Ideas please!

What you need in a garden Centre is Inspiration, Think back to when you first started gardening!
I see people in GCs Scratching there heads bcos they dont have a clue, Help them out with displays of design ideas, Let them know its "Doable" even if its a small corner display with Pots of mixed planting, A seat, and some hanging baskets, maybe a larger planter with veg in..

 

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Why-We-Buy-...=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1214086874&sr=1-1
That book is fascinating, if you are really interested in this stuff. I'd use it if I had a shop!

If you couldn't have a pond, could you have a water feature? I think the sound thing is a good idea.

Also, is there some reason why people aren't seeing the way out to this area? Is it hard to see there is a door, or does it look like it's "staff only" for some reason?

This may be obvious (i.e. I'm suggesting something you've already done...) but have you asked people why they don't go out there? If you could lurk somewhere near, but not too near, and ask people who've just walked past, it might be interesting...

 

You are all full of wonderful ideas and thank you!
Youngdaisydee - you have a good point there. We pride ourselves that we are a garden centre run by gardeners and freely advise people so some inspiration would sit well with our ethos. You are right, we really should find out why nobody seems to visit there at present. There are grasses and conifers there. looking lovely ( as do all our plants!) but still nobody seems to visit the space.
A water feature would be lovely, but we dont have power out there. Great idea though and maybe do-able.

All your ideas have fired my imagination and I could maybe combine all your ideas by creating an area with a seat and ( somehow) a water feature with seasonal planting and display in containers and maybe some border planting too. I would have to think a bit about shade though......