John’s Blog

By John Stanley I know what your thinking, how can a bucket of 12 tomatoes cost $15,000? Nobody would pay such an exhorbitant amount of money for tomatoes! But read on, these tomatoes cost $15,000 Australian dollars. The actual bucket did exist and was located in a small fruit and vegetable shop down the road […]

This may not shock you, but it surprised me and thank you to Nottingham County Council libraries and the local pub for providing the information ….. let me explain. Nottingham had a major problem, they were finding it difficult to attract youth into their libraries. They found that youth preferred the pub to the library.

By John Stanley In the last few weeks a number of events have caused me to focus on 2026. Twenty years into the future. Firstly, Linda and I became grand parents for the first time and this inevitably causes you to look at the future. While we awaited the great event, the �Australian� our national

Baby Boomers are the �Do It For Me� Market and when it comes to sustainability they are no different. Imagine someone coming in to your yard, building an organic vegetable garden and maintaining it. That is exactly what �Your Patch� (www.yourpatch.com.au) will provide. They will select the best location your garden, work with you to

In the last two years chocolate fountains have been all the rage. Is this the next stage? Will garden centres and farm shops be building chocolate Christmas trees next year�� it would be a crowd puller. Ref: Retail Link – Bangkok Hotel Building a 200kg Chocolate Christmas tree – www.hospitalitynet.org/news/154000320/4025643.html

By John Stanley One of the challenges for any retail business is getting new consumers to enter the store. The mass merchandisers normally rely on price promotions to get the consumer through their front door and this means small independent business have to rely on other means of �touching the consumer� to get there attention.

My local garden centre, Zanthorrea, has just been awarded in the inaugural �Australia�s Most Weed Wise Nursery� by the Australian Weed Societies. The award is presented to the nursery that is most proactive in its approach to environmental weeds that present a threat to native plants, wildlife and the environment. Zanthorrea refuses to sell high-risk

Today’s marketplace holds few competitive advantages in terms of product or price, therefore emotional engagement and memorable experiences are more important than ever. Click below for a message from John Stanley and Pete Luckett about making your customers say WOW! about their shopping experience. Cant see the video? Click Here to download Flash Plug-in for

By John Stanley Japan with a population of 127 million, most of whom are congregated along the eastern side of the main island, is an intensive market. Traditionally known for Japanese gardens, bonsai and chrysanthemums, the market is now expanding as the population becomes more demanding. In October I had the opportunity to speak at

By John Stanley Christmas is one of the most important trading periods of the retail year in the Western world. The impact it has on sales will vary with each retail sector but, whichever sector you belong to, it is critical that you maximise the sales potential of this peak festive season. One of the