Flat Plant Sales Revisited

**"* H* <g*@charter.net>**

Do any of you who are nursery owners or work in garden centers have ways to 
boost sales?  Gene Bush's comments about knowing your local customer and 
hand-picking merchandise started me thinking about what really sells to the 
consumer....and, in turn, how it should shape our writing, radio/TV programs 
and web sites.

Locally (Rockford, IL), the garden centers are expanding to include cafes, 
wine cellars, pet supplies and painted flowering pot plants (eeeh!). 
Village Green set up a Christmas display with little shops from the Dicken's 
era in their main glasshouse.  Each 12 X 12-foot shop sold things like tea 
and coffee, candles, dried flowers, herbs and jams.  These little displays 
were surrounded by 400 Christmas trees, each lit and decorated in a 
different scheme.  Of course, trees, live wreaths, lights, ornaments and 
potted plants were also on display for sale.  It became a destination for 
shoppers locally, and VG did very well with sales.  They plan a tulip 
madness display in early April with more tiny shops, potted bulbs blooming, 
etc.

How do these trends affect we garden writers?  Do we emphasis decorating 
with green goods more?  Do we concentrate on outdoor living spaces, 
including the hard goods?  What say you?
Doreen Howard

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