RETAIL: UPDATE
The world of retail with Mario Diaco By Matt Ross We caught up with Mario Diaco, Managing Director of Diaco's Garden Nursery, for an update on what’s been happening in the world of retail. With three generations of experience, he brings a wealth of knowledge. ‘Sales have been really positive across our stores and up on the same quarter last year. We’ve noticed that whilst shopper numbers aren’t necessarily higher, on average they’re spending more per visit.’
‘In terms of plant trends, we’ve noticed that customers are increasingly turning to bay trees in place of more traditional hedging. Bay trees grow into a dense shade tree and are also suitable for topiary as it responds well to pruning.’
‘Part of that might be down to a level of routine and structure with COVID making less impact on our ability to trade and staffing. Buyers are now confident that we are there for them, on-hand to deliver valuable, practical advice for their gardening needs.’
‘If I could offer one piece of advice to other retail garden centres it would be the need to understand who your customer is, why they are visiting your store and make it as easy as possible for them to make their purchasing choices.’
‘I also feel like the successful return of the Melbourne International Flower and Garden Show has had a knock-on effect. There were over 100,000 attendees and I’m sure many will have been inspired to get into the garden and try to recreate what they saw, they’ll share their successes with their families and friends, and the impact is significant.’
Diaco’s Garden Nursery have stores in Mornington, Heatherton, Geelong and Keilor. We believe in the value of local garden nurseries, where staff have the time and the passion to chat with you and offer valuable, practical advice for your gardening needs. Our team lives and breathes plants and gardening.
‘We also took part in NGIV’s Visit Your Local Nursery campaign, which provided $10 vouchers to spend in our stores. After checking our figures it was clear that customers redeeming those vouchers, went on to spend significantly more. We also gained a number of first-time customers who we hope to convert into long-term customers.’
28
GROUNDSWELL JUNE 2022
We’ll be catching up with Mario regularly to understand what is happening in the world of retail. Next time we want to learn a bit more about how retailers can successfully work with growers and vice versa. diacos.com.au
