Retailers

Comment

Comment by Victor Flaherty on November 1, 2009 at 9:53pm

Alan Shapiro
All I can say is those independent retailers that don't provide selection and quality and service are doomed. A slow agonizing death. Being a little conservative in tough times or unseasonably bad weather is normal. Deciding that things will be bad 3-6 months from now can turn into a self fulfilling prophecy.

Comment by Landscape Vision Design Software on July 26, 2009 at 9:46pm

Hi everyone, Yvonne from Landscape Vision here. I need your help. I am trying to market my landscape design software, Landscape Vision, to the retail garden industry.
Our software is for your customers to use to convey their landscape design wishes. Our software prints a shopping list of the plants and outdoor living product your customers have previewed on their properties. Check out our profile to learn more. Talk to me, I need to learn more about you.

Comment by Donna Kutil on March 2, 2009 at 9:47am

I don't know about anyone else on the east coast, but this snowstorm has the best timing! Three days of 5o degree weather and customers were buying grass seed and looking for pansies! This will slow them down a bit.

Comment by Diana on January 27, 2009 at 11:33pm

I love the black and white striped pots - does anyone know the vendor?

Comment by Kim on January 26, 2009 at 5:39pm

I agree with Erik - Thank you!!

Comment by Erik Friedli on December 9, 2008 at 9:18pm

What a great venue for gathering people together. Thanks for doing this!

Comment by Richard Jones on November 21, 2008 at 4:45pm

You're welcome to crash the party any time Alan. Especially when you ask the one question everybody wants a good answer to.
Easy for me to say, because it's not my money I'm spending here, but it seems to me if you go into a year planning for it to be bad, that's just what you're going to get. I think I would promote the idea of stocking up -- not overstocking, but half-empty won't cut it -- and then shifting your creative marketing planning into overdrive. Come up with any and every idea you can to get people into the garden center. Retailers might have to work twice as hard for a decent year, but that's the direction I would try to go.

Comment by Jen Polanz on November 21, 2008 at 1:36pm

I'm hearing that a lot in different aspects of garden retail buying, Alan. I'm hearing a lot of vendors talk about lean orders so far. It seems to be all about consumer confidence, too. It's like the chicken or the egg - customers can't buy what's not there, but retailers can't get stuck with it if customer's aren't buying, either.
So do you get flush with product and hope the customers come? Or do you wait for demand to increase?
Anyone?

Comment by Alan Shapiro on November 21, 2008 at 1:21pm

Okay, I barged in uninvited. I crashed your party. I'm not really a retailer any more, although we had a garden center for 15 years.
As a grower, there's a problem I've seen down here in the south with many independent garden centers. Maybe you can tell me what to do about it.
Retailers are being very conservative in their buying. They're not stocking up. Their stores are half empty and they're not spending any money. How can you sell stuff if you don't have it to sell?