#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.

#52 OUR FIRST STORE* (revised 6/6) 'why tulsa?" part four

Bob Wills and the Texas Playboys at Cain’s Ballroom in Tulsa in the 1930’s Cain’s Ballroom is largely credited for being the birthplace of western swing music.

What is the culture of the area?

Gardening and landscaping follow a pattern of diverse leisure activities that are enjoyed by a rich and vibrant community. If the community and surrounding areas support a variety of cultural activities, the residents will be frequent customers to outlets for quality plants and plant care items for their homes and businesses.

Because Tulsa is influenced by the Midwest, Southwest, and Southern cultural regions as well as the large Native American so dominant in the state of Oklahoma, these influences are expressed in the city’s museums, performing arts venues, ethnic festivals, park systems, zoos wildlife preserves and large growing collections of public sculptures, monuments and artwork.

Museums, art, music, and performances

Museums are numerous in Tulsa. The Philbrook, located in the city of the city, is considered on of the top 50 fine arts museums in the United States. The Gilcrease Museum holds the world’s most comprehensive collection of works from the American West. The Sherwin Miller Museum of Jewish Art preserves the largest collection of Judaica in the Southwest United States. There is the Tulsa Air and Space Museum, the Oklahoma Jazz Hall of Fame, and the Greenwood Cultural Center which preserves the history of the city’s African American heritage.

Public displays of art are funded by 1% of the annual budget of the city of Tulsa. Public art is located in numerous locations throughout the city

Tulsa has a number of permanent dance, theatre, and concert groups; The Tulsa Ballet, The Tulsa Opera, The Tulsa Symphonic Orchestra, The Tulsa Signature Symphony, The Heller Theatre, and Theatre Tulsa. Performing Arts Centers include the Tulsa Convention Center, Expo Square Pavilion, The Mabee Center and the River Parks Amphitheatre.

Music is everywhere in the city of Tulsa. The Blue Dome District of the city hosts its annual Diversafest showcasing independent and emerging artist to the 60,000 people who attend the two day event. Cain’s Ballroom, considered the birthplace of western swing, is hopping with nationally known musicians regularly. The "Tulsa Sound" developed by local musicians including Leon Russell in the 1960's and 70's, heavily influenced songwriter, Eric Clapton. Musicians who have started their musical careers in Tulsa include Garth Brooks, Ronnie Dunn, Gene Autry and David Cook. Ten miles west of the city, an outdoor amphitheatre holds the official title of the world’s performance headquarters of the musical “Oklahoma”.

Outdoor Recreation

There are 140 parks spread of 6000 acres in the city of Tulsa. Along the Arkansas River, there are 20 miles of hard surface bike trails with an additional 30 miles of mountain biking, hiking and horseback riding in the Turkey Mountain Wilderness Area all within the city. The 78 acre Tulsa Zoo was voted America’s Favorite Zoo in 2005 by Microsoft Game Studios. In the nearby suburb community of Jenks, the Oklahoma Aquarium is the state’s only freestanding aquarium. The Tulsa State Fair in September attracts nearly one million people and the city’s Oktoberfest was named one of the top ten in the world by USA Magazine.

Sports

Tulsa has a wide variety of sports venues and the professional and collegiate level. The city hosts two NCAA football colleges and five professional minor league sports teams in basketball, arena football, baseball, hockey and soccer. The Southern Hills County Club is one of two of the golf courses in the city that have hosted four PGA Championships and three U.S. Open Golf Championships. The city’s running and cycling communities support events such as the Tulsa Tough cycling race, The Route 66 Marathon and the Tulsa Run which features over 8000 participants each year. Gambling is supported by the community with Indian owned and operated gaming venues. Horse racing events are hosted by the Fair Meadow Race Track and Will Rogers Downs in a nearby city.

#51 OUR FIRST STORE* (revised 6/6) "why tulsa?" part three

Is there a “pride of ownership" in Tulsa and surrounding towns?

Is gardening an active pursuit as part of this pride of ownership?


Pride of ownership is a key element for locating a green garden gates. It is not economical to invest in cities and towns where the residents or businesses are transient and do not have his pride. If gardening is not a part of the life of the community, we cannot rely on a profitable future with our stores.


