We have talked about our foray into indoor gardening and hydroponics in the past. What we have found is there is a tremendous opportunity for crossover sales. I had a presentation the other day at our local garden club. The discussion was on all the new items we carry at the garden center. We focused on the lights, seed starting mats, Grodan grow cubes, greenhouse tray covers, etc., that we’re brought in to address the hydroponic or indoor grower. What was interesting is most of the garden club members had never seen these items. They we’re excited about the products and came into the garden center to purchase them.
Out here in nor Cal this store in Oakland is getting all the attention in the media. Here is what the Silicon Valley News has to say, “The place (iGrow)has the feel of the nursery at a Home Depot, but the house plants, barbecues and sheds are replaced with hydroponic equipment, fans and nutrients for growing medical cannabis plants.” City council member Larry Reid say’s he is confident the store has enough security to keep out criminals looking to steal valuable equipment and products. And he said he is excited that the store could appeal to gardeners looking to improve their vegetable or flower gardens. “It can be useful for those that want to just grow tomatoes or any other vegetable in their backyard,” he said.
This place is a warehouse. It’s 15,000 square feet! While it may be successful in it’s primary objective, I doubt it’s going to pull many vegetable or flower gardeners into it, yet. What will be interesting to watch is how the smaller hydroponic and indoor growers respond to this “Home Depot” of indoor supplies. Google hydroponics in the zip code of this store and 261 results come up! You heard it right, 261 results. It would seem that all these smaller “mom and pop” stores now have the same competition we in the garden center business have faced over the years. What happens when the people who own the new I Grow superstore decide to start carrying vegetable plants and flowers to compliment their other products?
Interesting stuff.
More interesting news concerning Home Depot and Hines Nursery. According to Les, “Hines has given all their reps notice that at the end of January they will be let go. Home Depot is going to a program where the merchandising company will manage the ordering at the store level. This is the same merchandising company that regularly confuses agapanthus with hemerocallis or phormium with dietes. At Lowe’s they are going to a computer program for product replenishment and sales reps will no longer be welcome in their stores, much like WalMart did two years ago. How the plant selection at your local WalMart?”
Read the whole comment by Les here. It will be interesting to watch how this all plays out. It seems the only constant these days is change.
Out here in nor Cal it seems that 2010 will be a lot like 2009 when it comes to what people will be buying in the garden center. My guess is fruit trees and other edibles will lead the way with ornamental shrubs and trees lagging. If the economy is improving elsewhere it sure hasn’t shown up here. I do beleive people are getting use to the way things are. Not as much panic as last year, but a resignation that this year won’t see much change from last year.
We will focus again this year on being the place where people can purchase stuff for sustainability in their gardens and lives. The interest in growing your own is strong. Fruit trees, fruiting bushes, and vegetables will lead the way. The stuff we use to maintain these things will also be strong. Sales of soil conditioner’s and fertilizers we’re way up last year and should be again this year. That’s good, as sales of five gallon and larger ornamental shrubs and trees was way down last year. Sustainability is in, ornamentation is out in our area.
I like the trend. We want to be a resource for people who want to take control or their lives and live better. It seems the shop locally trend is starting to take hold. We may get involved in selling canning supplies this year. Monica and I are still enjoying food we canned last year. We beleive that canning your harvest is becoming fashionable. It makes sense for us to show people how to preserve the very fruit we sold them earlier.
Thought I would mention Target buying the Smith and Hawken brand. I think Target has a better chance of making it work than Scott’s Miracle-Gro did. That being said I find it a big yawn. Smith and Hawken started out, much like Ben and Jerry’s Ice cream. A business with a passion. Once Ben and Jerry’s was bought by Unilever it lost it’s cache. Same with Smith and Hawken and Scott’s Miracle-Gro. The passion is gone and it’s now just a commodity taking up some aisle space at your local Target.
