Five questions with Ben Langeveld

1. Did you experience a better than average fall 2020 bulb season?

Yes, despite the pandemic and all the difficulties that it brought, the season ended up great! The best part is that all of our garden center customers had the best sell-through in recent memory. In-season reorders came early and fast as they were selling out of fall bulb products and needed to replenish stock. This certainly signified that the season was going to end well with sales up all around for us and our customers.

2. What were the new fall bulb trends that you saw?

We saw increased sales across all categories, but especially with the indoor bulbs, Amaryllis and Paperwhites, which seem to follow the foliage industry’s robust trends. Once the weather got cold and more people were inside, they seemed to appreciate the boost from having live plants in their homes.

3. What was some encouraging feedback from garden centers?

Aside from sharing their excitement of strong sales this past fall, garden centers were also happy to see so many new faces, particularly those of new young gardeners. Garden centers realize that to retain many of these first-time gardeners they may need to provide new ideas and products as well as the necessary information for them to be successful to keep them coming back.

4. What do you expect for fall 2021?

A recent industry survey indicated that most of the roughly 20 million new gardeners conveyed that they had a positive experience and will continue to enjoy the benefits of gardening moving forward. Our spring sales are up significantly and so we expect that to lead into a strong fall season. Our recommendations would be for garden centers to place their orders early to ensure they have a good selection this fall.

5. Will demand exceed supply during fall 2021?

We anticipate the fall bulb crop will be healthy and plentiful in Holland and elsewhere around the world, but worldwide demand is up, not just in the USA, putting a strain on supply. People all around the world want their backyards to look great since it is their new happy place.

For more information, www.netherlandbulb.com