October 2022 - 7

INDUSTRY NEWS
GPN WINS EDDIE AWARD FOR BEST
FULL ISSUE
GPN and its parent company, Great American
Media Services, won two awards and received four
honorable mentions during the 2022 Folio: Eddie &
Ozzie awards ceremony on Sept. 13. The awards
are the publishing industry's most prestigious and
coveted honor for editorial and design excellence.
There were more than 1,400 entries from across
the industry.
Great American Media Services' winning entries
included:
* Eddie, Best Full Issue, Agriculture/Farming:
Greenhouse Product News May 2022
* Ozzie, Supplemental B2B, Gift Shop Plus:
Celebrations and Occasions 2021
* Honorable Mention, Data Visualization, B2B:
Greenhouse Product News: Chat Room
* Honorable Mention, Best Full Issue, Retail:
Lawn & Garden Retailer March 2022
* Honorable Mention, Magazine Launch, B2B:
National Nut Grower
WINNER
* Honorable Mention, Supplemental, Custom/
Content Marketing: Coach & Athletic Director
Hudl Tech Guide
" These recognitions are the result of dedication,
hard work and the industry expertise of our
talented team members, " said CEO Matt McCallum.
" I am proud of our team, and we are all proud to
be listed among the best in the industry. "
Learn more about Great American Media
Services at www.greatamericanmediaservices.com.
COSTA FARMS PIVOTS TO CONSUMER MARKETING
Costa Farms is shifting its communication strategy to an increased focus
on indoor and outdoor gardeners. As a part of this strategy, the company
has launched a branding effort and
consumer marketing campaign and is
doubling down on efforts to educate
and engage with the end consumer.
This shift in strategy is
repositioning the company from its
current role as a wholesale grower of
houseplants, tropicals, annuals and
perennials to consumer plant brand. Costa Farms says its growth - from
30 acres to over 5,000 - over the last 60 years has allowed it to build a
structure that allows it to directly meet the needs of home gardeners across
the country.
" We've been focused on growing plants that meet the needs of retailers
by appealing to end consumers, " says Joche Smith, Costa Farms CEO. " With
changing demographics and the renewed enthusiasm with gardening -
particularly indoor gardening post COVID-19 - we see more consumers
than ever want to directly communicate with the team that grew their plants.
We're embracing this opportunity to build relationships with the plant
community and putting more effort into connecting with new gardeners. "
Costa Farms started by launching a direct-to-consumer site (shop.
costafarms.com). This online plant shop gives consumers the opportunity
to enjoy plants shipped directly from the farm to increase accessibility
to everyone. The company's plants are also available through brick-andmortar
retail channels like Lowe's, The Home Depot and Walmart.
Costa Farms has invested into building its direct-to-consumer business.
This includes research and development, proprietary software, and opening
an ecommerce facility with the potential to ship up to 30,000 plants per day.
In addition to the website and its social media channels, Costa Farms has
developed an educational and experiential platform called Plant Rx. Costa
Farms is working to reach indoor and outdoor gardeners in their preferred
way, utilizing social media platform TikTok to produce bite-size growing tips
to augment a longer-form podcast.
HANDPICKED FOR YOU CHOOSES 2023 SELECTIONS
Handpicked for You
has announced the
class of 2023 plant
selections receiving the
Trustmark certification.
This program follows a
rigorous selection process
involving trials at regional
independent grower
locations and feedback
from partner independent
garden centers. The newly
certified plants will be
available from SynRG
partner growers for
Spring 2023.
* Redbud 'Flame
Thrower' (Cercis
canadensis
'NC2016-2'
PP31,260 )
* Bush Honeysuckle
'Nightglow'
(Diervilla splendens
'El Madrigal'
PP28,060,
CPBR5,626)
* Bloomin' Easy
Hydrangea
'Starfield'
(Hydrangea
macrophylla
'Hortmafarfa'
PP32,164)
Redbud 'Flame Thrower'
GREENHOUSE PRODUCT NEWS 7
http://www.greatamericanmediaservices.com http://www.costafarms.com
October 2022

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of October 2022
