September/October 2019 - 6

EDITOR'S LETTER
Ideas and Inspiration
Garden center tours can be a great way to see both new products and new ideas
that you can take and personalize into your own store. From repurposed racks used
to display products to signage to where you store the shopping carts for customers
to use, there's no shortage of ideas and inspiration. This month, I'm sharing more
photos from the Garden Centers of America Summer Tour that took place in June in
Nashville, Tennessee.
On the tour, we visited nearly a dozen garden centers in and around Music City -
from urban settings to IGCs spanning multiple acres. It was an interesting contrast
of merchants - and equally interesting to see the varied and unique challenges that
each store might face.
For example, Yarrow Acres is a garden boutique located on Main Street in
downtown Franklin, Tennessee. Signage outside the store helps bring customers
inside, where they'll find seasonal items, gifts, tools and locally made items.
On the other end of the spectrum is Long Hollow Gardens & Vineyards in Gallatin,
Tennessee. Situated on 35 sprawling acres, their outdoor sales space spans two acres
and indoor sales space runs 12,000 square feet. The combined garden center and
vineyard includes an on-site event venue for weddings and other occasions. Turn
to page 16 for photos. Also, be sure to check out our online Inspiration Book (lgrmag.
com/inspirationbook) for lots more photos from the tour!
Merchandising Merit
I'm excited about this year's Merchandiser of the Year award, which recognizes
one independent garden center that created a dynamic and creative display in their
store. Flip to page 10 to read about this year's five finalists. We hope that their entries
inspire you with new ideas and marketing techniques that you can customize in your
own store.
I was impressed by the creativity and personality that each of these stores
showed in their entries, both visually through their photos and the story they told. I
especially enjoyed reading about the team efforts involved in creating the displays -
how many departments within the business came together to build something new
and notable. In many cases, the displays were made to help customers understand
the store's products better by giving them the chance to see, touch and feel them -
and perhaps show them in a new and innovative way.
Share Your Story!
What is your store doing to spark creativity and innovation? Have you recently
remodeled or expanded? Kicked off a new event?
Don't hesitate to reach out to me to share your
story!
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EDITORIAL ADVISORY BOARD
Bob Wasson Wasson Nursery
Crystal Cady
John Karsseboom
Pamela Baker
Lisa LeFevre
Stan Pohmer
Christina Salwitz
Sunflower Acres Farm & Garden
Kate Terrell Wallace's Garden Center
The Garden Corner
Baker's Acres Greenhouse
Distinctive Gardens
Pohmer Consulting Group
The Personal Garden Coach
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6 | LAWN & GARDEN RETAILER | SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2019

September/October 2019

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of September/October 2019