Grow your brand in this unique marketplace

Gardens are now seen as an extension to people’s homes and an intrinsic part of their lifestyles. Consequently the opportunity for brands to be associated with garden centres that have become the retail choice of consumers is significant and rewarding.

There are approximately 2500 garden centres or retail nurseries in the UK. The largest operators is The Garden Centre Group with 130 sites trading from York through to St Ives in Cornwall and from Norwich in Suffolk to Carmarthen in Wales.

First Franchise has long-standing business relationships with all the leading garden centre groups and independent garden centre operators. Our team of specialist consultants can guide you through the potential pitfalls that can trip up companies considering this market for the first time. We have an extensive database of the space available within the market and details of the requirements of the garden centre operators.

We understand that all garden centres and retail nurseries have varying levels of planning consent, have difficulties with space allocation and very different customer profiles – That’s why we don’t offer ‘off-the-peg’ solutions, but a carefully tailored concessions portfolio to suit our clients and of course garden centres.

Planning consents are a potential minefield. Everyone knows what a garden centre is, defining it is more difficult. This creates opportunities but also uncertainties. Planning advice should always be sought at an early stage from someone with experience in this specialist field. However by and large if a retail operator is looking to move into garden centres, outlets are available.