#53 OUR FIRST STORE * (revised 6/4) "why tulsa?" part five

“I have, just down the road from my little garden store, a huge category killer superstore that has a large garden department. I just love it being there. You see, that lady has a bunch of money in her hand and she wants those geraniums for her spring flower boxes. Those big full color newspaper ads bring her to that huge superstore past my little gardening business. When she gets to those cheap geraniums, there they are, all puny and yellow and hanging down starved for just a drop of water. She turns around and walks off shaking her head. But she still wants geraniums and she still has the money in her hand and she still is going to drive right past my little store. And she sees my geraniums and she hands me the money and we both are happy

garden store owner

New Mexico

What is the competition in this area for the sales of plants and plant care products?

Competing stores that offer plants and plant care products are generally beneficial to a green garden gates. Surprisingly, locating a green garden gates near these competing businesses can be even more successful for us, rather than being out there alone somewhere.

Sometimes, however, there are just too many stores in too small a marketplace for any business to be profitable. We are very concerned about the quantity of these competitors and the quality of the products that they offer to the gardening public.

Competitive stores and outlets that offer plants and plant care products can be classified into several groups; large superstores, hardware stores, specialty landscape and outdoor living stores, seasonal tent corner stands, wholesale greenhouses and wholesale operations that also sell to the retail customer, farm supply and grocery stores, backyard home growers and retail garden stores.

Tulsa and the Tulsa area has a number of large superstores, 5 Home Depots, 7 Lowe’s Home Stores, and 20 Wal-mart stores. All of these have garden departments of various sizes. The quality of the plants and plant care products is directly related to the type of management of the operations, but they are typical of those corporations throughout the United States. There is a spring binge of plants that arrive, several refresher deliveries in the season and a low ball sellout towards the end of spring gardening in Tulsa. The plant quality and selection is excellent in the early spring, moving to awful and disgusting toward the middle to end of the season. The majority of the gardening sales in Tulsa are made through these stores regardless of the plant quality. This is because of the low margin pricing of these items. We would estimate that 75-80 percent of the market is controlled by these stores in the Tulsa market.

Tulsa has a number of moderately sized hardware affiliate stores with plants and plant care products. They do a better than average to very good job in presenting and caring for the inventory. Some move into their parking lots with large scale operations complete with checkout stands in the lots.

They are well respected by the Tulsa gardener and shopped heavily during the season. Their prices are targeted to be between the large superstores and the specialty garden stores in the area. Their selection of plant care products is often better than the specialty garden stores.

There are only a limited number of specialty landscaping and outdoor leisure stores in the Tulsa market; stores that sell items such as bulk soils, landscape rock and pavers, statuary, imported pottery and wire art, ponds and pond supplies. One store on the outer edges of the Tulsa city limits has a complete and excellent selection of landscape materials and pond supplies and has the majority of customer sales. All of the other outlets are difficult to find and not promoted heavily or even at all.

Tulsa does have a number of corner tent plant outlets in the gardening season. They are old and tired in their appearance, the plants are baking in the sun, and there is not much traffic to these outlets.

These outlets, however, return year after year with some moving to fruits and produce after the gardening season.

There is very little competitive exposure with back yard hobby growers who sell to the general public. Many, we would suspect, are concentrating on Internet sales to the region or Saturday markets rather than attempting to draw local customers to their place of business.

There are very few. if any wholesale greenhouses or wholesale growers in the area that sell to the general public. In fact, there are not a lot of greenhouses in this area at all, which may pose a problem for supplying a green garden gates. There is one large tree wholesaler that has captured most of the landscaper market and seems to be thriving and growing.

Grocery stores and “farm” type stores will offer plants and products seasonally in the Tulsa market. None of these stores venture beyond a few racks in front of their stores and are out of the business very soon. They don’t re-stock and their care of the plants is marginal to poor.

Small and large specialty garden stores are the most area of concern for placing a green garden gates in the Tulsa market place. It is the area where we concentrate our most attention in the analysis.

There was a time when there were a number of these stores in the Tulsa area. A national chain had a large presence in this market but closed its door about 10 years ago. Another major garden store that was heavily shopped also closed about 7 years ago and the land was sold to make room for highway construction. Internet garden bloggers have told us that this store was an excellent source for the Tulsa gardener. It had a huge following. There has been no replacement for these stores in the marketplace to meet the demands of a population of nearly 400,000 residents.

