The Blogging Nurseryman by Trey Pitsenberger

I received a message from a couple that live here in northern California. They want to start a nursery on eleven acres of land. They are looking for advice. I came across this post I did back in December of 2007 and this one from November 2007. I don’t think I would change anything I wrote except to say, embrace change!

How quickly things change. Not so long ago we we’re told that gebration x and y would power the DIFM (do it for me) trend. They just didn’t like gardening and they would pay others to do the gardening for them. Poof! That’s gone.  Here is a list of post’s I have done on “Trends.” I wonder how many other trends we have been told we coming down the pike are gone. Are those generation x and y people still intent on accessorizing their backyards instead of starting a vegetable garden? Here is what we we’re told, “Today’s young homeowners want you to do the dirty work for them”…they “want beautiful gardens and outdoor rooms, minus the sweat and hard work that come with them”… “they take interest in environmentally sound gardening and raising organic vegetables and fruits-though they’d probably prefer to hire you to come over and do it for them…” Let’s see, owe more on the house than it’s worth, husband just lost the job at Wachovia, and the credit card bills are mounting. Let’s hire someone to garden for us.

What seems to stand out now is how quickly our ideas of where we are headed change. That seems to be the one constant, change.  If I we’re going to start a garden center today, and as I run the one we have now the one trait that comes in the most handy is the ability to roll with the punches, and still remain standing. You just cannot predict what is going to happen. It’s almost as if we have known all along that the garden center business was changing but had no idea just how much. This latest economic situation may be the catalyst for a lot of us to make the changes we know we have to make, but have been hesitant to do before. Those that don’t will be gone! We are headed into some choppy seas and I don’t see it calming down until at least next year. Hold on.

Oh, don’t think I am being negative here. It’s just the way it is. Success will come to those who maintain a positive attitude despite the choppy seas. What choice do we have? Grab the wheel, steer your course, and stay optimistic. The storm will end. We just don’t know what port we will be in.

Customers are cutting back on purchases, suppliers are hitting us with fuel surcharges, and the latest news for retailers is, don’t get too excited about this Holiday season. We have never had a big Holiday season. We’re in the mountains and people tend to head for the covered, warm malls. We do a fair gift card business which is nice.

So what to do? Somehow we have to get people interested in coming in the store.  We don’t want to just put everything on sale, since it cut’s into profits, but we are strategically putting on sale plants which we would rather not over winter here at the nursery.

We have increased the frequency of our e-news from twice a month to once a week. We do run the risk of over inundating some people with more e-mail, but it’s imporatnt that we remind them about us. It seems to work and the cost is almost zero.

We are having the Red Hat Ladies come in for a private class with Monica. They will make hyper-tufa pots. $15 each. 16 ladies in the nursery.  That’s what counts. I think we will start promoting private classes for groups. We are building up our Fall Pleasure Faire this October. We have 15 vendors signed up so far. We are tying it in with our 4th annual scarecrow contest. It’s fun and it get’s people in the nursery.

See the theme here. We are competing with everything else that a person can spend money on. Do they eat out tonight, or come to the garden center? Do they take that trip or landscape the back yard. Choices that are going to mean survival for a lot of businesses. We had better give them a great reason to come to the nursery. We are working at becoming a community resource. The more people feel a connection the more likely they will be to shop with us. We have to become so valuable to the community they support us with their time, money, and word of mouth.

I believe that  great things come from tough times. It’s during times of economic stress that businesses will come up with the ideas that will take us to the next level. There are two choices, innovate and survive, or stagnate. This is the time to dig down and bring to the surface ideas that may have been kept dormant because they seemed to risky. Well now is the time to rethink those ideas and maybe take a chance on some of them. Hate public speaking? Get over it or get someone on staff to do it. Sales are not your department? It’s everyone’s department, all the time. Offer on site consultations. We have for years but we just started to really promote it. It almost always results in sales at the store.

Speaking of innovating we now have  59 members of our Linkedin group, “Garden Centers, Nurseries, and New Media.”

This group is made up of people who will be leading the way as we head into the future of gardening.  If you would like to be a part of something innovative you should join. Go here to find out more.

Over at Garden Wise Guy, Billy Goodnick has a post on his visit to the Garden Writers Association meeting in Portland. What I found interesting is this comment by Billy, “Most everyone took off for a tour of production nurseries that were going to show off all their newest introductions. Not only was I uninterested in seeing plants I have little chance of growing in Santa Barbara, but the idea of using plants that are grown in Oregon, then shipped nationwide on trucks would give me a carbon-footprint guilt trip I couldn’t endure. One more reason to use plants provided by local growers - they’re not only adapted to my climate, but the impacts of shipping are miniscule.”