Tulsa has a dual identity of the Midwestern “can do” spirit and the quiet enduring elegance of the South. Pride in ownership is evident in buildings; residential, commercial and manufacturing. Parks and community areas are well maintained with order and dignity. Older sections of the city have been re-vitalized. New developments are upscale and appealing. Tulsa, as a result of the “boom and bust” economy of its roots as “the oil city” has numbers of estates and large homes interspersed in areas of the city. Business and residential districts within the city are named.

Residents and business owners within those districts are active in keeping the vitality of those districts. 92% of the housing units in Tulsa are occupied. 56% of the housing units were owner occupied compared the national average of 44%, Unique and beautiful architecture abounds in Tulsa. Tulsa is the third city within the United States with the largest number of art deco buildings after Chicago and New York City. Tulsa has pride in ownership. Tulsa has the second, third and fourth tallest buildings in the state. The latest icon building to be constructed is the BOK center that was designed by famed architect, Cesar Pelli, the creator of the famous Petronas Towers in Malaysia. The city continues to shine as when Time Magazine in the 1950's dubbed Tulsa as "America's most beautiful city"



Gardening, growing plants, and landscaping play an important roll in the pride in ownership of Tulsa and Tulsa County. The daily newspaper, The Tulsa World, features up to four gardening column writers in their offering. The Sunday edition is alive with garden articles. There are a number of show and test gardens in the city. The master gardener organization is large and diverse. There is located on an older residential estate, a community non-profit informational and demonstration “garden center” staffed by hundreds of volunteers year round for help and advice to the residents. Plants and plant care are part of the city of Tulsa and the surrounding county. In addition, Tulsa residents have been actively supporting sustainable and locally grown food in the community. That commitment has and will continue to encourage community food gardens in areas around the city. The commercial and industrial businesses keep maintained and consistently upgrade their landscaping features of the building and grounds. Landscape maintanence and construction companies are numerous, active and profitable.


What is the age range of the people of Tulsa?


Age plays a large role in the decision to locate a green garden gates. We are interested in a population of older stable residents with larger discretionary incomes as well as families starting new homes in the area. Our stores will fail if we do not have these groups as customers. The balance of men to women in the area also is important. Women are major customers of garden stores and their presence and ability to purchase is extremely important.


The total population of married couples in Tulsa is 53% of the population. 52% of the total population is female, 48% is male. 45% if the population is in the age range of 18 to 44 while 22% were ages 45 to 64. This means that nearly half of the population in the Tulsa area could be in the process of landscaping and upgrading new and existing homes, with large purchases of trees and shrubs while 22% of the residents may be maintaining their existing homes with smaller but most likely higher ticket plants at the garden stores.


What are the education levels and educational opportunities of the residents of Tulsa?


On the surface, gardening does not seem to be a terribly sophisticated pastime; throw down a few seeds, water and hoe. But in reality, successful gardening and landscaping takes a person who has curiosity, perseverance, and pride in his or her work, as well as the ability to explore and research. We like the gardeners whatever their levels of education or sophistication but we need a population of higher educational levels to grow green garden gates


Tulsa is blessed with 15 institutions of higher learning. University of Tulsa is ranked in the top ten of colleges where students are the happiest in their quality of life and their relationship with their community. The University of Oklahoma branch campus offers bachelors, masters and doctoral degrees. Oklahoma State University's branch Tulsa campus offers among other programs, a college of osteopathic medicine and a center for health sciences. There is a major school of aeronautics in Tulsa as well. The Tulsa Vocational Center is the oldest and largest vocational center in the state. Tulsa Community College operates four campuses across the city.


There are three public school districts in the system, with nine high schools. Booker T. Washington high school has been judged to be the 65th best school in the United States by Newsweek Magazine. There are a number of Catholic and religious schools and colleges in the Tulsa market. 84% of the population as a high school diploma compared to the national average of 80%. 71,000 people in Tulsa have a bachelor's degree or higher, 29% of the population compared to the national average of 24%.

