It is easy to make light of or dismiss a single idea, no matter how small it may seem at the time. What we most likely don't see at the time is the potential impact of that idea.
It could appear just to be a SPARK of an Idea. And, if we are not paying attention, we may miss opportunities.
The answer to that question varies by who you ask, where their Garden Center is located, and of course... the weather!
For a technical answer, we can turn to the Old Farmers Almanac, which says the answer is:
We are just 2 days away from the arrival of the New Year 2025 and in some ways, it has already begun. Just look at Week 1 above!
We have been busy working on a number of changes, tweaks, modifications and leap-forwards in a number of Group programs. Most of these have come through your input and suggestions along with sharp observations by our Service Provider Team.
This time of year, as we greet family and friends and gather for Christmas and Holiday activities, it is the perfect time to count our blessings. Of course, for me, the blessings of faith, our family, our health, our friends, our work, and even our country are on this important list.
Karen and I have served the horticulture industry since 1988, when we first took on the position of managing and leading the Southern Nursery Association in Atlanta. Over the years, the number of amazing people we have met and worked with creates a list that is difficult even to imagine. I have often said:
Were you with us last Thursday for our December GROUPtalk LIVE Session?
We were fortunate to have some of our Centers who received the new Best in Category Awards with us to explore "How are they do it". Tim Quebedeaux began the session by sharing new data on three of the key categories: Annuals - Perennials - Tropicals (be sure to watch the recording for these new data views). And Group Best of Category Award Centers shared ideas on what is working well for them in these categories. There were important details being shared during this 1+ hour session so if you missed it, you can watch the full session recording. It has been added and is now available on the GROUPtalk LIVE Series for 2024 page in The Group WebSystem.
You may remember in the July 8th GROUPtalk; I shared a message titled...
Drilling Down for Higher Performance
In recent weeks, I was asked to share with the Ball Horticulture Team during one of their monthly meetings. My part was virtual with many gathered at the Ball Headquarters in West Chicago, with hundreds more from their locations around the world.
The request was (1) to give a brief overview of what The Group does, (2) to provide highlights of how the 2024 year is shaping up, and (3) any possible glimpse into 2025.
One single word can have so many different meanings, and one of my favorites is the word “bridge.”
In a song, “the bridge” is the musical passage that connects two parts of the composition. There are many wonderful examples of bridges in great music…so much so, that Billy Joel has a remarkable 80’s album named “The Bridge.” A beautiful “bridge” in the song “A Matter of Trust!”
If you have been in The Group Experience for some time now, you know how much we have talked about the dynamic shift needed in the way our Centers connect to your audience. While there were some changes identified and discussed pre-COVID, beginning in the spring of 2020, the need for shifting seemed to get kicked into overdrive.
Let's back up a minute here... Our founder, Robert Hendrickson, was way ahead of the curve, as far back as the beginning of The Group itself. Everyone remembers how much Robert pushed you to "tell your story." He pushed to shift from a promotional message (plants or products with a price) to a connection to an experience. The was the first push The Group had to make an emotional connection.
Past:
A few years back, I wrote and presented to The Garden Center Group about a healthy business being equivalent to a healthy body. The similarities are easy to see and the approach is easy to execute.
When we go to the doctor’s office for our annual check-up (or unfortunately when we are sick), there are a few Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) or body metrics that they measure---Blood Pressure, Height/Weight, Temperature, Pulse and BMI (Body Mass Index). These provide a window into your current condition and are usually compared to your last visit.
A few years ago, a grower client was trying to come up with new ideas to improve and innovate the customer experience within their business model. My suggestion set off a chain reaction of ideas and improvements by the simple (yet somewhat complex) approach—why don’t we ask the customer?
Note: Don’t ask a question if you’re not prepared to hear the answer!
As we see the initial signs of the 2023 economy play themselves out in April’s numbers, and forecast for May, June and July are just around the corner, we should never underestimate the investment in your people.
One of the Centers within The Garden Center Group has committed to a “People First” vision for 2023. Another has committed to “Build the Bench!” in 2023, and both are poised to propel themselves into the future of their businesses by focusing on the soft skills just as much as the hard goods of their retail operation.
It’s that time of year again!
Yup! You guessed it… Baseball is back!
As the dust from The Fall Event settles and the lessons and blessings found in Cincy are applied back home, I thought it important to share the message I delivered on the final day to all of The Garden Center Group members who may not have attended or had to catch a flight home.
Ultimately, the presentation centered around the common threads of excellence found inside of great leaders, athletes, business owners, and garden centers in the world. Three attributes that they all share which place them at the top of their game—the best of the best!
Being connected can be one of the most beneficial assets for each of us. And when you consider how we are connected here through The Group and what a tremendous bank of knowledge and resources we have collectively, the idea of Connections means even more.
When I see the image above and the hand touching the surface of the water and in doing so creating a ripple effect, this is symbolic of one person here in The Group, reaching out and starting a conversation. For instance, by sending a single email through one of our eLists – we'll use GroupEs as an example. This one email, almost instantly, is delivered to over 700 mailboxes! This is when the conversation with connections begins and the knowledge and experience are shared.
Have you ever considered calling your Garden Center... A Nature Store?
I'm not suggesting changing your Center's name, but just in describing what you do, what you offer... A Nature Store.
As the Spring season begins to take shape throughout most of the US, and as IGC’s fill the new and returning roles of retail (hiring or re-hiring), this is the time to reinvest in training and development.
I recently had the chance to present a webinar for one of The Garden Center Group Partners for Success—Proven Winners, titled “Batter Up!” where we compared spring training in baseball to spring training in garden centers. The same “Back to Basics” approach is a wise way to kick start the body and the brain to ready for the season ahead.