Now I would imagine that the folks that produce plants in Oregon would cringe if they heard that. Yet that doesn’t change the fact that Billy, and more, and more people might start thinking this way.  That could have a effect on  lot’s of wholesale nurseries that ship plants around the country. Here in northern California we have lot’s of smaller wholesale operations that can supply us by not traveling very far. I know that there are many places in this country that depend on shipments from warmer climates to start their spring.

So as we independent garden centers try to use sustainable practices in our businesses how do we address the issue of where our plants come from? At the grocery store the other day they had asparagus for $1.29 a pound. A great deal. Could be the lowest price of the year! The asparagus is from Mexico or Chile. Quite a trip, yet it was selling out! So apparently the fact that this food came from far away didn’t matter as much as the low price.

My questions are, if using sustainable practices  means buying from local suppliers does that mean that we smaller garden centers should buy local, and let The Depot and other chains be the ones that buy from anywhere? Is it even possible for independent garden centers in parts of the country to operate by buying only local, within 100 miles of the store? Is this an issue that independents can run with? “We only carry locally sourced products.” Are there nurseries already doing this?

The picture at the top of this post is of some ornamental cabbage that we buy from Blooms of Glen Ellen. They are 132 miles from here.

According to The Minneapolis-St Paul Star Tribune, “Smith & Hawken, the upscale retailer of garden furniture and supplies, will close two of its three Twin Cities-area stores at the end of this year.” Scotts Miracle-Gro, the parent company “reported declining sales and continuing losses for the chain. In a recent conference call with analysts, executives described Smith & Hawken as ‘a drag on earnings.’ They said they were reviewing under performing stores and the catalog strategy and were considering selling the chain, which was acquired in 2004.”

This is not news to us here. We talked about Smith and Hawken and it’s parent company Scotts here.  In that post I said, “As a small independent garden center owner it’s kind of fun to watch huge corporations like Scotts try to reinvent themselves as cutting edge ‘hippies’. They may be successful in luring many new customers and regaining some momentum but they will never again have the interest on the garden enthusiasts who look for the cutting edge and are the ones who spread the word when they find a truly novel idea.”

Smith and Hawken is not closing, but Scotts wants to return to it’s “roots” According to Morningstar analyst Ben Johnson, ” ‘We have always held that [Scotts] venture into the outdoor living category marked an unwelcome departure from its core competencies’ of lawn and garden care products.”

So there you have it. Scotts is doing the right thing by getting out of Smith and Hawken and returning to what it does best. Meanwhile Smith and Hawken plans on opening bigger stores. We have a 10,000 sq.ft. store opening near here in Sacramento.  They feel “The larger size allows more room for full displays of outdoor furniture and garden-inspired home decor.”  I am not so sure this will work. It really depends on whether they can find a buyer for the chain and whether they can regain the “vibe” the brand once had.

It all comes down to what I said back in March 2007, ” More often than not these days many people make purchasing decisions based partly on a companies ‘authentic story’. Many small garden centers have what Gordy Erickson (senior vice president)wishes Smith & Hawken still had, an interesting and authentic story.” When large corporations buy smaller niche companies the smaller companies loose that authenticity. The outside apperances may be the same, but behind the scenes corporate mind set takes over and the vibe changes.

Head over to Shirley Bovshow’s Edenmakers’ Blog and check out Garden Center TV. The first installment was about Monrovia Nursery. The second is about Hort Couture. What I like is a chance to visit the Independent Garden Center Show in Chicago. We talked about how it would be nice if you could visit trade shows virtually here.

Sometimes it’s just impossible to get out of the nursery and get to these shows. Some type of video record would nice for those of us that can’t get there physically. Thanks Shirley.

It looks like the economy is going through another hic-cup. What to do? Business is already down, where headed to what may be  lackluster fall, and the cold of winter beckons. Hope everyone saved up enough to get to next year. Lot’s of us don’t have what we would like in the bank right now. It’s easy to become pessimistic.

We are trying to be proactive. It’s during these times that ideas and action that makes a difference are forced on us. You either give up, or re-double you efforts to get the word out. If we curl up and act dead it will become a self-fulfilling prophecy.  Sometimes just the act of being positive and doing something keeps things humming.

