A new vision for retail

AmericanHort’s continued investment in the industry

AmericanHort had two exciting announcements for Cultivate’14 attendees. The first is that it will make a significant donation to support the Horticultural Research Institute (HRI), the association’s research affiliate. AmericanHort has committed $50,000 and will match up to another $50,000 in gifts from other sources, for a total of $100,000.

“The Horticultural Research Institute is one of the most important organizations in our industry and is our partner in supporting the development of horticulture and all of our businesses,” says Mark Foertmeyer, AmericanHort’s Chairman of the Board. “It’s important that our industry has a strong research-focused organization so we are proud to contribute to the endowment.”

The Horticultural Research Institute plans to award $400,000 in financial support in the 2014 fiscal year for 16 new projects that investigate solutions in the areas of marketing, business, horticultural production, pest management and environmental stewardship. HRI also distributed more than $20,000 in scholarships to college students this year.

“An industry is advanced by the support of its community participants. I hope this pledge will nudge others to get involved by supporting the organizations that are supporting them,” says Michael V. Geary, CAE, AmericanHort’s President and Chief Executive Officer. Matching contributions or multi-year pledges can be made online at www.HRIresearch.org or by contacting the Horticultural Research Institute at 202-789-2900.

AmericanHort’s investment isn’t just monetary. The organization’s second piece of exciting news was the announcement of a joint initiative with HRI and the MindMarket program of the Columbus College of Art and Design (CCAD), the oldest design college in the U.S. A year-long project that kicked off at Cultivate’14, the goal is to gain new perspectives and business models in order to effectively redesign the industry to better respond to changing demographics and their respective needs.

“We recommended taking a design approach to affect the garden customer experience in new ways for a new generation of consumers,” says Jack Storey, Director of CCAD MindMarket. “We will bring together our multi-disciplinary campus and more than 1,000 students — most of them part of the millennial generation — to help find solutions for the future of the horticulture industry.”

Foertmeyer said during Sunday’s keynote session that they want to “create a similar experience for consumers as Starbucks has done for coffee.” Twenty years ago, no one would pay a premium for coffee, but now customers are willing to pay $4 or $5 for the fancy cup of joe. What Foertmeyer wants to see is a “Starbuckian Transformation” in the industry, he says. It’s not just about designing attractive retail stores. “We are taking a holistic approach to better understand and recommend how in the future we can bring more value to our customers and engage them in purchasing more products and services,” he says. Non-design aspects to be covered include customer service, product and service offerings, marketing and other business management topics.
 

By the numbers

— Information provided by AmericanHort with contributions from Garden Center editors Karen Varga and Michelle Simakis.

Photos By Karen E. Varga

Cultivate’14 Multimedia Coverage
To see video coverage of Cultivate’14, visit gardencentermag.com/media

Save the date for Cultivate’15, held in Columbus, Ohio, on July 11-15, 2015!