Sandra Doran explains how Irish garden retailers are uniting under the direction of Retail Excellence Ireland (REI) to deliver world-class standards
REI was approached last year by some of their members in the industry, with a view to setting up a new garden group that would assist and grow the garden centre industry as a whole in Ireland. With the liquidation of the GCAI, there was a definite need for REI to represent and be the voice of the industry. We recognised that we needed to include all garden centre operators as well as the multiples and co-ops and to transfer and impart REI knowledge and experience of retail in general, bringing garden centre retailers to the next level.
We were delighted to be involved with the first full day event which took place on 10 July in Jones Garden Centre and the Carnegie Court Hotel in Swords. Garden centres from all over the country came together to discuss and explore ideas about how we can “Get Ireland Growing”.
REI are passionate about retail and are looking forward to applying their knowledge and understanding of retail to the Garden Centre sector. REI are a not for profit organisation representing over 11,500 individual store members across all sectors including pharmacy, telecommunications, electronics, e-commerce, garden and food.
There are five pillars to what REI do, which include learning – through conferences, seminars and training programmes, representation at government level and with other relevant industry stakeholders, the REI Industry Awards (which take place every November), research and market intelligence and finally, we provide a free HR service to all members.
REI provides a service that supports the retail industry at government level and was instrumental last year with the retention of the 9% VAT rate. We lobbied hard on other issues including upwards only rent, the introduction of postcodes and were key to the establishment of a government interdepartmental retail forum.
Together with Sean Murphy, Deputy CEO, REI, the REI Garden Group will lobby the Department of Agriculture, Food & the Marine on pertinent issues relating to the sector including VAT anomalies on certain products, illegal traders and controls surrounding the sale of pesticides.
In addition, REI are working to secure more manageable acquiring rates for our members, with our partners Barclaycard and PaymentPlus.
Together with the Garden Group committee chaired by Fergal Doyle (Arboretum) and including Carl Jones (Jones Garden Centre), Elaine Warren (Springmount), Micheal Devitt, (Newlands Garden Centre), Eoin Reid (Fernhill) and Mary Frances (Ardcarne), John O’Carroll (Dairygold), James Byrne (Glanbia) and Anne Higgins (Woodies DIY), REI will endeavor to bring the sector into the limelight and make gardening young, fun and trendy.
The group functions to support the entire garden centre sector through garden centre specific learning events, representation to important stakeholders in the industry including the Department of Agriculture and Bord Bia and through reporting of garden centre sales trends and category performance trends. On the agenda for 2015 is a UK case study tour in conjunction with the HTA, a full day sector specific learning event, with keynote speakers and garden content built into the largest conference of the year – the Retail Retreat in May.
What is clear, is that there is a need for the sector to be marketed on a national level and specifically, on television. Ireland needs a face of gardening, a champion of the sector who will make gardening sexy and drive footfall in our garden centres around the country. It is the role of the REI Garden Group to lobby to the Department of Agriculture, Food & the Marine, to allocate a budget for this important initiative and to make it happen.
The REI Garden Group is delighted to join the Congress on 12 August with our members and look forward to an inspirational day out.
It is our intention to grow the Garden Group to include ever more garden centres. If you are interested in joining, please contact Sandra at sandra@retailexcellence.ie or by phoning 065 684 69274. ✽
 SANDRA DORAN,Retail Excellence Ireland. Offices: Ennis & Dublin, Ireland T: 00 353 65 6846927, |
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