The US of A

The US garden market never fails to interest me, since it appears to be both ahead and behind the UK and European markets at the same time. Spending a couple of days at the annual NHS show in Vegas was interesting enough, but even more so was visiting numerous diverse retail outlets in California. We picked up several good tips for product and packaging ideas and it’s always exciting to see how overseas retailers are achieving success in this sector. The plant offering in California is understandably different from a classic UK selection, but beyond that there was a lot of overlap, with a twist! Outdoor living is inevitably a big part of the offer, although most garden centres still focus primarily on plants and have less space for other products, along with very few cafes – unsurprisingly perhaps with a Starbucks on every street corner.