Blue Diamond continues to grow by adding another centre

Its most recent acquisition was through a 25-year lease on Trelawney Garden Centre at Sladesbridge, near Wadebridge in Cornwall, a business with an annual turnover of £4.2m.

The business, like many others in the group, is still being run by its management team and keeping its name.

The group has also signed a similar deal for a new garden centre, still at the planning stage, on an 11-acre site owned by Trelawney owner David Danning in Probus, near Truro.

Planning permission for a garden centre had been received, but has lapsed, and now Mr Danning is working with Blue Diamond to reapply.

The acquisition via lease is one of a number of ways Blue Diamond uses to build its portfolio of centres, including new development and outright purchase of freeholds.

The group currently has 16 centres under its ownership, including Le Friquet in Guernsey and one in Jersey, with a combined turnover of £80m.

Managing director Alan Roper, pictured, has targeted £200m. turnover to be achieved over the next 10 years to keep the group among the leaders in the UK market, while continuing to uphold standards and allow centres a degree of operational independence with support from the group in Guernsey.

To achieve that target, he is looking at buying three businesses every two years.

'You've got to think ahead,' he said. 'It's good to grow through existing business, but you also need to grow to ensure that you are still competitive in 10 years' time.

'We are operating in a market where the landscape has changed radically – independent centres are selling up and there is huge consolidation in the sector. Groups are getting bigger, and you've got to have scale to be relevant, but we need to grow in a controlled way.'