Gardening in the sun

LosPeñotes in Madrid is one of the 19-strong Verdecoragarden centregroup celebrating aperiod of expansion and arecordbreaking turnover in excess of £40m.

TTheVerdecora chain stretches across Spain, with gardencentres reachingmorethan2 million customersfromVigotoBarcelona and Malaga to Madrid. Sites range from large edge of towncentres to busy florists and there aretwo urbanstoresoffering a convenient wayfor city dwellers to keep theirbalconies alive with plants. The largest gardencentregroup in Spain, it has been thrivingfor three decades andits own brand of garden sundriesincluding growing media, seeds,plant food, accessories and pet products is well knownand valued by its customers.

Renaud Lagarde, Director of Expansion, says Verdecoraaimstoinspire its customers with apassion for nature,plantsand animals and be their first choice when it comesto buying product andseeking advice. It prides itself on itsexcellentcustomer serviceand the comfortable shopping experienceit provides. “Wehavealoyal clientelewhich we knowfromour repeatpurchase rate,” he says. “Thereare tworeasons –the firstisthe qualityofour products and thesecondis the greattechnical knowledgeofour teams.”

Plants and pets

Spain’soften extreme climatemeans the range of plants available to buyismore limited than in the UK,but the company’s buyers have beenworking to increasethe amount of home grownproduct. Today it secures 65%ofits plants from Spain which in thelocal economical climate of high transportcostshas beenvaluable Qualityisensuredasbuyers regularly visit their growers and havehelped to set the high standards required for retail sale. Floristryisanimportant partof Verdecora’sbusinessand LosPeñotes has its ownareadedicated to fresh cut and dried flowers. Silk flowers tooare big businessthroughout the storeand houseplants takecentrestage at the entrancethe store.

Dogs areaparticularly favoured pet, and Renaud says it’sthought there aremorepets in Spain than children! Theyare welcome in Verdecora’spet departments whereowners can take advantage of the dog washing,grooming and agility areas. Animal careand welfare is central to Verdecoraespecially for the small animals (birds, fish, reptiles)itsells and it regularlyhosts ‘adoption days’ when local pet sanctuaries bring dogs and cats to the centres that areneeding new homes.

Environment

Another of Verdecora’saimsistobethe leader in theindustryfor social commitment andenvironment. Likemost business it is reducing itsrelianceonplastic andeliminating plastic bags andwrapping.Itrelies 100%on renewable energy andit’snew stores in Vigo andBarcelona have been built with rainwater harvesting systems.Ithas also enabledthe Malagastore to reduce its relianceonmains waterby30%.A ‘too goodtogo’ scheme is also in place forproductsnearing their sell by date

Policiesensuredisabledpeopleare refugeesare welcomed to the teamsand allstaff areencouragedtocome up with ideasand eventstorun in their centres. Aprogressionplan is in placefor staff to developtheir careers and80% areona permanent contract

Communication

Verdecora’ssocialmedia channels are strong with communicationand campaigns coordinated acrossall platformsfor all centres. An apphelps customers choose the products theyneed forany project and there is the opportunitytotalk to specialistsatthe centresonline. Blogs andtutorialvideosare hostedonthe website.

Verdecoraisa growing businesswith a €46m turnoverin2022– up 30% on the previous year.Renaud says this model of garden centreisstill quitenew to some but customer numbers areincreasing