Are Garden Centres the new department stores?

I can understand people liking a department store style nursery, but I think the reason there are so many fewer ‘real’ plant based only nurseries is because the giants are buying them out. So many have closed near us.
So please, if you do just want plants take a little time to find the nearest ‘real’ nursery to you and help keep these businesses open.

One close to us also sells a range of Sainsburys food items.

there was the full range of gardening requirements and outside were acres of plants and shrubs but inside......

Well our enormous one doesn't stock all sizes of strimmer cord!
I had to get mine from Screwfix!


Screwfix now offers strimmers...

JenniferEccles sadly my local John Lewis "Home" closed some years ago...

The majority of our local Garden Centres (within 10-20 minutes by car) are independent and have been going for 50 + years.

The plantsmen/women are extremely knowledgeable and very helpful.

In my road we have a community owned and run nursery, only open three days a week, they have limited stock but it’s all propagated and grown by volunteers. There is always someone on hand to help.

My local (ish) big one has a great selection of cards, birthday and otherwise. I quite like browsing all the non plant stuff - they even have my usual brand of DK yarn (occasionally with the colour I need) and now and then it’s been used as an ex-
colleagues meeting-up venue.

During the run up to Christmas I’ve taken the Gdcs (it’s 2 bus rides but they love going on the bus, the car is boring!) to see all the super-exciting Winter Wonderland tat!

There are three within easy reach of here, if you have a car. But the best one, which seems to sell absolutely everything, is about a twenty minute drive away.
I love them, I must admit. It's a day out for me, fossicking around and having a coffee etc. It's great.

GrannyGravy13

I enjoy mooching round a Garden Centre, always have a good wonder at the other stuff before getting down to the serious plant buying.

Tasty cafe/bistro’s a bonus.

Me too and at Christmas….. well they are a veritable Aladdin's cave

henetha

There are three within easy reach of here, if you have a car. But the best one, which seems to sell absolutely everything, is about a twenty minute drive away.
I love them, I must admit. It's a day out for me, fossicking around and having a coffee etc. It's great.

I completely agree

I think there is now a big gap between nurseries, whose prime role is to sell plants with their added value veing advice and quite often specialising in certain types of plant and Garden Centres, which, as I said, are replacing department stores,

The classic department store was somewhere you would go if you wanted a day or half day in town. It had a good restaurant, loos, a wide range of goods and, with British weather, it was under a roof, which is exactly what a garden centre offers.

Yes, the range of goods is different, but this reflects what people want to browse through and probably buy now.

My favourite Garden Centre is really nice. Not overpowering. Wonderful meat and veg and lots of other interesting foods including delicious ready meals plus a small restaurant for light meals. There are a few clothes and books [my favourite section] for all ages and of course plenty of garden implements and plants. Like others I have to drive [10min] there but it's worth it in my book

I love large garden centres and am fortunate to have two very close to me. One is also a high quality nursery, and sells beautiful gifts, with a lovely coffee shop/restaurant too. I shop there regularly and have a loyalty card, which entitles me to discounts and the occasional free plant. The second one is vast and includes a farm shop, butchers, furniture, with franchises for shoes, clothes, kitchens, fires and so much more. I much prefer shopping at these retail stores than the high street, which I avoid.

There are big garden centres like that some distance away from me and only accessible by car, so do not replace department stores for me. The big centres are more like Homebase and B&Q, though less accessible.

There were local family run traditional garden centres where I bought plants but sadly there is only one tiny one left with little choice. I now usually buy plants in the supermarket - Lidl is best.

I never go to them for plants they are too expensive and usually not home grown and as pampered glass house specimens do not thrive well in my hands , always go to a plant nursery or local market for my garden needs. I do often go to buy birthday cards or to visit the clothes outlets or pet dept. Other stuff is usually overpriced I think,

The large one near me is a day out destination particularly for older people. Although I admit to going there, I actually don't think it's very fair that they should be allowed to sell such a wide range of goods as this must affect the small shopkeepers in our small market town. And, of course, the parking is free. So much is under cover, it's nice and warm. I can see the attraction. Ours even sells cakes.

