Over the years we’ve carried several garden totes, most of which we liked and thought were well done…and we’ve seen many more that we just didn’t think were useful enough to carry.  Much to our dismay, the vendor of nearly every tote we’ve tried has either stopped making them or gone out of business altogether.  Word around the office is that we have the proverbial ‘kiss of death’ when it comes to garden totes…once we decide to carry it, its days are numbered!

Since we’ve never really been THRILLED with any tote we’ve carried, this year we decided to stop looking and instead have concluded that we can make our OWN tote that will have all the features we want it to have and none of the features we think are useless.  We would LOVE your input on the matter and have crafted a survey for our current customers to complete…and all of you that take some of your precious time to do so will be entered into our drawing for a FREE pair of Joyce Chen Unlimited Scissors! 

You will need to fill in your name, your phone number AND your DBS account number in order to complete the survey and enter the drawing.  If you don’t have your account number, you can find it on any invoice.  If you still can’t find it, call us toll free 888-712-3239 and we’ll be happy to look it up for you.

Make  your voice heard…and help us create a GREAT new product!

CLICK HERE to take the survey.

We always promote our items as great gifts for Mother’s Day…and this year it occurred to us…what about DAD?  There are plenty of men out there who garden…heck, our owner Lynne’s husband has one of the greenest thumbs we’ve ever seen.  He’s a dad, and the kids and Lynne invariably gift him with something garden related at this time of year.  So we thought we’d share what we think are items that would be PERFECT for the gardening dad on anyone’s list!

• 894A05 Garden Kneeler Seat…ideal for anyone with knee or back issues.
• 442B06 Felco #2 Pruner…it’s classic, it’s Swiss, and sized for the fellas.
• 421B06 Felco Pruning Saw…this will cut darn near anything!
• 650A12 Cobra Head Weeder…Lynne’s husband loves this tool.
• 849A06 Hori Hori Digging Tool…use for cutting, scraping, digging and more. 
• 605A12 Bucket Bagger Plus…fits on a 5 gallon pail, which we’ve noticed lots of men schelp around in the garden anyhow.  This way he can bring stuff with him and not carry a ‘tote’.
• 855A05 Bos Bag…for weeds and garden rubbish, and anything else that needs carrying.
• 617A12 Bug Baffler Headnet…it even fits over a hat and will keep the nasty bugs at bay.
• 729B12 Bionic Gardening Gloves for Men…amazing gloves that he won’t be embarrassed to wear.

There you have it…lots of choices to offer your customers that will make the Gardening Guys delighted when they open that gift on Father’s Day.  Because in all seriousness…does he really need another mug that says ‘World’s Greatest Dad’ or (oh the horror!) ANOTHER TIE?!?

Mother’s Day is fast approaching…May 10th is less than a month away!  While we’re happy to ship right down to the wire, we think it’s a great idea to get things ordered and shipped out ASAP so your customers have lots of choices that will please even the most persnickety Mom on their list. 

Folks always ask, so below you’ll find our list of ‘must haves’ for Moms…our most popular sellers, plus the things we would love to receive.  Wink wink, nudge nudge.

• TOOLS:  Joyce Chen Unlimited Scissors, Precision Pocket Secateur, Felco Pruners, Trake, Hori Hori, Radius Tools
• APPAREL:  Foxgloves, Atlas Nitrile Touch Gloves, Bib/Waist Apron, Cool Downz Neck Wraps
• GEAR:  Bug Off Oil, Garden Kneeler Seat, Garden Seat Bags, Gardener’s Color Wheel
• FLOWER ARRANGING: Pin Cups, Glass Flower Frog, Posy Pins, Floral Seven/Illusion
• INDOOR GARDENING: Stainless Steel Watering Can, Houseplant Snips
• ECO-FRIENDLY:Eco Spout, Twist N Spout, Soda Bottle Bird Feeder, EcoTowl

We’ve got them all in stock, ready to ship…and our minimum is only $50, which makes reordering SO easy! 

Okay, here’s the disclaimer…we advertise in GCP&S.

Last fall (September, I think) we found out that Branch Smith had sold GCP&S to GIE Media.  We were saddened when a few folks we had grown to love working with were let go during the transition, but our favorite editor Yale Youngblood was still on board, so we had HOPE.

