PEOPLE NEWS ON THE MOVE...
Centurion makes new appointment Centurion Europe has developed its sales team with the internal promotion of Leo Bryant to head of sales. The
promotion of Mr Bryant will help the
business meet growing demand for its products and services. He will lead a sales team dedicated to serving the company’s growing customer base and Ceturion says it is confident his knowledge of managing national & key accounts alongside a busy national sales force will ensure success.
SBM Life Science welcomes new head of business
SBM Life Science LTD has appointed Nick Walton as the new head of business for the UK and Ireland. Having
previously
held senior positions at Briers, Strata and the Garden Leisure Group, Mr Walton joins SBM with over 15 years’ experience within the industry. “I am excited to be joining SBM Life Science at this point of our journey,” commented Nick Walton.
RDT appoints first- ever fundraising manager
The Rainy Day Trust has brought Sarah Ravenscroft on board in the newly-created role in order to help the charity grow and deliver support to those in
need within the home improvement sector. Ms Ravenscroft has a strong background in the charity sector, having worked for a regional building preservation trust and cancer charity before leaving to work freelance as a fundraiser, project manager and event organiser.
10 minutes with... Michael Cole
GCA Inspector and Ruxley Rose Judge
What is your background in the industry? With the exception of a very short spell working as a trainee chef when I
first left school, I have spent my
entire working life working in the garden centre industry.
I joined Notcutts garden centre in
St.Albans in 1978, when the Notcutts group comprised of just five garden centres. I worked in the plant sales area for six years. Within that time I was promoted to become plant sales area
supervisor at
St.Albans, and
fairly soon after, I was promoted into the role of garden centre manager at Peterborough. After that, I was fortunate to rise through the business, ultimately, becoming a main board director and, in the last few years of my career at Notcutts I was the retail property director, which meant I was heavily involved in the design of new and refurbished garden centres, which was extremely satisfying.
What could garden retailers be doing better? Garden centres are doing a lot right, and, in a world of fast-changing retail, garden centres benefit from being a true destination. Visiting a garden centre is an experience that just cannot be replaced online. The joy of walking into a plant sales area full of spring stock or the wonder of walking into a fantastic Christmas display is something that can only ever be experienced in person. To do even better, garden centres need to continue to develop their unique quality as an experiential retail destination. Events, talks and family-focused entertainment all need to stand alongside truly outstanding garden centre retailing standards. Garden centres need to ‘wow’ their visitors, so eye-catching, memorable, yet still commercial displays need to be evident through the centre.
Dunlop makes significant investment to team Dunlop has more than doubled its sales team from five to 12, whilst also creating a new training and technical support team of five. Joining the sales team as area sales managers
are; Lewis Lupton (Northern England and Scottish Borders), Martin Chappell (Staffordshire, North West, North Wales), John Hunter (Central and Northern Scotland),Geoff Cavell (East Midlands), Keiron Birch (West Midlands and Wales), Andy Oates (London) and Nick Harman (Hants, Surrey and Berkshire). Also joining is Simon Harding as regional sales manager for East Anglia. Read the full story online at
www.diyweek.net
6 DIY WEEK 08 FEBRUARY 2019
What does your role entail as GCA inspector? The role requires each of the four GCA inspectors to visit around 40-50 garden centres in their allocated area and conduct a thorough inspection of the entire centre – from the roadside, through to the tills and exit – but looking also at the garden centre environment attitude.
Alongside the actual inspection, telephone and website surveys are undertaken prior to inspection. So, there is work to
undertake before
to the inspection, about half a day for the inspection itself and then the preparation of the final report after the
inspection. At the end of the inspection a de-brief session is given to members of the team. The rewarding element for me is seeing a garden centre on a bright, sunny, spring day, with a car park full, lots of happy customers and staff rushing around, working hard but still smiling. For me, any visit to a garden centre is rewarding. However, it is also good to be part of a process, which through the sharing of ideas, can mean that you are part of helping the industry improve and grow.
The challenging elements are the fact
that there is a lot of ground to cover in a fairly short window (mid-March to mid- June), so there is a lot of driving and a fair few nights away from home.
What motivates you? So many of my interests interweave with garden centres and my role as a GCA inspector. I love plants, gardens, gardening, wildlife and the natural world. So much of my motivation is drawn from the fact that I am working in an industry that represents my passions in life, it is so much more than just a job.
How has the industry changed since you joined? Garden centres in the late 70s were very much first-generation centres.
They did not have the incredible diversity of products available that we have now. Standards of display and visual merchandising were much more basic then and have developed tremendously. Gardens centres
have
into sophisticated, often purpose built destinations with retail standards to match or in some cases beat the best of UK retailers. However, the key element of a garden centre remains plants. Whilst department such as Christmas, giftware & restaurants have taken an increasingly large share of the pie, plants still represent the core of a garden centre; not least because of the large footprint they occupy on site. So, the best of the past
remains with us, with some
fantastic additional attractions and departments added on.
What is the best piece of advice you’ve ever been given? I’m not sure if it is a single piece of advice, more the fact that a number of people over the years (starting with my Mum!), have encouraged my love of plants and gardens and for that I will be forever grateful. The peace, tranquility and beauty of a garden make them my favourite places in the world.
www.diyweek.net
matured
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