Products Hand Tools
HOW TO SELL
HAND TOOLS
Garden Centre Retail speaks with Sarah Cottle, head of brand and PR for Bulldog Tools to take a look at the hand tools market, what a good offering should consist of and how you can perfect your upselling skills in this sector
What are the options a garden centre has to showcase Hand tools? Most garden centres hang tools on standard hanging hooks, but we are increasingly seeing more imaginative displays, with things such as plants, pots and other sundries attractively mixed with tools on display tables. Garden tools tend to be quite pricey, but can be easy to steal, so it is worth considering placing your tool display near the tills or in an area which can be monitored during opening hours. Is it good enough to just keep them in packs on a shelf? We find that the more imaginatively the tools are displayed, the better that they sell. We would recommend removing the tools from their delivery packaging to ensure that customers can see the tools
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at their best and with any point of sale packaging on display. It is often worth mixing up displays to maximise sales, for example, merchandising bulb planters with bulbs themselves will increase sales.
should include a spade, fork, border spade and fork, hand trowel, hand fork, Dutch hoe, garden rake, lawn rake, leaf rake, lawn edger, secateurs, hedge shears, lopper and pruning saw.
How can a garden centre inspire customers to buy more products in this category? By ensuring that tools are kept clean and tidily displayed and making sure all point of sale information is accurate, up to date and clearly visible near the display. The staff at a garden centre will also benefit from product training so that they can point out the individual features and benefits of each item.
Which products naturally lead on to added sales for garden centres in this market? Hand trowels, hand forks and small cutting tools all tend to work well in the ‘value added’ sales sector. Almost every gardener will need these items, they are small, lightweight and affordable and can easily be added to displays of bedding plants, seeds and general gifts.
What should a basic hand tools offering consist of? All good tool offerings at a garden centre
CONTACT 01780 763041 www.pedigreegarden.co.uk
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