Research for ‘The Love the Plot You’ve Got’ initiative rolled out last year found 30-45year olds wanted a nice outdoor space to relax in but they didn’t want all the hard work. They would love to have plants but they hadn’t a clue which ones to choose.

Two to three years ago it was reported one in seven home owners in the UK said the garden had added to the value of their home. Planting easy care shrubs, a few nice flowering pots and having a tidy lawn is a reasonably cheap way to make your property more saleable

At the same time DIY chain Mitre 10 in New Zealand reported a survey of their customer’s outdoor living preferences. The largest segment of respondents were 36 – 45 years. 86% were born in New Zealand, 8% born in Europe.

Nearly 57% still like the idea of the traditional ‘quarter-acre paradise’ – a large plot with a stand-alone house. 39% have purposely made a property or renovation decision to help them avoid having to do maintenance on their outdoor living spaces

Weeding was overwhelmingly the least favourite outdoor and gardening activity but planting was a favourite gardening activity by 33% of respondents.

On the one hand, we all hear the value of a home is enhanced by a garden and a pleasant outdoor living space.

On the other hand, “the under 50” property owners don’t like the perception of hard work. Their knowledge of how to achieve the outdoor living space of their dreams is often limited and they feel the results of their attempts sometimes don't have the classiness they would like.

It seems to me garden retailers are missing an opportunity. We say retailers are always thinking of ways to drive sales but how often do you communicate the REAL value of the live product you sell?

Do you sell the plant in the pot rather than the result? What about Value for Money, value to property, benefit to well-being or pleasure?

How often do you present gardening as easy and relaxing?

How often do you use landscaping techniques to show customers it’s easy to achieve a garden that looks good year round? Landscapers plant in blocks of three’s, five’s, sevens and more to create unity, simplicity and balance in a garden.

Every garden centre should offer multi-buys but by being smart and employing some of these other techniques you could lift your average sale significantly.

All you have to do is SHOW AND TELL. 

Show through simple concepts, end use layout and tell through signage

• time poor people who want a visually interesting garden
• screening for privacy
• a filter for wind and noise
• a habitat for wildlife
• winter interest and structure
• colour in the garden, often with spectacular flowers
• discouraging intruders if they are thorny or spiny
   

If we showed customers simple concepts using landscaping techniques and our signs
communicated real benefits we could sell multiples of most shrubs rather than allowing a customer to go away with one.
Shrubs give years of pleasure for the price of a bottle of wine.

To show how easy it can be or “’we can do it for you”. It only takes:

a page of from a home and garden magazine showing classic easy care design
or a simple concept using a door, pots and a few plants for a front entrance; 
or a few pavers, a café setting, stunning pots and clipped edging for a patio
or a tree fern or two, lush subtropicals, a water feature, ornaments and lounger to think of Bali
or laying out part of your garden centre by end use
or creating a display garden and/or spectacular roadside planting to show how to create a garden with unity and balance

As an industry we don’t do any of this enough!