Columbus, Ohio – Independent garden centers must change and they need to do so quickly. This is the view of retail experts John Stanley and Sid Raisch. They believe this because the average sale per customer of a typical American garden center is lower than many countries with developed garden center industries. Furthermore, with the economy emerging from a recession, now is the time to ensure the future success of retailers. “This is a challenge and an opportunity. We can do better as an industry and we can start with an in-depth exploration of our business model,” said Raisch.
Raisch and Stanley are providing a unique opportunity for U.S. garden center retailers to further develop their business and set a new direction for the industry. These two leading industry consultants are joining forces for a two-day New Vision Summit to share global ideas and national developments to help independent retailers determine their response to the future. The event will be hosted by OFA – The Association of Horticulture Professionals.
The New Vision Summit is planned for January 30-31, 2013, a day before the OFA/ANLA Next Level Conference in Nashville, TN. The focused business retreat is limited to 35 leading thinkers and non-competing garden centers from Canada and the United States.
According to John Stanley this is a unique opportunity. “This is not a series of lectures by two consultants. Instead, the aim is for each of the presenters to bring forward their ideas and then allow the group to debate those ideas to come up with new strategies for their business and the industry.”
“Imagine being in an elite group of independent retailers taking the industry into the future,” said Raisch. This is an exciting opportunity when you imagine some of the top thinkers in the industry will be together for the purpose to develop new strategies. OFA and the presenters are hoping this will become a yearly event for the same group of delegates.
Retailers that want to participate in this event should visit the event web site at www.YourNextLevel.org/NVF.
About the organization: OFA – The Association of Horticulture Professionals is the leading horticulture educational association in the United States. It is a not-for-profit, all-industry organization and its core purpose and mission is “to support and advance professional horticulture.” Industry segments served include: garden centers, greenhouses, nurseries, retail and wholesale florists, and interior plantscapers. OFA is especially known for its outstanding publications and its annual OFA Short Course, U.S. horticulture’s premier convention and marketplace. The OFA Short Course was named the 150th largest trade show in the United States by the Trade Show News Network. The next Short Course will take place on July 13-16, 2013 in Columbus, OH.
Source: OFA – The Association of Horticulture Professionals