John’s Blog

By John Stanley In the last edition of G.T.N. we featured an article on Cleeve Nursery and the changes taking place. Cleeve Nursery is a small plant focused nursery; the type of retailer who has a huge opportunity to expand their market as long as they make the appropriate changes. Alan, Felicity and the team needed to create ideas and solutions for their customers and to attract new customers. With

By John Stanley I recently read an article that stated that the number of coffee shop brands in the UK had doubled to over 2,500 brand outlets in eight years. I realize we are now in the �coffee culture�, but take Starbucks out of the list and how many retail coffee shop brands can you name?, that�s before we start on the list in your local supermarket. Branding, in today�s

In May I was presenting a seminar and asked the group how they had planned as retailers to build on the World Cup fever that would spread around the world in June and July. To my surprise got some blank looks from the audience who felt it would be a non event as far as retailing was concerned. A client of ours, Woody�s Garden Centre in New Zealand used the

In recent weeks there has been a globalmovement to promote brest cancer awareness. My daughter in the UK recently entered a London run for women on behalf of raising money for breast cancer research. At the Chelsea Flower Show this year pink flowers were promoted with donations going to cancer research. At a recent seminar I presented at in New South Wales, pink containers and pink cyclamen were displayed on

This May is the longest time I have ever spent in and around Perth, this will quickly change as the rest of the year takes me around the world many times. It has given me the opportunity to ponder on the local scene and to review what is happening. Perth, Western Australia, is, we are, told the fastest growing economy in the western world at present. If the building boom

By John Stanley There is a change going on in the outside plant area of garden retailing. To the outsider or uninitiated it may appear that the leading garden centers are just changing the paint scheme to brighten the place up, but there is far more to the change than a lick of paint. What is happening in the market place? Over the last few years many independent retailers have

By John Stanley People don’t reads signs, you heard people say it, you have had said it yourself. What is the point of putting a signage strategy in your business when nobody reads them in the first place. Let’s look at his popular myth in more detail. Firstly, all retailers have to accept that consumers today are inundated with messages on signs, as a result, the majority are not read.

By John Stanley Many managers have attended our seminars over the years, listened to the newest ideas, trends and innovations and yet still hold onto the old way of doing things. They can see evidence of success in the innovative businesses and yet are holding back. Some of them even watch while their business becomes redundant and loses market share. Meanwhile others ramp ahead, winning new custom and profit. Some

By John Stanley Stores without products how would they survive, but this is 2006 and anything goes. A few years ago I was approached by a global bank to do some consultancy; the brief was I was to design a bank that did not hold any money, a money less bank. Head office was convinced that by 2010 their banks would not be places where consumers would actually collect money.

Are trends in the garden industry global or regional. I’m often told that things are different in this part of the world, but are they much different? The Australian Garden Market Monitor, produced by the Nursery and Garden Industry Australia and Horticulture Australia Ltd has just been published and part of the report looks at trends. What are the trends downunder? 1. Colour especially Black and white combinations followed by

By John Stanley Successful retailers realize you have to have passion for the product and the consumer. In today�s retail environment you would think everyone would be chasing that elusive dollar. But, that is not the case and this should be an opportunity for anyone who wants to grow their business. The best example I can give you of today�s market place is based on the experience we have just

By John Stanley McDonalds built a global business by understanding these two generational groups. Can you build a better business by understanding them better? Spoodles (spoiled toddlers to you and me) are aged between 0 and 5 years old and although not purchasers of garden products, they have parents who are. These parents are looking for easy parking, pram friendly parking and access around the garden centre is essential. Plus,

By John Stanley As a consultant, retailers are often asking me how they can increase sales. But, when I put my consumers hat on I�m often exposed to what seem obvious ways to grow the business. The life blood of retail is to get existing customers to revisit a store and also to spend more than they anticipated when they walked in the door. Customers generally have a purpose when

By John Stanley Billy Connolly, the Scottish comedian often jokes about his obsession with �beige� people, people without character who are quite literally beige in their outlook and views on life. Billy�s perspective on people could equally be applied to retail business. Retailing has developed into the hourglass environment, with the �beige� business being squeezed in the middle. Being �beige� in retailing is a recipe for failure. Retailing growth and

By John Stanley I recently worked with a Council who were developing a new library and I was asked in by the Librarians to provide some visionary direction. To maintain confidentiality, I will not name the organisation, but while working with them, it dawned on me that libraries are different to retail establishments, but not for the reasons that first came to mind. Retail Vision When working with retailers, the

By John Stanley The world is getting smaller and ideas move around the world rapidly. One of the challenges as a retailer is mounting and protecting your brand or retail uniqueness. I am often confronted by clients who are worried that somebody will pinch their ideas. My reaction is always don�t worry; they cannot pinch your brand or image. Why not? The brand or retail uniqueness is not the product,

By John Stanley I was first introduced to the Sigmoid Curve many years ago by the garden centre consultant, Ken Allen. I have used it many times since then to explain business development and its relevance today is more critical than it�s ever been. Before explaining the significance, let me explain the theory. Industries and businesses start at �A�. Come up with a good idea or concept at A and

The garden centre of the future �. picture what would it be? I believe it will be a store providing living room ideas to its customers. It would be a store that was organic and curvy, with no straight lines. A place to be inspired by the latest in gardening trends and a place to find solutions to all your garden troubles from trusted retailers. Well let me tell you,

Bridging the Information Gap by John Stanley Retailers invest large amounts of money to get consumers into their businesses with the aim of selling them products. Owners monitor conversion rates, i.e. count the number of customers entering the store versus actual buyers to enable them to monitor success. Team members are encouraged to approach consumers to build relationships and make a sale. But, is the process really working? Many of

By John Stanley I recently worked with a Council who were developing a new library and I was asked in by the Librarians to provide some visionary direction. To maintain confidentiality, I will not name the organisation, but while working with them, it dawned on me that libraries are different to retail establishments, but not for the reasons that first came to mind. Retail Vision When working with retailers, the

A Message From Santa By Jurek Leon My first job in retail was as a professional Father Christmas for a group of retail stores�at the age of 17. On leaving school, I�d come to Australia with my parents on holiday from Scotland and decided to stay for a couple of years to work and study. It was getting close to Christmas and I needed some money to pay the rent.

Christmas Snippets To Share With Your Team By Jurek Leon Make this year a �Ho, Ho, Ho� rather than a �Ho Hum� event. Here are a few snippets from Jurek Leon�s new e-book �The 52 Terrific Tips For Christmas Workbook� to get you started. Focus on your team Christmas can be an extremely stressful time for staff. They are a manager�s customers, so you have to invent ways to care

Trash is Now Fashionable By John Stanley It must be at least a decade ago that I started seeing recycle bins appear in garden centre car parks in New Zealand and Australia. Many retailers found that they were not the success they thought they would be and removed them from the parking lot. But, everything has its time, and recycle bins are now fashionable and trendy. It is time to

Every Man His Shed By Fiona Emberton Retailers have long ignored men and their needs but this situation is fast changing. Men have been seen lurking around shops uncomfortably, often at the door or flipping through magazines. Now, successful retailers are realising that men in general have very different needs as shoppers. We recommend retailers to incorporate the �men�s shed� as part of their layout and the good news is

Garden Centre Retailing is Changing – Living Room Retailing is the Future By John Stanley Plant sales down by an estimated 15%; key consumers commenting on garden centres being boring and gardening as a hobby losing popularity with the new consumer. Is this the decline of the garden centre or a new opportunity for entrepreneurial retailers? One thing is for certain; garden centres are having to change to meet the