When reviewing the media kits for 2009, we learned that things were a’changin at GCP&S…new format (tabloid, which I personally don’t care for), new style, new focus and increased circulation.  We decided to give it a go, with our first ad being in the January edition.  I had my doubts, I’ve got to say.  It all sounded chaotic to me and I couldn’t really visualize what they were attempting to do.

Well, folks…I started getting the calls more than a week ago, and I got my copy on Friday…and I have never been so PLEASANTLY SURPRISED!

Though it’s a tabloid, it’s WONDERFUL.  Why?  For the first time, Garden Center Products & Supplies is all about…PRODUCTS AND SUPPLIES.  That’s right…it’s like looking through a multi-vendor catalog of must-have items.  The tabloid format allows for MUCH larger photos, ads and more (yes, it pains me to admit that tabloid can be useful) and the layout is design perfection.  Things just POP off the page. 

In retrospect, what they’ve done is a no-brainer…take product, showcase it…but in all honesty, I’ve never seen it done so well before.  Other publications have SECTIONS dedicated to product, but the publication itself is also peppered with articles.  Which is fine, but when I’m looking for new product, pretty much all I want so see is…NEW PRODUCT!  The simplicity is divine!  And did I mention all the calls we’ve been getting?  The calls?  More calls than we’ve gotten on an ad in a really long time?  So, it’s WORKING!

I’ll stop gushing now…but you should check it out for sure.  Anyone in search of something fresh to add to their line will be enthralled.  Click the link and get your own copy…because I’m not parting with mine.  

http://www.greenbeampro.com/content/view/504/381/

I headed to Atlanta earlier this month with no small amount of apprehension, since the media has been pelting us with doom & gloom.  By the time the show closed on the first day, I was feeling pretty darn good – we wrote a nice number of orders.  By the time the show closed on Tuesday I was feeling giddy… it was our 2nd best Atlanta show ever.  I’m still somewhat surprised, but think I’ve realized why.

We sell a lot of inexpensive, useful items.  We’ve always stayed away from the ‘fluff’ and the decorative and kept with the basics.  These are the items that will continue to sell even when people are being careful with what they spend.

We also have the low $50.00 minimum order.  We don’t have minimums on the individual items either, so it’s easy to try new things.  Honestly, it’s rare for us to write a $50.00 order, but we don’t scare new customers off with a high minimum.

I don’t know if those are the reasons we had a great show, but whatever the reason, I’m certainly glad.  I’m heading off to the NY Intl. Gift Fair this week, and hope it will be as successful.  My mom will be helping me this year – booth #7145 – come see us!

I was so saddened to read today that Lexington Gardens in Farmington,  CT is going out of business… another casualty of neighboring big box stores.  They weren’t one of our biggest customers, but they ordered from us regularly for many years.  I remember meeting Craig back at the ERNA show at the Concord many years ago  (many, many years ago), and I enjoyed visiting with him at lots of shows since then.  He is truly a nice guy and I wish him the best in whatever he does next. 

Home gardens with fresh herbs were all the rage not so long ago, so folks could make use of their commercial style kitchens properly and entertain their friends…things sure have changed, eh? 

Traditionally, garden items do well during economic downturns…for which we are all thankfull.  This go round, with food prices at an record highs, many consumers are digging in the dirt for the first time in a long time or for the first time, period.  There was a great little bit on Good Morning America over the weekend touting how consumers can save money by growing their own produce, to the tune of $200 plus a month.  And not only are individuals getting on the grow your own bandwagon, communities are as well.  Some places around the country are renting out plots of public land seasonally for apartment dwellers to become micro farmers.

 Yeah, that’s great Amy…but what does this have to do with me and my store?

EVERYTHING!  What an opportunity for promotion you have here…’tired of high costs? We’ve got the stuff you need to grow your own!’…that sort of thing.  It’s good for the pocketbook, good for the environment, and all goods involved aren’t very expensive.  Personally, I’m always looking in the under $30 range for any item and I think most other folks are too.  There isn’t much disposable income out there these days, so you need to focus VERY carefully on showing your customers how their purchase will actually SAVE them money in the long run.  Think of all the ways you can use this trend to actually increase your sales…WOW!

And, of course, we have all the products the budding backyard growers will be looking for…all shipped from one location to further increase your margin.  Questions?  Need help picking out items?  Call us toll free, 888-712-3239.  We love to talk about our line!