New roads mean workers facing job losses at Willesborough Wyevale garden centre
Twelve people could lose their jobs when a garden centre is demolished to make way for the new junction 10a. The Willesborough Wyevale site, just off the A20 opposite the Pilgrims Hospice in Ashford, will shut on Sunday. Firm bosses say they have been unable to find a suitable new home for their business, meaning staff at the centre could be out of a job. Spokesman Sarah MacRory said: “We have evaluated alternative locations for our business but have found nothing suitable. “There are 12 people currently employed by Wyevale at the Ashford garden centre, and we have entered into a…
Bonningtons Announces New Website Launch
Published by Phil Every Bonningtons Plastics Ltd, the Nottingham based importer and distributor of home, gardening and leisure goods, has launched a new e-commerce website. Developed to make ordering online much easier and more reliable than ever before, the website provides the most accurate stock information to date, which is particularly essential for the company’s wholesale, retail and e-commerce customers. Since implementing the hourly warehouse-to-website stock feed, the company reports a significant improvement in order fulfilment rates and customer satisfaction. Being fully responsive, the website is mobile friendly, so customers now find it much easier to order online at a…
Squire’s in Long Ditton is Garden Centre of the Year
Squire’s Garden Centres has announced the winners of their annual garden centre awards. With 15 centres across the South East competition was tough, but Squire’s in Long Ditton came out top and won the double – best Garden Centre and best Café Bar of the year. They also won top awards for their Christmas Department and Pets & Aquatics Department. The awards were voted for by the senior management team at Squire’s, and are based on results as well as customer feedback. Anne Deadman, Manager at Squire’s in Long Ditton, received the trophies from Chairman Colin Squire and Deputy Chairman…
Donkey Sanctuary thanks Dunbar Garden Centre visitors for their festive support
Kind-hearted customers have donated more than £1,000 at Dunbar Garden Centre to help donkeys. Visitors to the garden centre handed over £1,252.50 over the festive period, with the money going towards The Scottish Borders Donkey Sanctuary. The charity, near Melrose, aims to provide permanent accommodation for donkeys and mules in need of re-homing, whether as a result of rescue from cruelty or neglect or because the owners could no longer care for them. source
Record breaking growth for Farplants’ Christmas offering
The West Sussex plant wholesaler introduced 11 new ranges this year, which includes for the first time, pot grown Christmas trees. The Farplants Christmas selection combined 2017’s must-have trends with traditional favourites, to provide an extensive collection to entice festive shoppers. Brett Avery, Farplants Sales Ltd Managing Director, is delighted with the response to their new Christmas offering. “Our new and extended collection has resulted in unprecedented sales growth for Christmas. While traditional favourites continue to be essential, contemporary designs with the latest colours and textures have proved very popular. New for 2017, the Nordic woodland range combines the popular…
Notcutts celebrates successful 120th year
Notcutts, the family-owned garden centre business, is celebrating after a successful 120th anniversary year. Throughout 2017, Notcutts marked their 120 years in business and recognised the family that helped make it the success it is today. In February, a blue plaque was unveiled to mark the achievements of horticultural pioneer Roger Crompton Notcutt who founded Notcutts Garden Centres in 1897. The plaque can be seen at the front of The Old House – Roger’s Georgian home of almost 30 years, which is now Notcutts’ offices. This year also saw the launch of the Maud Notcutt collection of interior and garden…
Tong Garden Centre launches staff reward and recognition scheme
The management team at Tong Garden Centre has launched a new reward scheme that recognises employees who go the extra mile to deliver exceptional results. The scheme rewards employees who have gone the extra mile and the monthly prizes include a pin badge and High Street gift vouchers. In addition, two cups – the customer service and the directors’ cups – are awarded for one off contributions to customer service and the business respectively. The initiative started in September and is open to all members of the team, irrespective of job function or seniority. Training Manager, Carrie Mackertich said that…
Dogs met Santa at Squire’s
Squire’s Garden Centres recently held a special “Santa Paws” event for dogs to meet Santa and have their photo taken with him. Dogs of all shapes and sizes came along, and were very happy to ‘paws’ for a photo with Santa while the ‘puparazzi’ (or owners) snapped away! Santa rewarded all good dogs with some tasty treats. It was free for dogs to meet Santa but many people kindly donated money to support Squire’s local charities. Over £500 was raised for the Guide Dog Association, Princess Alice Hospice, Iain Rennie Hospice at Home, the Alzheimer’s Society and Riding for the…
Bunnings Warehouse opens its first store in South Yorkshire
Home improvement and garden retailer Bunnings Warehouse officially opened its doors in Rotherham on 14 December. The new store is located on Parkgate, is over 70,000 square feet offers customers more than 30,000 leading home improvement and garden products from a wide range of global market-leading brands. Other services include everything from paint mixing to key cutting, a garden centre, timber cutting and in-store D.I.Y. Workshops. Bunnings’ team members have already been busy ahead of today’s store opening, helping with projects in the Rotherham area. This included redecorating two bedrooms at Rotherham Hospice for families and installing shelving at Shiloh…
Thieves steal thousands of pounds of stock from garden centre in Warmington
Security camera footage has recorded two thieves stealing high value items from the National Herb Centre last night, Wednesday. The brazen thieves were filmed filling three trolleys worth of items, some of which had a retail value of £250, once between 6.30pm and 6.50pm and for a second time from 7.45pm. Sam Turner, who runs the centre with his brother, Nick, said the theft was discovered this morning, Thursday, when a member of staff arrived at work. He said: “We are very rural here. It looks like the thieves had taken a couple of trolleys and took a few bits…
