INSIGHT: UNDERSTANDING YOUR CUSTOMERS DON’T SEE THINGS AS THEY ARE;


SEE WHAT THEY CAN BECOME! This month the Team at Daley Hub offer help and advice on choosing to stock the right products and solutions to suit your customer base.


have been furiously polished and proudly displayed as the key selling points, hoping to impress. Should the launching company be proud of the hard work and dutifully researched features that stand their product apart from the crowd? Without a doubt, but a misty-eyed admiration of the product may prevent them seeing the bigger picture and asking the right questions. How will it improve the life of their ideal customer? How is it the best solution to a pre-existing issue? Are they clearly conveying the answer to those questions in a sincere way that resonates?


H


It’s good practice to ‘never fall in love with your solution’ as you might miss the bigger picture.


ow many times do you see a product launched where the long list of features takes centre stage? The bells and whistles


A new T-shirt on the fitness scene having customised embroidery and innovative moisture wicking sounds very impressive, but the fact that it is comfortable and stays dry during a workout is surely what will capture attention. If you are a new business trying to get into a saturated market or even an established company launching a product designed to compete with what is already out there… focus on the problem you are solving.


Tech-savvy consumers The post-Covid consumer is a more


tech-savvy consumer, at least in terms of online purchasing. They will often search multiple sites for the best deal before parting with any money. Some have called this a loss of brand loyalty, but maybe that is the reality of the new landscape. Perhaps on the other side of it is the consumer going through a ‘search for relevance.’ A series of lockdowns and isolations forced even the most reluctant to lean into new ideas. The DIY market saw a huge uptick. We all had no choice but to do it ourselves. It also stoked the entrepreneurial spirit of millions and played a huge part in consumers leaving the workforce or working from home.


The outcome has been a more


self-sufficient general public with a keener understanding of the online marketplace, and a driven set of new business starters looking to make up for lost


picture of their problems and a better grasp of the solutions.


Maximising touchpoints If you aren’t saying what they want to hear, you are going to be ignored. Every customer touchpoint is an opportunity to get your voice heard. They need to know that you understand them and hear your promises to improve their lives echoing throughout. They need to see with clarity how you propose to make a difference to them and their lives.


If you and your team find that you have done all this, you’d think the time has come to sit back and appreciate your work? Sadly, no. Once you have a product tailored to the needs of your customer and focused on the way it can positively impact them, it’s time to question how it can be improved.


Learn not to see what you have


created for what it is, but for what it might become. Always.


Reach out if you need support With so many areas to focus on, you may


time. Both have a clearer


be overwhelmed and asking yourself where to start. Daley Hub – supporting leaders, customers and colleagues to drive business forward. Visit www.daleyhub.com for more information and details of how to get in touch.


COMMENT: GCA


A GREAT SPRING START AND LOOKING FORWARD TO GLEE


I


t won’t be long before


we are


all heading off to the NEC near Birmingham for our annual pilgrimage


to the most significant trade show in the industry, namely Glee. For the retailers amongst us, I have found it a great place to take members of your team who are new to the industry, so that they can experience the sheer scale of the sector that they have joined.


Junior members of staff or buying teams are also useful additional members of your show visiting team, as they see things from a slightly different perspective and note things that regular visitors miss.


Then for those who go every year, it’s great to catch up with old


www.diyweek.net


Peter Burks, CEO, Garden Centre Association (GCA)


friends and colleagues, see their tried and trusted suppliers, and hopefully find that little gem that’s going to make them a fortune in the following year.


I also look at the fantastic displays and merchandising you see on so many of the stands. It is definitely something to try and reproduce when you get the stock back at your own centre.


The way things are lit, and


lighting in general is something to take note of. There is an additional bonus of going to Glee this year, as you will be able to see the displays built by the finalists in the Glee/ GCA Talent Store competition. More than 50 candidates started on this programme with just two teams of six making it to the show to build their displays. Twenty- four staff members from 18 garden centres across the country took part in a training day at Millbrook Garden Centre Gravesend in March with expert mentors as part of this year’s Glee Talent Store. The Glee Talent Store, in collaboration with us, aims to nurture and encourage the next up-and-coming stars of horticultural visual merchandising. The day began with presentations on the basics of visual merchandising


from Talent Store mentor, Debbie Flowerday, a Visual Merchandising Consultant who has worked with the likes of Selfridges, Gucci, and John Lewis, followed by trend insights from TrendBible’s Home & Interiors Trend Editor, Wendy Lowe, and some plant inspiration from Michael Perry, aka Mr Plant Geek, a plant expert and leading horticultural influencer. The second half of the programme was more interactive with the students putting their abilities to the test by creating mood boards and shop floor displays. At the end of the day, students were put into four groups and tasked with creating a pop-up store concept and design for either houseplants or outdoor plants.


I can’t wait to see what the two teams when they are selected come up with at the show. See our website news section for more information. The GCA will have a stand at the


show, so please do come along for a chat, we’d love to see you.


For further information, please visit www.gca.org.uk.


MAY 2023 DIY WEEK 7


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