We are putting the nursery on a diet.  Not a starvation diet, but a much needed loss of weight. Unlike a starvation diet where you just cut out everything and feel weak all the time, this is a more healthy loss of weight and building up of muscle. What categories are we wasting our time on? What do we keep carrying that just doesn’t resonate with our customers? Roses here just don’t sell.  Deer and other critters eat them and we usually end up selling them at a discount. Roses are out. Bonsai? We use to buy in finished bonsai for our ‘bonsai section”, but not anymore. No bonsai. We have a bonsai nursery near hear and I am more than happy to send you to their place.

What are our strengths? A beautiful location that makes you feel great when you walk through the door. We are having more and more groups use our picnic area. The El Dorado Co. Master Gardeners just held their third annual picnic here. Next Saturday the local garden club is meeting here. We are encouraging people to use the picnic ground as well as working on turning our upcoming “Pleasure Faire” into a well attended event. The big news? Workshops and events held at the nursery bring the community together and makes us a vital resource.

Another strength is direct marketing. I figured out how to do my own e-news without our webmasters help. This saves big bucks and I can now put out an e-news weekly, instead of just twice a month. I have already started to hear positive feedback from customers. I never wanted to cut my webmaster (a small business) out of the e-news. But I need to save money while increasing our exposure, and you know what? It has!

We have started on a local flier program. Our employee’s, as well as Monica and I have been creating our own fliers and hanging them at every bulletin board in the area. “Grass Roots”. We keep track what fliers are placed where, and we change them out regularly to keep the fresh. Hey, it keeps us busy and doing something to get the word out. Plus it seems to be working. There are a bunch of other low cost ways we are using to keep the positive vibe, that I’ll share later.

The bottom line is this. The nursery business is changing so quick it’s head spinning. The economy sucks, and customers are pulling back on their expenses. Why would they want to come to the nursery and buy plants and fertilizers? Why would they want to go out to dinner, or take a vacation under the circumstances? They do, but they are a lot more careful where they spend their money. We have to make the garden center culture so compelling that they will give up on the dinner out,  and head out to the garden and garden center.

We all know the days of people just automatically lining up at our gates on a Saturday morning are over. Heck, around here Sundays are busier than Saturday’s.  We have to provide an experience that compels the customer to return. We have to stay positive and upbeat so the customer will pick up on the good vibes. We have to look at what we sell and re-examine what’s not moving. The future of the small garden center will depend on it’s ability to carry what sells, and lot’s of it, and jettisoning what doesn’t. It’s not easy. As a small garden center owner you just know you can’t carry everything the Box stores do, at their prices. So why try? What are they not doing well? Organic fertilizers? We at the Golden Gecko Garden Center have THE BEST selection of organics in the county. Maybe in the tri-county area. Since we have increased our fertilizer department it’s sales are a bright spot. So bright we are INCREASING the selection. Hydroponics? We have created a new department. It’s called the “Hydro-Hut”. I am not about to let the hydroponic shops have all that business. The nearest one is twelve miles away. We are already getting interest, and people are saying they would love to buy local, from us!

The small garden center has a huge opportunity, as well as huge risks coming down the pike. The ones that survive, and thrive are going to because they took the somewhat dated garden center concept we grew up with, and morphed it into something that will resonate with the 21st century gardener.

Monica and I headed down to San Francisco for her birthday. We spent the night at The Hyatt at the Embarcedero. The first picture is the view from the room. Since we are from this area we more or less did some stuff that we haven’t done before.

We went through Golden Gate Park and happened upon something I didn’t know existed, The Anglers Cabin, built in the 1930’s. What was cool we’re the casting ponds, considered some of the best in the world. There was a guy casting, and the setting, hidden amongst the trees was surreal.

We visited the “Victory Garden” in front of City Hall. I took a picture of the tomato plot. They haven’t harvested one tomato yet.

No surprise there, as growing tomato in “The City” just doesn’t work. To cool all year. They had great crops of leafy vegetables, as well as squash.  The whole thing will be taken down in November. While the garden looked great and the people working it friendly I still think it should have been done where it could be left to grow year after year.  Good idea, but keep it away from politicians, which means don’t do it at City Hall

on concrete.

 The second to last picture is Monica at The Queen Wilhelmina Garden by the windmill at Golden Gate Park. Those are foxgloves which tower over Monica.

The last picture was just some older police motorcycles in front of a store called “Old Vogue”  It’s located near Columbus Ave.

We had a great time!

