What Plants are people buying today ?

I do think plant selling is a very difficult business to make profitable. Not only are there all manner of market forces to consider, but the weather can intervene dramatically, causing both extra costs (heating, etc) or demand slump. Stock can die off unexpectedly or unavoidably. And that’s before you factor in rising fuel, transport and carriage costs, endless regulation, compost that is tough to work successfully with, etc. It’s no wonder even large scale, well established businesses struggle.

 

Even the big boys are having to close some stores to make ends meet !
https://metro.co.uk/2024/12/10/map-...-garden-stores-closing-major-update-22159037/

Specialised areas like Cacti , Orchids, Carnivorous and Jungle type plants etc are very well covered, so would think there is little room to make any headway.

 

I know 3 owners of established and well regarded garden centres. They have had to diversity into selling just about everything else except plants which almost take a back seat. The big earners are their cafes, coffee shops, tea rooms, without them they would not survive.

 

That's the difference between garden centres and nurseries. I will shamelessly plug my favourite place, Farmyard Nurseries, who don't have a cafe - though they have a garden building where you can help yourself to a free tea or coffee, and sometimes a piece of cake (50p in honesty box). But they are primarily growers of a huge range of plants. Garden centres have to accept the need to entertain family members who don't like plants.

 

I saw the poster's original threads about wanting to get a nursery etc, but it needs to be clarified properly when starting a thread. This one doesn't have anything like enough information for people to be helpful in any way with ideas and advice. I actually assumed they were just asking what plants people had been buying recently.

@BMX90 will have to return and be a lot more forthcoming. It's not an easy undertaking trying to successfully sell plants of any kind, and without knowing a lot more about their situation, location, set up, budget, knowledge and experience etc, it's too vague.

 

Farmyard Nurseries do good mail order as well.

 

I think like any business in today's world that it's difficult to get started if you want to be an independent. It's a bit like that old tree adage, the best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago, I think business is a bit like that.

 

I had a quick look at Farmyard, looks good and if folk who know their stuff are recommending then worth a go if they have something I might be after. Was having a quick look at many of the things I sell myself and the prices looked pretty good for the size of pot you are getting. My only slight surprise is that they sell Meconopsis Baileyi and not Lingholm which is much nicer. Both are relatively easy from seed with perhaps Baileyi being slightly more reliable. Maybe that is why they have chosen that to sell.

 

Agree @Thevictorian. I ran my own mail order business long before the advent of the internet and it takes time to build up a customer base plus advertising, then certainly, was extremely expensive and not always that effective. Without a doubt word of mouth was the best “ tool” to increase my customer base back in the day, once I got customers I then had them for years and years which was great. Same today I suppose with supermarkets running loyalty schemes to keep their customers. When people visit my charity sale who have just got say a new build with basically zero in their gardens, guess what I advise should be their first purchases?……trees and I don’t even sell them!

 

Well put @fairygirl. I saw those other threads too and thought that rather going on a mystery tour, should I answer this question directly? My answer would have been obvious but unhelpful - Christmas trees .

 

Bit seasonal, @Plantminded!

 

That's what they're buying today @ViewAhead .

 

True!

 

Perhaps @BMX90 , it would be good to maybe ask Admin if it okay to set up a simple survey and list the plant groups you are thinking of selling. Then members can "vote" for their preference. That way you could see where the group favours plant groups and you will see the percentages displayed and easy to assess.

It would be a lot faster than playing 20 questions if you're here to try to quickly get information in order to set up a business?

 

For those of you who have such an independant grower or nursery, please please give them all the encouragement and support that you can.
For they are an endangered species.
This is especially true if a long standing family business, for they will likely fall within the grasp of the latest Budget attack on small family businesses through BPR (and APR if they own their site) which requires payment of 20% of asset value to government when passed down to the next generation.
This measure will be terminal to many long standing family businesses, not just farmers. It includes long serving activities such as printing, funeral directors, engineering, motor traders,breweries, hotel and catering, builders, corner shops, butchers and all manner of others that own premises or machinery with high capital investment.