#50 OUR FIRST STORE * (revised 6/6) "why tulsa?" part two

What about the climate, the weather, and plants that can grow there?

It is essential that we locate green garden gates stores in areas with favorable weather conditions for the springtime planting and fall planting seasons. Our research indicates that 50% if sales are lost with a day of constant rain and showers and that only 25% of those sales are recoverable if the grounds are totally covered and protected. Also, in the fall season, sudden cold weather and recurrent storms will decrease sales dramatically and shorten the season. In order to provide as many plant varieties as possible, we need a climate where they will tolerate and thrive.

Weather and climate in Tulsa and Tulsa County make nearly idea conditions for locating our first store. The gardening season starts early, in March and concludes for the spring at about mid June with an average of only 4 frost days in March diminishing to zero in the months of May and June. The wettest parts of the year are April through June, but because of the rapidly changing daily weather patterns of thunderstorms that average 50 days a year, mostly in the spring, a downpour will occur rapidly and quickly followed by sunshine for the majority of the business day. With those downpours, major floor events can occur. In 1984, a stalled weather front dropped 15 inches of rain overnight, killing 14 people, injuring 288, and destroyed 7000 buildings totaling 180 million dollars in damage. Tulsa now has the most extensive flood control systems in the nation. Our observations note that it is very common for gardeners to stand in the stores and wait out the downpour, returning to their shopping in the full sunshine and warmth of the rest of the day.

The Tulsa area does suffer from relatively high humidity during the spring season, but because of the consistent daily light winds on average of 7 miles per hour, the humidity is for the most part dispersed and not suffocating to gardening customers. The important element of this weather pattern is that this area can received nearly 80% sunshine during the planting season

Tulsa has exciting and challenging weather patterns that will need to be addressed with the building and sheltering of our customers of green garden gates. First, the downpours of rain and often accompanying cracks of lighting and deafening bolts of thunder can be dramatic and occur without notice. Customers will have to be sheltered from these storms for customers to continue to shop for plants. Also, Tulsa and Tulsa county ranks as the number one place for damaging hail in the United States. Plants also will have to always protected from this weather element. Finally, Tulsa and Tulsa County can receive tornadoes, infrequently but possibly. This is “tornado alley” There were 68 large and small tornadoes recorded in this area in the last fifty years. There needs to be adequate safeguards in place for customers and damage to structures in these tornado events.

The average growing season day in Tulsa and Tulsa County is a whopping 220 days nearly 100 days more than areas in the more northern Midwest. Further, if garden plants, shrubs and trees can withstand short periods of colder temperatures, the growing season can be extended even another six weeks. Because of these climate factors, a great variety of plants will grow and prosper. Tulsa is in a United States Department of Agriculture climate zone for plants as 6b, lowest temperatures from 0 degrees down to -5 degrees. Recently Tulsa metro has been upgraded to a 7a, with lowest temperatures from 5 degrees down to 0 degrees. These plant climate zones dramatically improve the ability to offer a larger selection of plant than any other area in the Midwest.

Another area of concern for plants survival in this area is the extreme heat in the summer months. It is not uncommon to have temperatures of 100 degrees or more for a number of days without significant or no rainfall. Tulsa, as a result of heat and air inversions has frequent ozone alerts where residents are advised to stay indoors and avoid driving. Massive and thorough plant irrigation is not as important in the spring months because of the soaking rainfall from thunderstorms, but as the late spring and summer approaches, the design of green garden gates must include an irrigation program that will be penetrating deep into the pots.

#49 COMMENTS * (revised 6/4) "but when I am alone...)

"But when I am alone
In the half-light of the canyon,
All existence seems to fade to a being with my soul and memories
And the sounds of the Big Blackfoot River
And a four-count rhythm
And the hope that a fish will rise."

“A River Runs Through It”

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

“I was used to California girls, with their perfectly manicured nails and their pointy Italian shoes gingerly stepping and placing there hands into the flowers. Everything, I mean everything was hand carried and fitted into their Lexus convertibles.

