Out of the blue

Whats New

winter 2014/2015

These are a few of the over 100 new introductions in our 2015 lineup.
They are from left to right: Chelone Tiny Tortuga, Coreopsis Cruizin Broad Street, Delosperma Wheels of Wonder Hot
Pink, Dianthus Sunflor Luigi, Phlox pan. Early Start Purple, Silene Streaker, Sedum SunSparkler Firecracker.

Experience Oriented
Retailing
Rogers Gardens, in Califormia, is the National
Winner of the 2014 Revolutionary 100 Garden
Centers from Todays Garden Center magazine.
Their focus is on being an experience oriented
retailer. Smiling, friendly and helpful staff,
combined with extraordinary merchandise that
is expertly chosen and inspirationally presented
these are the fundamentals of what Rogers
Gardens does well every day, year round.
More than ever consumers have a choice. Take a
step back from your business and ask yourself
why they would choose you. Its no longer
enough to have products set out in rows. To be
successful at retail you must entertain your
customer. That starts with getting them in the
door. Once there consumers need to be
encouraged to linger or even better, tempted by
your displays. After all, if its worth doing, isnt
it worth doing well?

YOUR PERENNIAL SOURCE

FOR THE BEST BRANDS

How Do You Set Yourself

Apart?
Voodoo Doughnuts, in Portland, Oregon, is a one-location shop
that only accepts cash, and you have to wait 20-30 minutes to get
served!
This doesnt sound like a successful retail formula but the reason
for the slow service is that people line up for their strange
offerenings of Donuts, like the bacon maple bar (pictured below).
They have successfully done something unique and people line
up for the experience.
Most of what we do in retailing is the same as the next retailer
who does what we do. The really successful retailers do the 5%
that is unique.
WHAT IS YOUR VOODOO FACTOR?

John Stanley

Does Greater Selection

Result In Greater Sales?
The answer depends on several factors including the retail footage available
to be used. But when it comes to consumer expectations more is not
necessarily better. Too much choice makes the decision more difficult.
Displays with fewer varieties and more trays of those varieties have greater
impact and are more likely to result in the buy decision.
For extra sell through ask your staff for their favourites. After all, theyre the
ones pushing the product.

Feel Good Facts

for the IGC
Click links to source articles.

3 Out Of 4 Consumers will pay

more for excellent service.
68% of retailers reported an
increase in perennial sales this
year vs 51% in 2013.
Brands that help consumers make
positive environmental, personal
and community impacts will pull
ahead.
58% of consumers plan to grow
edibles in 2015.
78% of Millennials rate reward or
loyalty programs as likely to
influence their purchasing
decision.
Millennials want to garden and
there are more of them than there
are baby boomers. You can find
them on social media.

Downsizing?
There I said it, although I still prefer
to call it miniature gardening. This trend is
showing up everywhere. Whether or not
attracting Fairies is part of it is entirely up to the
imagination of the gardener. Either way it brings
all the joys of gardening to people who might
otherwise not be able to garden. Be sure to set
up a sample using containers you already sell,
and cross merchandise with tiny plants and
accessories. Valleybrook carries a full line of Fairy
Flowers and accessories.
Fairy Gardening!

YOUR PERENNIAL SOURCE

FOR THE BEST BRANDS

Garden Media Group: 2015 Garden Trends Report

SOME KEY IDEAS FOR 2015
Are you connecting with Millennials?
This powerful group of consumers makes up 25% of the population thats more than baby boomers. Surprisingly young
men spend $100.00 more than the average consumer on garden plants and products. Does your product mix and brand
image attract these buyers?
The party is outdoors. Easy, beautiful, portable plants make garden-tainment easy for these super-busy people who
nevertheless want to have a natural, sustainable lifestyle. Think fun planters with Sempervivum. Plant sales are expected to
grow in 2015 be ready to capitalize on this trend.
People are taking back their land; turning lawns into vegetable gardens and reversing city ordinances to re-introduce chicken
coops and clotheslines into the urban landscape signifying a trend to greater sustainability.
Purposefully unstyled spaces evoke a natural beauty. Do up a display garden at your garden centre with native grasses and
perennials to convey this look and help sell your plants.
For a complete copy of the 2015 Garden Trends Report visit Garden Media Group.

Summer is typically a time when plant sales decline compared to the madness that is spring in our
industry. Several garden centres pointed out this year that their strategy to keep the benches
looking full and attractive has paid dividents.
YOUR CUSTOMER DOES NOTICE WHEN THE TABLES ARE EMPTY.
Of course it would make no sense to keep buying as you do in spring, but changing an end cap to
feature seasonal colour will encourage your customer to visit regularly to
see whats new.
To that end Valleybrook is excited to launch Colour Craze. This program is
expected to be available by mid-June 2015. Summer colour crops will be
sold in matching coloured Sabina 20cm pots. More details will be sent out
as they are finalized. Stay tuned.

Anatomy of a
Facebook Post
If youre like 92% of business owners (up from 83% in 2013) youre
looking at social media to build your brand. So youve uploaded a
photo of your business or some other relevant nugget of
information to share with your fan base, what happens next?
Most posts will be seen by your regular following. In the case of
Heritage Perennials a typical post is seen by around 300 people.
But once in a while your message connects with the multitudes
and it can go viral. Take the little picture of Erianthus with the
caption Only 171 Days till Spring! that was posted on September
30, 2014. It was shared 166 times and seen by over 10,000
people in the first two days (more since then). To ensure your
brand gets benefit from these occassional hits make sure you place
your logo somewhere in the image and tag your business in every
post. It will probably not result in direct sales but it does help grow
your brands public profile.
Our post was liked only 91 times on our own page but shared by
241 people and liked 968 times off page. Each one of those shares
however carried the built in link back to our page to help build
brand awareness.

ASK US ABOUT OUR GREAT POSTERS AND OTHER POS MATERIALS

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What Our Customers Are Saying

A great big thank you. It is a pleasure to deal with you & your company. Very professional and I find your service from all ends very,
very refreshing.
Syd Antler, Antler Services, Brantford, ON
Thanks again - loving all the fabulous plant material, getting great customer feedback on how healthy the plants are as well as the excellent plant selection we
have to offer. It makes my job so much easier when plants can sell themselves.
Tina Orlowski, Carmichael Garden Centre, Newmarket, ON

Your drivers are excellent representatives of your company. They are who we see and interact with every week. They are
professional and friendly.
Bob Manning, Bristols Garden Center, Victor, NY
Good Morning! Your perennials are the best! Yeah, Echinaceas are coming on!! Will add to my order on Sunday...
Thanks much.

Kathy Kepler, Saras Garden Center, Brockport, NY

The worst think about Valleybrook is when I have to get plants from another supplier because youre sold out.
They are never as nice as yours.

Linda Zaharuk, New North Greenhouses, Sault Ste Marie, ON

Thank you for a great year! Looking forward to purchasing many great looking perennials in 2015!!
Julie Clancy, Belgian Nursery, Breslau, ON