Spring Zing

I hope you will be able to read this before spring hits the fan, but I also know that at this time of year, a time to catch up on reading probably means a slow or wet day!

The good news is that, according to the press, the public is starting to spend in retail again. Retailers reported rises in sales for the first few months of the year, when compared to 2009, which if you remember was just awful.

As always, the next few weeks will set the scene for the rest of 2010. With the recession crippling the “lifestyle and outdoor living” categories, the garden center industry has reverted back to being a 10-week business. So, how you prepare with regards to your team, your training, your merchandising and the shopping experience from April to June will make or break the whole year’s profitability. Here are some practical ideas designed to help.

Product knowledge.
This spring is going to be an interesting test of the public’s attitude to their experience last year with “Grow Your Own” products. Did they succeed in producing luscious tomatoes, peppers and basil? Did they indeed dig their own spuds for the first time in their lives? Or did they shake their heads and hit the grocery store, figuring that each home-grown tomato cost $12.26 each?

I think we have one, maybe two, more years in the “Grow Your Own” initiative, so we had better get it right this time, because most garden centers missed out last year.

So, have you been running product-knowledge (PK) training sessions from vendors and your own in-house talent since February? You almost can’t overdo PK training. The goal is not to create a team of horticultural experts, but to give everyone the confidence to look up, make eye contact with the customer and at least say “Hi!” Many new/young or insecure employees keep busy and avoid eye contact, not because they’re rude, but because they are frightened of being asked something they can’t answer. Even just basic “answers to the most-likely questions this week” will give team members the confidence to approach and engage.

Merchandising.
Although it is a great long-term goal to have a team that understands traffic flow, use of space, hot spots, Gross Margin Return on Inventory and so on, the next few weeks are really about everyone knowing how NOT to wreck a merchandising plan. Who receives the product when the buyer or manager is away? Do the unloaders know what NOT to put on end caps? Who is “hot-spot champion” in each department? Could a merchandising leadership team operate across departmental barriers?

The next few weeks for most consumers are dedicated to finding those known essentials such as vegetable plants, lawn food, hanging baskets, gloves and so on. In their 25 minutes on-site they may pass 10,000 SKUs to find the 10 they came for, so those essentials need to be easy to see and grab.

Play to consumers’ expectations, such as strong, difficult-to-miss displays of the essentials for the next few weeks, with minimal education and maximum “what I need this week” information. Later is the time for inspirational display building; now it’s about not messing up the merchandising plan.

The shopping experience.
This is one aspect of spring prep that many owners and managers find hard to do. For one thing it is a very subjective topic, and when it comes to self-critique, many of us find it difficult. But shoppers quickly fix an opinion about the place, the people and the product that is often hard and expensive to change.

So despite trucks rolling in, customers hanging on the gate and employees walking around looking for a job, company leaders must put themselves through a little Think Like Customer self-analysis with regard to all things influencing the experience.

For instance, are your messages to the customer consistent with your look, style, level of facility upkeep? Do you sell weed killer but have lots of weeds in the beds? Does your team’s style and behavior reflect your brand image? Does the long line at checkout negate the good work done by the buyers and merchandisers? Does the bathroom décor and cleanliness match the spiffy Web site?

The battle is about to start – or is already underway – for the hearts, minds and credit cards of the American garden and home consumer. This battle can be intense and challenging with seriously good or bad outcomes.

Most garden centers will make more money in the next seven weeks than in the subsequent seven months. In such a situation, one more glib phrase springs to mind: Plan it, Janet – Check!

Contributing editor Ian Baldwin’s garden center strategies appear every other month. For more useful – and profitable – ideas from Ian, check out his new sales motivation training program called “T.L.C … Think Like Customers.” The DVD and interactive training workbook are available at www.ianbaldwin.com.

Team prep

• Define needs, hours, positions open, dollars available.
• Contact returning employees; promote job fair; complete interviews.
• Keep 15 to 20 percent of labor hours uncommitted. Use this cushion to hire more people or extend hours if spring sales are strong—or keep funds in the bank if sales are flat.
• Create a team that can relate to different demographic groups.
• Complete orientation plan.
• Implement buddy system; carefully select and train mentors.
• Schedule and organize 10-minute trainings 3-4 times a week.
• Share short notes on common but critical procedures (“How to water” or “How to load a car trunk”) during 10-minute trainings.
• Create checklists of “essential things to do every day” for each department.
• Place notice on back of lunchroom door: “When you go through this door, it’s showtime!”

Brand- experience

• Install vendor signs.
• Post the “Featured Items” mentioned in your ads and discuss these products in your daily meeting.
• Review and troubleshoot loyalty club procedures.
• Plant a “Row For The Hungry” to support local food banks.
• Issue press releases and schedule follow up.
• Organize, post and distribute seminar dates.
• Plan open house event.
• Refresh parking lot stripes, front landscape to create elicit a “Wow!” from customers.
• Walk site with customer’s eyes.