‘A retirement village in a national park’
Anthony J Curnow
Mention Tasmania to somebody, and they will likely conjure up
thoughts of the unique forests and gastronomic delights (Kind Island Cheese, Leatherwood Honey, Huon Valley Apples) that comprise Tasmania. Few however might recognise Tasmania as a state with significant horticultural wealth. Developing demographics, small markets and communication with communities are all key drivers to the stronghold of retailers in Tasmania’s horticultural retail industry.The Market
A brief look into Tasmania’s demographics reveals reasons for which might explain the strong nursery industry. Tasmania has roughly 500,000 inhabitants, and is Australia’s ‘oldest state’ by average age. This has come about for a number of reasons. Generally, at interstate level, Tasmania tends to lose younger migrants and gain older ones. If we take for example the 2003/04 period, the greatest net loss on average in migration is in the age brackets of those 20-24 year olds, with the greatest net gain in the 55-59 year old age bracket. This generally typifies the ongoing population interstate migration between Tasmania and the mainland.
Positive Challenges
Tasmania’s retail horticulture industry is exciting. Having visited nearly 15 retailers across the state, generally most are reporting excellent sales in recent months. With the influx of bare rooted stock due to hit the market soon, sales are expected to continue through until a potentially booming spring season.
As you know, the retail horticulture industry is highly seasonal which sets a wide range of challenges from the get go, particularly in Tasmania with its separation from the mainland by Bass Straight.
The majority of trees sold in Tasmania are sourced from producers in Victoria. This makes replenishment of quality stock throughout the year difficult and mostly economically insensible. The years’ supply of stock is bought in one large batch and shipped over at the end of autumn. This is not surprisingly a huge gamble, attempting to predict the potential forthcoming years’ trends in ornamental and fruit trees.
The bare root stock is divided; some being sold off in the traditional bare root form, while increasingly the majority are potted up into grow bags (Garden City Plastics) as freight works out far cheaper on this form of growing container.
In addition to the irregular supply of trees comes an irregular supply of general shrub lines. So, while servicing Tasmania is in many ways no different to that required by regional parts of Victoria, some retailers in Tasmania continue to grow some bread and butter lines. Many Tasmanian retailers believe that by growing lines which require low levels of management, they are able to control and supplement their supply through self reliance while maintaining comparable margins. In contrast to this, is a group of retailers who have stepped back from production. This decision was made with the realisation that predicting markets is difficult enough as a retailer, let alone of production too. As Gregg Chandler pointed out, there is a significant difference in selling the stock you’ve grown over what the customer wants. This rising shift away from production on retail sites I believe will continue to diminish with increasingly efficient supply chains and smarter retailing.
There is a prominent shift in the way in which bare root stock is marketed and sold. In addition to trees, soft fruit (berries, currents and strawberries) is also seeing change to meet consumer expectation. The largest development here is that retailers are increasingly preparing the stock for the consumer by pre-bagging it. This is not only more user friendly for the customer (cleaner to handle) and easier for ongoing stock management, but it saves time at point of sale, is hygienic, and doesn’t require planting immediately – it improves shelf life. For example:
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Cane fruit is root pruned, potted into plastic pots, and backfilled with well composted pine bark, and labelled both on the pot and canes.- Strawberries are root pruned, wrapped in wet newspaper, placed into a small plastic pocket and labelled.
- Roses too are bagged and increasingly being sold potted up with the customer reportedly happy to pay that little bit extra.
These changes are coming about by a new generation of consumer interested in gardening, but without the cultivation knowledge of plants. We need to provide idiot proof solutions, and these are just a few of them.
Supportive Communities and Opportunities
The garden centre scene at first glance may appear saturated; however all service their own local niche markets. These markets are similar in many ways, and are characterised by the following points.
A number of business owners/managers claimed that there is money to be spent in Tasmania. Given the aged population there is no doubt a lot of truth in this. Money is somewhat expendable and greater value is placed on green life than what I have experienced in many parts of Victoria. With this strong financial position comes the desire for the consumer to want instant gardens, and the majority are very happy to pay the extra for a larger ticket item. A number of garden centres all stock a surprising amount of eight inch (and larger) stock lines, to meet this demand.
Community spirit and support is strong. With smaller population numbers brings strong personal relationships between all sorts of business owners (similar to rural Victoria). It’s a complex hive of businesses all working together for the greater benefit of their surrounding community. Garden centres too, seem to play a key role as the environmental advocates of the community, servicing landscapers, developers, new home owners, renovators, schools, churches and gardeners.
A current promotion throughout Launceston demonstrates this sense of community. There is push for the consumer to ‘buy locally’, which is for the benefit of locally produced and managed businesses. This undoubtedly includes the environmental advocators of the community – the independent garden centres. This is a fantastic opportunity for local business with free promotion (sponsorship by the local newspaper) and a strong positive attitude driving overall community development.
Old Style Marketing
You might be wondering what I mean by old style marketing. The strongest example of this is the availability of bare rooted rose, fruit and ornamental tree lists. These lists are often produced when stock is ordered well in advanced. For consumers who are proactive in their approach to selecting the cultivar of their choice, they are invaluable tools of reference, and an excellent way to generate reservations on stock. They are made available online through the retailer’s website, and also in-store. Expectancy of these lists being available in advance is so high that more often than not, many cultivars sell out well before they are even lifted from the ground at the production nursery.
The Way Forward
The important role of community has been discussed, and as such the result is a group of retailers who all in all will be happy to share information with their competitor (the Plants Plus group is particularly strong here). Most retailers were very open to the suggestion of sharing information, as they are all working for the same purpose – that being the development of the horticulture industry.
The question which is on the tip of everybody’s tongue is whether or not this positive industry is sustainable for the long term. It is something which requires balance. Population growth is predicted to remain steady while migration trends continue. As such the demand will always be there, and the market over time will shift as new retailers open (the next generation), some are businesses are passed on and others close. This is an industry which will continue to develop with respect to improved systems, logistics and business management techniques as they move towards meeting the expectations of the average Tasmanian consumer.
Reference:
http://www.taspop.tasbis.com
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