Sunday's Experience
September 9, 20076:45 a.m.–1:30 p.m.
Retail LIVE!
(Lunch will be provided)
Grab some coffee, a notepad and pen, and get ready to critique the morning tour stops. Sunday morning we’ll head to Cleveland's West Side to visit three stores that represent the diversity of store concepts that exists around Cleveland, including niche specialty nurseries; large, European-inspired garden centers and grower-retailers with sophisticated charm. There's no doubt you'll find ideas for your store—no matter the size or scope of your business—and we're excited to show you some of the best Cleveland has to offer!
Be ready to discuss your observations when we reconvene back at the hotel for Tours Reloaded!, an interactive discussion of the tour stops led by garden center experts Sid Raisch and Nancy Durand.
Boyert’s Greenhouse and Farm: Starting out as a wholesale grower in 1985, Boyert’s Greenhouse and Farm has turned into a destination garden center. From the unique gift barn to Boyert’s elaborate Fall Festival, the family-owned store creates a friendly and fun atmosphere focused around the customer. www.boyerts.com
Cahoon Nursery: Established in the 1940s as a growing nursery, Cahoon Nursery now prides itself on offering one of the widest ranges of unusual trees and shrubs in the state, as well as a world-class selection of more than 700 hosta varieties. Cahoon puts a fresh twist on old-fashioned garden center charm, and it all begins with the plants and people. www.cahoonnursery.com
Petitti Home and Garden: Here’s your chance to see the brand new Petitti Home and Garden in Avon, Ohio. Petitti’s, a family-owned retail grower since 1971, is considered one of the top independent garden centers in the Midwest. Their eighth and newest retail center features a beautiful European-inspired, galleria-like structure. With more than 90% of the plants sold under cover and a wide array of plants and products, including a large selection of high-quality patio furniture and a complete home and gift department, this new location is truly a lifestyle destination garden center. www.petittigardencenter.com
Tours Reloaded!
Speakers: Nancy Durand, Merchandising Specialist, Nancy Durand Retail Consulting, Edina, MN; Sid Raisch, President, Horticultural Advantage, Wilmington, OH
Don’t miss this unique interactive session. Why is this so cool? Because we return to the host hotel to discuss the stops in an interactive session moderated by two industry experts, Sid (Raisch) and Nancy (Durand). Sid brings a lot of experience consulting on all aspects of the garden center business, and Nancy is a merchandising guru, passionate about moving product all year long. Both promise to send you home with a notebook full of strategies and fresh, objective eyes to evaluate your own store.
You Can Get Blood from a Stone!
How to Get More Support from Your Vendors
Speaker: Pete Bottomley, Marketing Director, Coast of Maine Organic Products, Cape Elizabeth, ME and Green Profit columnist
Admit it, as a retailer you need your vendors. An experienced sales rep who calls regularly and who knows your products, your store and your clientele is an invaluable resource. But are you getting the most from your vendors? They can do more than take orders and ship product. Many are glad to provide extensive sales tools, from free POP and Web links to in-store training sessions and weekend seminars for customers. The best retailers tap into these free services‹and know how to ask for even more. Pete Bottomley not only writes on the topic for Green Profit, he lives it as a garden center industry vendor. Pete will tell you how to build the most profitable relationship with your vendors, one that’s good for both of you.
2020 Vision
Speakers: Kerry Herndon, Kerry’s Bromeliad Nursery, Homestead, FL; Dr. Jennifer Dennis, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN; Andy Buyting, Green Village Home & Garden, Fredericton, NB; Sid Raisch, Horticultural Advantage, Wilmington, OH; A.J. Petitti, Petitti Garden Centers, Oakwood Village, OH
Right now, the year 2020 may sound like science fiction, but it’s just 13 short years away and barreling toward us at what seems like terminal velocity. What will garden center retailing look like when 2020 arrives? Will business be booming? Or will it be stagnant and struggling? What might the customers of 2020 want? How will successful garden centers meet their needs? These are just a few of the questions we’ll pose to our panel of outspoken, retail thinkers in this lively, audience-participation session. There’s no better seminar to attend if you’re planning for future success.
Green: It’s Good for Business
Speaker: Ron Coben, Senior Horticulture Buyer, Wal-Mart, Bentonville, AR
No one can deny that when Wal-Mart speaks, the world listens. In this case, Ron Coben, for the first time and exclusively at the Green Profit and GrowerTalks conferences, will share how Wal-Mart is proving that sustainable business practices are good for everyone’s business. Sustainable means making smart and practical decisions about your facilities, your products and your business practices—changes that anyone can make and which will make a positive impact on the world around us. Wal-Mart is changing the business world, and you should be tuned in to what it means to you.
Town Hall Meeting
In this open forum session moderated by Chris Beytes (GrowerTalks) and Bill Calkins (Green Profit), the floor is yours, open for any and all discussion. Chris and Bill will come armed with plenty of topics, on which anyone in attendance can grab the mic and weigh in. Expect lively discussions about current industry issues, as well as plenty of great ideas from your peers. Bring your questions, too, as this will be an excellent opportunity to gain new insights from a diverse group of garden center retailers from across the country.