Guernsey Press

Garden centre group out-grows its rivals

BLUE DIAMOND, the garden centre group, is eyeing further expansion as it continues to outperform its rivals.

Published
In Blue Diamond’s annual report, MD Alan Roper states that last year average spend in the group’s stores grew by 5.6% against a Garden Centre Association average of just 1.4%. (21526083)

The Guernsey-headquartered business this month completed the acquisition of its latest garden centre, Orchard Park in Dorset, after opening its largest new-build store to date near Nottingham in March.

The company now has 21 stores, two in the Channel Islands and 19 in the UK, but it is continuing to look at further expansion. Blue Diamond, which has its head office at Le Friquet Garden Centre, employs 2,000 people in total – of whom 150 are in Guernsey.

‘Acquisition opportunities have been scant in recent years and thus time has been spent looking for suitable land upon which to build a new centre,’ said Blue Diamond managing director Alan Roper in the company’s annual report for 2017.

‘We currently have five sites in the pipeline at various stages of progression, with three of the sites at the planning application stage. If planning is achieved on all the sites, the potential turnover growth this realises is around £50m.’

He added that the group’s new-build centre at East Bridgford, near Nottingham, included a playbarn and a farm shop complete with delicatessen and butcher.

‘The centre has received universal praise from customers and the industry. The recent trading figures have surpassed all expectations and speak for themselves. The first month’s sales are over £1m., double the expected turnover.’

Mr Roper also said that profit before tax had increased from £8.4m. to £9.2m. in 2017. ‘This profit increase was predominately delivered through customer average spend and gross margin growth,’ he said.

‘The current economic landscape means that like-for-like sales growth is hard to produce, so it is very satisfying to report that in 2017 average spend grew by 5.6% against a Garden Centre Association average of 1.4%.’