So I was astonished to see in our rain soaked parking lot, two women hoisting a two hundred pound tree into an old unpainted pickup. I ran across the pavement pleading to help them and was greeted by broad smiles, “That’s ok, we got it in and tied down” This was not California. This was Wisconsin. Anything was possible.”

We like everything about the Midwest. Well, almost everything.

The big guy upstairs could have gone a little easier on the bugs and the humidity, the snakes and the muddy water. We felt at home there. The small towns of wood and clapboard, the closeness and bonding of the communities, the values and the work ethic, all lent themselves to a beginning for our dream of green garden gates.

We decided on three areas for our first store; The State of Wisconsin, somewhere along the corridor of the cities of Oshkosh, Appleton, and Green Bay. Another was in Minnesota, Near Chanhassen and Chaska, just Southwest of the twin cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul. For the final choice, we moved to the very south of the Midwest, an area that has a strange split personality of being “Midwest” and being “Southern”, The State of Oklahoma, the city of Tulsa, and Tulsa’s surrounding towns and suburbs.

All of us visited the areas over the course of the three months. We met with community leaders, toured possible land sites, viewed the manufacturing and retail sections, the schools, the government offices, competitive businesses in gardening and building projects. We studied the history and the stability of the region. We moved through neighborhoods and watched gardeners tending their summer proud flowers and foliage. We followed set criteria and scored each area. At last, after days of photos and reports covering our motel beds, we came to only one choice; we would bet our dream on Tulsa..

Why Tulsa?

Is Tulsa located close to other cities?

“I had two bike shops ninety miles apart. I spent all my time driving back and forth on that road from one shop to another instead of taking care of the needs of my customers”

Small bike shop owner

Northern California

Our plan is to gather our stores into a tight area of the country and to expand into other clusters across the United States. We cannot choose isolated cities and towns no matter how appealing they may be. We must be able to service and manage a number of stores within close geographical proximity to one another.

Yes, Tulsa has a number of major cities and towns within two to four hours drive. To the north is Wichita, Kansas and a bit farther, the Kansas City metro market. To the South is Texas and the Dallas/Fort Worth area, To the East are the major cities in Arkansas, Fort Smith and Little Rock, To the West is Amarillo. For immediate expansion the least effort of these areas is Oklahoma City, two hours away. All these areas are easily accessible by vehicle or by airport travel that connects conveniently to Tulsa.

Tulsa has a number of rapidly expanding suburban towns on all directions from the city. To the North is Owasso; To the South are Broken Arrow, Jenks, Bixby and Glenpool. To the West is Sand Springs, and to the East is Catoosa. The population of Tulsa is about 393,000 people with an additional of about 200,000 people living in the major towns and suburbs.

Because of these clusters of cities and suburbs near Tulsa, we are able to develop more green garden gates stores and service these stores easily and economically.

What is the state of the job market and the wage scales in Tulsa?

We want stable cities and towns who are on the upswing in jobs and wages, and have a long term future in solid industries. We cannot invest in areas where unemployment lingers and where factories are closing.

Tulsa is a bright economic area for job growth, population growth, and wages in the lower Midwest and South.

“

Rounding out the Top 5 "Salary Value" cities (in the United States) is the booming Oklahoma town of Tulsa. Tulsa is the second largest city in Oklahoma with 393,000 residents within the city limits, and is expected to gain 30,000 more inhabitants by 2010. Tulsa isn't your typical Oklahoma oil patch town. It's one of America's top industry leaders in aerospace, oil and gas, and technology. Extremely low business and living costs have made the metro a hotspot for entrepreneurs. A low unemployment rate has also helped power Tulsa onto our Top 5.

From Salary.com

The major industries and their employee numbers contribute to the extremely stable workforce. They are American Airlines 9,100 Tulsa Public Schools 7,000 City of Tulsa 4,220 St. Francis Hospital 4,100 St. John Medical Center 4,050 Bank of Oklahoma 2,520 Hillcrest Medical Center 2,350 Tulsa Community College 2,200. The unemployment rate for the Tulsa area is an average of 7.1%. The average salary is 35,586.00.

