Articles

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Artistic Flare

Handmade, hand-painted, artsy — do those words seem to be coming out of your customers' mouths a lot lately? More and more consumers are looking into items for their gardens that are artistically based, including... more »

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Situational Displays

Putting together a display of multiple small items can be tricky, both because you don't want the area to become cluttered and also because potential customers might overlook these smaller items. The latter is especially... more »

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Celebrations…

This is the season for celebrations... weddings and graduations, the end of one stage of life and the beginning of another. It's a season of celebrating the accomplishments that one had to endure and achieve... more »

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Curb Appeal: Where the Store Begins — Or Ends

The fact is, for all independent garden centers, the store is the most important product; that place, in its totality — physical environment, atmosphere, product mix — is the branded product on which the independent... more »

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Making the Most of Mixed Containers

We all know that mixed containers are among the hottest and best-priced item selling at retail today! One factor driving demand for containers is the amount of exposure featuring mixed containers in consumer media. Television... more »

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Store within a store

Strategically displaying products, educational information and POP materials will convey your intimate knowledge of customer needs. Whenever possible, take advantage of manufacturers' product displays, which inherently visually communicate a full water garden supply and pond... more »

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Working the Chain Gain

Between Martha Stewart's legal troubles, striking grocery workers in California and a ruling to block Target from building in an upscale Atlanta suburb, there's been a lot of backlash about the chain stores in the... more »

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Optics 101

As a garden center, you likely sell bird feeders, birdbaths, and plants that attract birds and butterflies. But, if you do not stock binoculars, you are missing out on the opportunity to earn loyalty within... more »

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Simple Container Gardening

By now, every one of us knows that container gardening is the current big hit amongst consumers. We have been slowly learning that customers have less and less time on their hands and want the... more »

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Credit and Debt Collection Collection

You'd think the goal for the credit and collection department is to find ways to reject new customers and drive away old ones, based on the use by most of their representatives of traditional DSO... more »

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LAWN& GARDEN RETAILER HEADLINES

Trends at IPM The 22nd International Plant Fair (IPM), held in Essen, Germany, drew about 1,350 exhibitors from 37 nations and 58,144 attendees, with good representation from the United States in exhibitors such as OFA,... more »

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Costs and Benefits of Advertising

Why would a company pay $7,667 per second just to air a commercial? Most likely to speak to the largest audience of potential customers. Advertisements help to ensure that customers are reminded to buy and... more »