Aug 18, 2015
Farwest Plans Off-Site Tours, Retail Idea Center

The Farwest Show has retailers on the mind with planned tours for attendees on Wednesday, Aug. 26, and the Idea Center for Retailers during the show.

The Farwest Show has retailers on the mind with planned tours for attendees on Wednesday, Aug. 26, and the Idea Center for Retailers during the show.

The three tours will take place simultaneously giving participants choices for their particular interests.

  • Tour 1: All About Those Brands – 8 a.m. – 6 p.m., Buses Depart Oregon Convention Center at 8 a.m. Designed for retailers seeking highly marketed branded collections and growers considering becoming a licensed grower for a brand, tour stops include premier nurseries leading the way in plant brand development, production, distribution, and management. Attendees will travel by luxury motor coach to Fisher Farms LLC, Bailey Nurseries Inc., and Monrovia. Cost is $115 person and includes bus, lunch, beverages and snacks. Preregistration required. Space limited to 52 per tour.
  • Tour 2: Not Your Usual Suspects – 8 a.m. – 6 p.m., Buses Depart Oregon Convention Center at 8 a.m. Wholesale growers, high-end landscapers and garden retailers will see the must have plants for next year on this tour in the heart of Oregon’s Nursery Country. Stops include visits to Northwoods Nursery Inc., Rare Tree Nursery, Heritage SeedlingsInc. and Whitman Farms. In addition to the plant showcase, attendees will see unique production methods at the respective growers. Cost is $115 person and includes luxury motor coach, lunch, beverages, and snacks. Preregistration required. Space limited to 52 per tour.
  • Tour 3: Retail Walking Tour – AM (9 a.m.-1 p.m.) and PM (2-6 p.m.) Half-day Tours (choose morning or afternoon) – Travel via Metro Area Transit from the Oregon Convention Center to Walking Tour Locations. Retail industry expert Anne Obarksi guides a 4-hour walking tour of some of Portland’s top-notch retailers – both inside and outside of the industry. See the best of store layout, merchandising and customer service. Tour stops take place at four must-see retailers in the Nob Hill and Pearl District neighborhoods of Portland. Cost is $75 person and includes metro transit pass and snacks. Preregistration required. Space limited to 16 per tour.

The Idea Center, located on the show floor and sponsored this year by business software developer, iDashboards, will present garden retail-specific topics that include visual merchandising, retail ideas and innovations, business management, mobile apps for plants, container gardens and website optimization. Along with various speakers and demonstrations, The Garden Center Group’s Retailers’ Choice Awards will be presented, spotlighting the best of live and hard products from the exhibit floor chosen by a team of garden retailers led by industry consultant Sid Raisch.

Twelve sessions are scheduled across the Show’s three days. Speakers from all facets of retail horticulture will be presenting seminars and several sessions will include hands-on audience participation. All sessions are free to registered Farwest attendees.

Find more information at www.farwestshow.com.