Whenever I go serious plant shopping with DD and/or my granddaughters, we start off with a trip to the two plant nurseries about 20 minutes away then, having filled the car boot, we end up at our local GC for coffee, cake and some serious pot envy!!

They’re a great place for last minute Christmas and birthday presents and I cannot resist the starter pots (4 for £10) in the houseplant section. I don’t think I’ve ever been in the clothes or shoe outlets because that’s not what I go for.

Just like department stores, we all get what we want from them, but seek out specialist stores when we are looking for something particular.

gosh,, I like this thread, why? cos it will now give me space to moan about what little there is to do for some of us older people! (joke!) I live in Swindon, and there is so little to do here... yes, Chinese Tat! it amazes me how much there is of this.. and I think of the shipping... oh my! I miss the "old fashioned" tea rooms, where I live, you have to have a car to get anywhere.. even the bus services don`t connect up.

all the nurseries of past years have disappeared from here..

We must be lucky because Dobbies and the like have barely penetrated Wales. All the garden centres within 30 miles of where I live are independent. I think unless they are very specialised and people travel for miles to get to them, plant nurseries are very hard to keep profitable, that’s why nurseries have morphed into garden centres - they probably make more money on the cafe than they do on the plants.

For me (a non-gardener) a garden centre stands and falls by the quality of its cafe. DH is the gardener and he likes a proper nursery for plants. A review in our local newspaper recently described a local garden centre as a "nice afternoon out with an elderly relative".

I took a part time job in our local garden centre when I had to leave my previous employment due to stress. I had planned to stay there for around six months as gardening is a passion of mine but ten years later I was still there!
It was the nicest job I’ve ever had, a lovely small team of dedicated staff and regular customers who mostly came in for a good natter and to get advice and help re-potting their orchids and other gardening dilemmas.
It was only minimum wage but I simply loved going to work there every day.
Christmas was always a magical time of year, decorating the trees and seeing the faces of wonderment on the children.
Sadly it has now closed down and I knew things would never be the same when I un-packed a box one day to find a frying pan and other assorted kitchen untensils???
Yes, some garden centres have changed so seek out those which have healthy plants tended lovingly by knowledgeable staff and you can’t go far wrong.

Yes, I think they are! After visiting a fairly local one recently I have decided to go and do all my Christmas shopping there!

In my city/suburbs there is a long time family owned chain of “garden centers” which is very popular. I would guess that half of the surrounding population shop there throughout the seasons.

They are geared and massively stocked with seeds, bedding plants (also indoor), flowers, shrubbery, trees and all implements needed plus fertilizers, rocks/mulch, etc. spread half outside and half inside. Also indoors is home decorative seasonal accessories to complement your nursery purchases.

Everything changes with each season and it’s so lovely - a winter 🎄wonderland (thousands of fresh cut trees), a spring 🌷gardener’s paradise, a blooming 🌼 summer stroll, autumnal 🍁 splendor. They really figured out the right formula, catering to sprawling estates to indoor apartments. There is no eatery/food, clothing, health or beauty aids, misc sold there. If you don’t have a green thumb, you can find dried and artificial substitutes. Nothing more than a centric garden greenery experience.

This is the store that if you can’t find what you want, you don’t need it.

Hillier's seems to have resisted this trend, but our next nearest garden centre is huge and sells clothes, homeware, gifts, warehouse, cards, you name it.
I have to admit, I do quite like it.

I regularly go to a huge garden centre with more space allocated to other goods but I always ignore all of that and just look at the plants and gardening stuff.
There is a smaller locally owned garden centre nearer to me with good quality plants but the car park is tiny and cramped and once in it's often very difficult to get out. Sometimes even if I get there at opening time it's impossible to park, such a shame unable to support a local business.