Industry Facts & Figures

Latest industry information

Garden centre

The annual HTA Garden Retail Market Analysis reports a healthy sector which has held its own during the economic downturn.

The report provides a summary of garden category and market size trends, and detailed analysis of emerging consumer trends and resulting opportunities.

Key findings:

The UK Garden Retail Market was worth £4.6 billion in 2010, a 2% increase on 2009 and 8% increase on 2008.

Plant sales have remained steady over the past five years with increases in sales of bulbs, seeds and bedding plants.

‘Grow your Own’ goes from strength to strength. Half of garden owners intend to grow their own fruit and vegetables in 2011 and 12% of these claim to be ‘first timers’.

Competition is tight between garden centres and DIY stores. Garden centres lead overall, and especially in the plant categories and among older consumers. But the DIY store chains compete keenly with the garden centre channel among consumers aged under 45 who make up over a third of the market value.

Younger, family stage consumers often focus on the garden as a child-friendly space for socialising and entertaining in a pleasant environment, ideally requiring a minimum of time to maintain.

Older consumers tend to use the garden as an outlet for creativity and their love of the gardening process. This underlines the need to tailor propositions for the target consumer in question.

Garden owners of all ages are talking about gardening. 36% enjoy sharing knowledge and ideas about gardening. School gardening is a major part of this buzz. 40% of parents of school children claim their child’s school has communicated with them about school gardening in the last year, helping to raise local interest in gardening.

David Denny, HTA Market Information Manager, summarises, “All in all consumers’ interest in their gardens and garden products has remained substantial and in spite of the gloomy state of the economy there are many exciting opportunities out there. But capitalising on them will require ever more adaptability to consumers’ wants and shopping habits. Success will depend on meeting different consumers’ very different aspirations for their gardens at the right price and through the right communication channels.”

To receive a free copy of the Executive Summary of the HTA Garden Retail Market Analysis or to purchase a full report visit the Market Information pages: www.the-hta.org.uk/marketinformation

Print this page

Last updated: 13/02/2012 16:33