In August I took some of the world’s leading horticultural retailers to the U.S.A. to visit the best of the horticultural retailers in the U.S.A.

On my trip were Simon Ainsworth, Eden Gardens, Sydney; Brad Nielsen, Nielsen’s Native Nursery, Queensland; Ross Hooper, Zanthorrea, Perth; all from Australia; Chris Hall from Kings Plant Barn in New Zealand; Danny Powell and Lito Dimaculangan from Dubai Garden Centre and Bill Bown and Andrew Peppertone from Terra Greenhouses in Canada.

The plan was to visit the best in the U.S.A., this included Urban Outfitters, Terrain at Styers and Waterloo Gardens in Philadelphia, Armstrong’s Thousand Oaks Store, Rogers Gardens, Whole Foods and Monrovia in Southern California.

Prior to departure from Australia, I checked with my travel agent that everything was confirmed and paid for as far as the travel, accommodation and car rentals were concerned and we were on our way. (more…)

Mass mail outs and brochures have been a standard means for shopping centres to promote their existence, stores and promotions to a wider audience. This technique has been used for many years and has worked. But, the consumer is changing and their demands are changing. They don’t want to be one of the crowd, they are an individual and they want you to talk to them, one at a time and as a person.

Traditional marketing techniques have meant that to do this has not been cost effective, but new technology means new ways of communication. For example the increasing use of “Twitter” as a communications tool has already resulted in at least thirteen shopping centres in the U.S.A. setting up their own Twitter page where they can provide information on impromptu promotions on a one to one basis with consumers.

Individuals Want Loyalty

The consumer wants to be talked to as an individual and the shopping centre wants brand loyalty. The earliest compromise for meeting both these objectives was the development of loyalty clubs. In Australia the first real development was the Fly Buys loyalty card which was a reward based programme. In the U.K. the real innovators were Tesco’s with their Club card. This sophisticated card system provided the business with specific details on consumers and their specific needs and wants. Tesco’s can build loyalty by communicating with individual customers based on their preferences.

Loyalty programmes will become more advanced allowing a shopping centre loyalty club to really focus on a specific person and their specific requirements. (more…)

Spring has arrived in our part of the world and as a result consumers are planting their gardens, this is a busy time for the gardening market. Linda and myself decided to visit a garden centre in our community that we have not shopped at for some time.

We arrived at the car park to find only four cars parked in the parking area. Something that puzzled us since other parking areas in the garden centres we passed were full .Outside the front door was a roughly hand written sign on a trolley that said, “No Bags, No Cameras, No dogs” We proceeded to the entrance, Linda was carrying a shoulder handbag and we were greeted at the entrance by a women whose only comment was “You will have to leave your bag in the car” that was the sole greeting!

When we asked why these rules were being enforced her reaction was “Management decided and they do not have to explain their rules to anyone”. (more…)

This is the first in a series of three articles that looks at how we need to convert lookers into buyers.

Retailing is about converting lookers into buyers, there are three specific segments of lookers that need to convert into buyers. The first group are lookers who have never ventured to your store before, the second group are those that do come to your store, but you would like them to come more often and finally there are the lookers who are buying already, but you would like them to buy more on this buying excursion.

In this series of three articles I will develop ideas on how we can maximise the potential with all three groups.

The first group and the one I will focus on in this article are the lookers who are not as yet venturing into your store. They may be in the market for what you sell, but it has not registered in their mind that you can provide what they are searching for. (more…)