| Remove the Punnet from the Game
The seedling punnet or seedling container has been an integral part of the Garden Centre and nursery production over the last few years. Seedling trays of vegetables or flowering plants have been the purpose lines in the retail plant area and often used as a gauge to the overall success of the plant sales area. The category is going through major change and now is a time to question how this category will survive the new retail market.
I was recently at a Garden Centre where the six packs of seedlings were retailing for $3.99 at the same time the coffee we were drinking from his coffee shop was selling briskly at $4.00. I challenged the retailer concerned as I did not understand why a coffee that was consumed as an impulse pleasure in ten minutes was more expensive than a six pack of flower seedlings that would provide impulse pleasure for up to six months. The retailer’s reaction was that the consumer was prepared to pay more for good quality coffee but had a price barrier when it came to seedlings, and they would not pay more than $4 as a price ceiling.
The next day, my wife went to the local farmers market to buy vegetables and fruit and picked up a lettuce from a grower for $1. It then dawned on me that the retailer was right. His seedling lettuce seedlings were selling for 67 cents a lettuce, and then I had to water and nurture them until they matured. Compared with the finished produce, the lettuce were far too expensive and should have been sold for no more than $3 for a six pack.
The category has a number of dilemmas and I question whether the punnet market, as we know it, will survive and is good for overall image of the retail sector.
In The Beginning.
Let’s go back to how the situation we are in now evolved. I can remember the days when seedlings were grown in the field and then wrapped in newspaper and sold by the dozen. The industry then moved to growing them and selling them in seed trays, but as society became more materialistic so did the supply chain and as a result the six pack evolved as a major selling unit; this was then superseded by ‘Potted Colour, selling plants in flower as individual units.
Now is a time to again rethink the supply chain and look at new ways to present the product to the consumer; the consumer is changing and therefore we need to reconsider the production and presentation of this range of plants.
Firstly we need to think about the category as two categories; the challenges and opportunities for the vegetable sector are completely different for those of the flowering sector.
Vegetable Seedlings
These are a commodity product and the consumer is now comparing them at home to buying from the farmers market or from the supermarket. There is a big surge towards grown at home or locally purchased at the local market.
The present presentation of the category in the Garden Centre needs challenging and we need to provide the consumer with a reason to grow their own compared to locally grown
The group can be split into three sub categories
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Repeat Harvest Vegetables
This should be a section on its own that promotes the value of growing vegetables that can be repeat harvested and therefore the consumer can pick the vegetable when they need it in their garden. Varieties of lettuce, silver beet and kale can be grouped into this sub category. The fact that they can repeat harvest in their own garden creates an extra value for the consumer.
Multi cropping from seed
Other vegetables can be promoted as multi cropping vegetables. These could include radish, carrot, beetroot and parsnip and they should be merchandised accordingly in the Garden Centre.
The final group should be sold in units larger than a six pack. A twelve pack may be more appropriate; the consumer wants to plant a row of them in their garden and we should provide them in the unit numbers they require to plant a row.
Flower Seedlings
This group should be thought of completely separately. They are now displayed separately to vegetable seedlings in all progressive Garden Centres and therefore they can be produced and merchandised differently.
The key is to move the punnet from the game to make them less price-resistant in the consumers mind. A sustainable solution that will increase market share and maintain a healthy gross profit for everyone in the chain needs to be developed.
We need to reinvent the way we present this product to the consumer. The plastic tray may be the future, if so to be seen as sustainable we would need to develop the Returnable, Refundable tray strategy to ensure we build a ‘Green’ image for the industry.
Twenty years ago I was a great believer that the Japanese paper pot was the way forward. This system was adopted by many growers in the forest tree nursery sector, but never really caught on with the ornamental nursery industry. Perhaps it is time to re-look at the paper pot system as it now meets the needs and wants of a new consumer.
John Stanley is WA Entrepreneur of the Year 2009 and his business JSA is WA Small Business Champion – Education 2009. He is an acclaimed conference speaker, retail consultant and author. For more information on how he can help your business grow, visit his website www.johnstanley.cc or email info@johnstanley.cc |
