Take a trip to anyone of your local retail nurseries, & chances are, that unless they have some sort of affiliate business attached to them, they are as dead as a bunch of Valentine's roses in March!
There will certainly be exceptions to the rule, but it seems to be the norn these days, & the only nurseries that appear to be doing well, & doing any form of trade during the week, are the larger retail nurseries, & those that are attached to one of the major DIY chainstores around the country.
Are we seeing the death of the independant nursery? (i.e. not connected to any other business)
Is it only the bigger guys, that have the financial clout to see them through the tougher quiter months like over winter, that are going to be at the front of the nursery industry?
I for one think that this may be the case, but I feel that in some instances, they are sacrificing customer service & definately product knowledge for the sake of the bottom line.
I have recently seen a major retail chain (with a tree for a logo ironically), start selling all sorts of shrubs & groundcovers at one of their larger stores, with absolutely no one around to give folks advise on the material, & none of the material has any care labels on them.
I was also blown away by the prices that they were charging, & wondered if the grower supplying them was going to be in business the next week. I could have bought a 1.2M tall Trachylospermum creeper, which was about 60cm wide (bushy), in a 10L bag, for R49.00!
The problem with our game, is that we don't sell many products that you can just take off the shelf, take it home & install it.
In the case of plants, you have to know whether the plant you buy can go in the sun, in the shade, what type of soil, how much water etc, & unless you know what you are doing, or you are an avid gardener, you rely very heavily on the advise that you are given, or that you ask for, & if that is not forthcoming or wrong, then the knock on effects can be huge.
Although we sell products, this industry is or should be very customer service driven. The two go hand in hand, & if one is missing, this spells disaster.
The industry sells what some would consider to be luxury items, by which I mean that we do not sell items that are generally essential to survive. (Like foodstuffs). We compete for the entertainment or relaxation rand, i.e. money that folks spend AFTER they have made the neccessary monthly purchases, & with the change in interest rates & climbing fuel prices, is becoming less & less, & unless certain businesses diversify, they cannot survive exclusively on a "Flower & Compost" rand.
I'm also of the opinion, that there are too many "Rats & Mice" wholesale growers out there, who have either been forced into, or who have seen growing plants as easy money, & it is the proliferation of these growers, that has prevented the industry from increasing prices in line with other industries.
The industry needs to share information with each other, & prevent a price war in trying to compete with the smaller individuals. They should rather be concentrating on providing a quality product at a reasonable rate, backed up by superior service.
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Here in the US the same concerns are being expressed, so its a bit refreshing to see that its not just here, but everywhere small and medium sized garden centers are having a tough run.
I do think that there is a place for the small and medium sized garden center, just as there is a place for the mega chains.
The nature of retailing is changing, not just in the garden center business. There are still many small nurseries that will go under as the changes work there way through the market place. The ones remaining though will be stronger because they addressed the areas that the mega stores don't. Customer service that "wows" the consumer, excellent quality and variety, and a loyal group of enthusiasts that will work for the nursery through "word of mouth" to bring in business.
It's when things seem to be falling apart that new innovative ideas will emerge that will re-invigorate the small garden centers that remain. Blogs, such as this one will make much of the difference. To that end I will place your site on my blog roll. Cheers!
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