Over the past 12 months many commentaries have taken place over the recession and the effect experienced by retailers. Many now believe the worst may be behind us but there is no certainty that we can rely on a resurgence of consumer confidence.
Garden Centres, when compared to town centre retailing have weathered the recession far better, many believing this to be due to the increase of non garden centre products, now sold in garden centres, up by 6% since 2000. Garden centres are increasingly moving towards non garden centre products to enhance their overall position as “Destination Centres”. The overall view for 2010 is relatively positive.
Garden centre operators have been striving to reduce operating costs making the business more efficient with better margins. The focus has shifted from the traditional retired generation, because savings have been hit by interest rates, to the younger over 30’s generation who have been growing more of their own products.
The general view today is that the larger garden centres have performed well over the past 12 months with some reporting turnover growth of up to 20%. The effect of the recession on smaller centres has however been felt with some experiencing a reduction in turnover and profit margins.
This overview is to be compared with the struggling high streets, where a wide range of closures and vacancy rates in the wake of the past 18 months raft of retail collapses most notably Woolworths.
Our experience shows that values of garden centres at the top end of the scale with turnovers of over £2m have held up well and the demand remains strong.
For more information please contact:
Mike Gilbert – 07540 281960, or,
Andrew Hamilton – 07540 348687