshops can position your garden center as the go-to store for both crafting and purchasing home décor. You can supply participants with a list of materials they’ll need to bring for the seminar or, depending on the cost, have the materials available for them.
A fun idea is to show participants a clip of a project from one of the home decorating TV shows and then have them replicate the same project in the workshop. To drum up interest in the workshops, try displaying an example of the finished project in your store along with a sign-up sheet and description of the workshop. Because home décor is such a broad category, the possibilities for workshops and attracting participants are nearly limitless.
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