According to it’s website GIE Media, Inc. has “announced that it has acquired substantially all of the assets of Ft. Worth based Branch-Smith Publishing. This development adds four titles to GIE: Greenhouse Management & Production, Nursery Management & Production, Garden Center and Garden Center Product Source. In making the acquisition GIE significantly extends its position serving the commercial horticultural and specialty markets.”

Interesting news. Other than that I don’t know how this will shake out. The Branch-Smith story is quite interesting. Founded in 1900 by Aaron Smith, who was born without arms. He learned to type using his toes. The company is now in it’s fourth generation. They plan to, “focus on its award-winning Branch-Smith Printing company, which specializes in books, catalogs, directories and other print solutions for publishers.”

I felt Branch-Smith was smart in taking a proactive approach to new media by starting their “Open Register” blog. Perhaps it’s that proactive approach that made the acquisition by GIE possible. I am sure we will hear more about this as the nursery industry continues to change before our eye’s.

Take a look at this article on “(Almost)Endless Summer , How seasonal businesses get noticed during slow periods” at Inc.com, “The Daily Resource for Entrepreneurs” There are some tips from others in seasonal businesses on how to keep customers interested during slow periods. The first one is from Adams Fairacre Farms, a Poughkeepsie, New York, company that operates three garden and grocery stores. They discusses the success of their seminar program. Here at our nursery it has been one of the best investments of time we have made. The seminar, or as we call them “workshops” brings people in, and the sales follow. If your garden center has someone who likes to speak don’t delay, start a seminar program today!

Number 6 is from a florists perspective. See how they used little known holidays and celebrations to boost business. This is a great idea and could be extended to the garden center. Who get’s a Arbor Day Card sent to them?

Number 4 is why I found this article. I had forgotten about being interviewed so it was fun seeing, “Blog, especially about the big names in your industry.” Yea, it’s The Blogging Nurseryman and his, “something of a must read in the industry” blog.  It’s really a kick to see The Golden Gecko Garden Center mentioned. We are a small, three (sometimes 4) person operation in the Sierra Nevada Foothills of northern California. Yet, because of new media and my belief that any company no matter how small can make a difference, here we are.

The article makes it seem somewhat like I write about “The Big Boys” in our industry to get the blog attention. I have never written about Home Depot, Hines Nursery, Scotts, etc., to gain attention. Sure those posts bring a lot of viewers, but I write about these companies, and others because they matter to my business. I am not out to “get” anyone. We are just a small business with big competition, and that’s some of what we write about. It’s interesting, but by just being ourselves we have gotten more attention than we ever thought possible.

What other industries are being changed right now because the “small” players now have a voice?

My last post on Sunset Magazines “Crib Sheet” on box stores vs. independents got me to thinking. Maybe what they are saying is true! I received a comment from Fern in which she said, “Quite frankly, they’re right. I would never buy a plain vanilla basil plant from the local independent nursery. They charge twice as much for the same quality plant. Likewise, I wouldn’t be able to afford to buy 20 boxwoods from them, if I needed that sort of thing. But if I needed something really spectacular, or unusual, an heirloom, something that was certified organic, or I needed to buy a plant that came with some advice, I would never in a million years think to head down to the big box place. Did you read the article and want to be annoyed?”

Maybe I did! I grew up in the era of the one stop garden center. Back when I got started in the late 70’s the only chain store competition we had was K-Mart, and they did a lousy job. People use to get ALL their gardening needs at a garden center. Now things have changed. Fern doesn’t realize my herbs are the same price as the boxes.  It doesn’t matter! The impression is independents are more expensive.

So that’s my question for you. Was the Sunset Crib Sheet article the way we are viewed by the public? Are garden centers good for specialty items  and not much else? Don’t get me wrong, it would make ordering and running the business easier if we focused on being great at a few things and ignored the others. Should we not even bother with herbs? Landscape shrubs and trees are the box stores realm?

I posted this question at our group over at Linkedin.  The question revolved around whether wholesale nurseries, like Hines should focus exclusively on boxes or independents. Just before filing bankruptcy Hines decided they would focus exclusively on the box stores. The differing needs of independents and boxes almost demand it. So that’s my question for you. Should garden centers leave the landscaping shrubs and trees for the box stores? Should we be even be carrying gallon sized boxwood’s? Herbs? Annuals? My annuals are way better than The Depot’s, but does it matter? Perceptions.

This is one of the questions all of us in the garden center business want the answer to. What direction are we to go?