There are several small garden stores that are open year round. One store, called “Susie’s Plant House” is a converted gas station located in a mid block on a main arterial of Tulsa. It is landlocked, extremely tight and compact with very little parking. It is inconvenient in all respects with no growth potential. Susie’s does have a loyal following despite these deficiencies and does a fair amount of business all through the year. Another small garden store is located near the city limits of Tulsa, again small and compact with limited offerings. Other small garden stores are located in the surrounding suburbs. However, they too are quite limited and marginal at best.

Tulsa is also the home of a small group of garden stores named “Sun and Blooms”. They have a number of seasonal tent operations in both the Tulsa and Oklahoma City markets as well as several year round permanent stores. This company is attempting to franchise these stores and enter other markets in Oklahoma and other regions. They are small and tight for display, parking and access. Their presentation and curb appeal varies from marginal to excellent. They offer primarily seasonal annual plants with no shrubs, trees, roses or other woody plants. The selection of plant care products is either marginal or not at all. The prices for the plants are mostly higher than other garden stores. In their permanent stores, they offer a gift line that has no consistent theme with the exception of an extensive line of religious gifts. They appear to be losing ground in the marketplace at the present and probably will continue to lose market share unless a there is a new direction in buying and presentation. Nevertheless, they could easily be a competitive problem for green garden gates if the strategic model is changed radically.

When we examined the category of modern, well presented, and conveniently located large garden stores, there are only two companies in the entire areas of Tulsa and Tulsa County. We find that fact absolutely astonishing given the large population and the gardening public that shops for plants each season.

The first is called “Shaw's” with two locations just outside the Tulsa County boundaries to the east and to the west. One store is a complete disaster, old and decayed, riddled with dusty paths and hazardous customer dangerous areas. The second outlet is beautiful with a large range of retractable roofs over a clear span display building, with plenty of modern parking and access. Both locations are primary suppliers for the landscape trade in Tulsa County and beyond. The company is owned by a major United States grower of trees and shrubs with their corporate offices located the Tulsa area. The operations could be described in a large part as a “factory outlet” for overstocked plants from the growing operations. Shaw's does a large amount of advertising to the retail market. It has a large and growing following, at least in the more modern location. It is unclear what direction the company will take in developing and expanding these stores. With the considerable assets of the corporation, and a commitment to moving forward, Shaw’s could be a worthy competitor for a green garden gates group of stores in the Tulsa area

The other large garden store, a true retail facility that derives nearly all of its income from the retail customer base is called “Hendricks”. It is a family owned and operated facility and has been since the company began over 25 years ago. It began modestly, like many garden stores, and grew steadily to a large modern business.

Hendricks has several parts; a retail garden store and retail nursery, a greenhouse operation that exclusively services the retail store, and a design and landscape construction operation. This business is a good to excellent operation joining the ranks of other premier facilities across the United States. It is highly regarded by the gardening public and the business of choice for customers in the Tulsa market. It is well run and has new recruited talent outside the family to move higher and faster in the marketplace, if the family chooses to do so.

After careful analysis of the competitive forces in the Tulsa marketplace, several factors lead us to believe that a group of green garden gates stores will grow and prosper in the Tulsa and Tulsa County area.

1. There are simply not enough modern garden stores providing quality plants and plant care products to the Tulsa marketplace. This marketplace continues to expand and the need for other quality garden stores

2. It is doubtful that, given the conditions of the overall United States economy, there will be an outside investment in land, buildings and inventory to develop a similar single location large garden center in the area.

3. It can be assumed that the existing small garden stores will generally remain the same in size and product offerings. It is also probable that a major thrust to upgrade and change directions will not occur with the franchised group of Sun and Blooms. It is also doubtful that either of the two large garden store companies will venture away from their physical boundaries or expand their product lines.

4. There will probably be less expansion of superstores in the area. Further, given the downturn of the national economy, it is likely that the garden department of these stores will remain the same in size and product offering. Moreover, given the attentiveness by management to seek products that return the most profit per square foot, the garden departments of these stores may in fact diminish in size and product offering.

5. Online shopping of garden plants and supplies continues to grow in the nation. However, there will always be a strong need by gardening customers to “feel it and touch it” when it comes to plant material. Local stores have the advantage because of the unique characteristics of plants.

6. New gardeners will continue to locate in the Tulsa marketplace. A familiar green garden gates nearly identical to another in their previous city or town has built in appeal and gravitational pull.