Re: Retail marketing strategy

**Lynn Jenkins j*@iquest.net**

Yes, I've noticed that the big boxes and discounters are lacking this
season.  In my Wisconsin town of 60,000, the local Home Depot has cut back
their live plants 50 percent from previous years.  I live about 95 miles
from the Chicago area and often shop their stores for better variety.  I'm
not seeing variety there, either, this season. Lowes in Rockford, IL used
have wonderful selections--plants not seen elsewhere such as vanilla
orchids.  All they have this season are the same stuff available at
Wal-mart.

Silver Tidal Wave petunia, a 2002 AAS winner, is not available in my region
as a live plant. I trialed this in 2001, as an AAS gardener, and wrote about
it extensively in many magazines, lectured about it at garden shows, showed
slides of it and touted it to anyone who would listen.  The plant is that
spectacular.  You cannot find Silver Tidal Wave in any garden center
throughout the Chicago, Milwaukee and Madison, WI areas.  Purple Majesty
ornamental millet, a 2003 AAS winner, is even better. I have yet to find
that plant anywhere.  The peculiar thing is that both plants are Ball Seed
creations.  Ball is headquartered in West Chicago.

My best guess is that the buying public is not spending, and stores are not
stocking.  Also, Home Depot, K-mart and Frank's Nursery (the big Midwest
chain) have financial problems and supplier problems due to cash flow
issues.
Doreen Howard

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