Garden retailing is concentrating into the hands of fewer but larger companies. For several years large multiple groups have been buying up individual garden centres as well as garden centre chains. Between 2010-14 the top seven garden centre chains have expanded store numbers (mainly by acquisition) by 36 (+16%) from 225 in 2010 to 261 in 2014. The largest specialist chain is Garden Centre Group (140 stores) which has more than four times as many stores as its closest rival, Tesco-owned Dobbies (34 outlets). We are also seeing substantial investments by garden centres in broader ranges, larger outlets, superior in-store catering, more under-cover retail areas and franchised departments. This is helping them create more reasons to shop at the stores, especially important outside the main spring selling season for plants.
Competition from non-specialists is also intensifying. DIY chains, B&Q and Homebase are investing in their ranges and branding within the garden area and remain hugely popular among consumers for garden goods. The supermarkets are no newcomers to garden markets but are also improving their ranges. Significantly, Morrisons and Waitrose are raising their game, injecting ‘pods’ into car parks which sell a range of core garden plants and garden care items. Meanwhile Tesco is using the Dobbies brand to bring more garden goods into Tesco outlets.
Online availability of garden products is huge and there is a wide variety of websites where people can browse and order garden goods via the internet. The garden operators have also joined the e-commerce revolution improving their online assortments and also introducing multi-channel services. Even so, there is scope to grow online sales, particularly for fresh plants.
Definitions
There is a very broad definition of gardening used in this report, covering everything from growing stock, gardening tools and sundries to those consumer products bought for the garden such as furniture, barbecues and sheds. The main categories and their broad definitions break down as follows:
Growing stock – plants, shrubs, trees, bulbs, seeds
Gardening equipment – lawnmowers, other power tools, hand tools, irrigation equipment
Garden buildings – conservatories, sheds, greenhouses
Garden chemicals and growing media – compost, peat, chippings, fertiliser, pesticides, weed killers
Garden furniture and barbecues – furniture, parasols, patio heaters, cushions, barbecues
Enhancement features and sundries – statuary, aggregates, etc.
The report also makes reference to other products stocked and services provided by garden retailers (such as Christmas decorations and cafés) to develop footfall and counteract the inherent problems of seasonality in gardening.
The financial definitions used in the report are:
Sales: gross turnover, including overseas sales, inter-group sales and exports, but excluding VAT and intra-group sales
Operating profit: pre-tax profit plus interest, less non-trading income such as the sale of fixed assets
Pre-tax profit: the net trading profit after deducting all operating costs including depreciation and finance charges, but before deduction of tax, dividends and other appropriations
Operating margin: operating profit as a percentage of sales
Pre-tax margin: pre-tax profit as a percentage of sales.
Crown copyright material is reproduced with the permission of the Controller of HMSO and the Queen’s Printer for Scotland.
Value figures throughout this report are at retail selling prices unless otherwise stated. Market sizes at 2014 prices are calculated using Mintel’s Household Goods deflator.