“Tulsa's central location in the United States makes it a desirable place to locate nearly any type of business, from manufacturing to retail, telecommunications, and service-oriented industries. Operating costs generally run well below the national average. According to a 2004 study published by Forbes magazine, the Tulsa metropolitan area ranks as the third lowest metro area in terms of cost-of-living in the United States.”

From Forbes Magazine

What is the quality of life in the Tulsa area?

We want our customers and our employees to be immersed in a satisfying quality of life in their community, in their work, and at home. Quality of life means available financial means and overall pride in ownership, which we believe translates directly to gardening and green garden gates.

Tulsa has a nurturing wonderful quality of life.

“Incorporated in 1898, Tulsa lies in the heart of "Green Country," a fertile forested region of rolling hills in northeastern Oklahoma. Straddling Tulsa, Osage and Rogers counties, Tulsa is the second largest city in the state, located 90 miles northeast of Oklahoma City, the state capital. We are a flourishing city with the friendliness and close-knit attitude of a much smaller town. Tulsa boasts of low unemployment, with an economy based on telecommunications, manufacturing, aerospace, transportation and energy.

Tulsa's energy jobs have helped it remain relatively stable during this economic downtown, and Oklahoma is among the six states whose metropolitan areas have managed to avoid a recession. January's unemployment rate in Tulsa rose to 5.6 percent—a bit high for Tulsa, but more than 3 points below the national average. Tulsa also boasts a deep water port located on the McClellan-Kerr Arkansas River Navigation System, offering a Foreign Trade Zone, two industrial parks and liquid and dry cargo storage. Tulsa International Airport offers direct service to most major cities in the United States. The U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis has reported that Oklahoma ranked number 4 nationally in percentage growth of personal income in 2008.

So we remain optimistic, and we continue to grow. Tulsa's BOK Center, our state-of-the-art sports and entertainment venue, is thriving in spite of the tough economy. In a recent tally of ticket sales at the top 50 venues in the world, the BOK Center was ninth worldwide, and second in the United States. Home to the Tulsa Talons arena football league team and Tulsa Oilers hockey, the BOK Center also hosts concerts, ice shows and other world-class entertainment. Next year will see the completion of a major renovation to the Tulsa Convention Center, featuring the opening of the largest ballroom in Oklahoma. We've already broken ground for the John Hope Franklin Reconciliation Park and memorial near downtown Tulsa, and for ONEOK Field, a new stadium that will open in 2010 for the Tulsa Drillers, the double A affiliate of the Colorado Rockies.

Tulsa is a city of districts, each with a unique character. The Greenwood Historical District was once one of the most affluent African-American communities in the United States, known as "Black Wall Street." The up-and-coming East Village and the Pearl are walkable neighborhoods with lofts, shops and services. In Midtown you'll find a wide variety of American style homes ranging from the Craftsman bungalow to the ranch-style home to Greek Revival houses, mostly built in the early part of the twentieth century. The Maple Ridge Historic District is home to the mansions on "Black Gold Row," built by the oil barons in the 1920s. And in South Tulsa you'll find many new developments, with houses and apartments for every price range.

Tulsa Public Schools is on a “Journey to Performance Excellence,” a five-year strategic effort to make our excellent schools even better. The largest district in Oklahoma, we are proud of our schools, including Booker T. Washington High School, a magnet school ranked among the Top 100 high schools in the United States by Newsweek. The school system, which also includes Union Public Schools and Jenks Public Schools, acts as a unifying organization within the community, providing activities for its families and a sense of pride, support and identity for its patrons. We also have several private K-12 schools, many of them affiliated with Catholic, Protestant or Jewish religious communities. Fifteen universities serve the Tulsa area, including the University of Tulsa, Oral Roberts University, and a branch of Oklahoma State University

We are proud of our cultural diversity, and of the cultural activities that celebrate our part and our future. We are home to four major museums, including the Thomas Gilcrease Institute of American History and Art, which houses the world's largest collection of Thomas Moran's work, and various music and dance companies, including the internationally known Tulsa Opera and the Tulsa Ballet. We have a revitalized downtown, and the historic Greenwood Jazz District and the Blue Dome Arts District are not to be missed.

With all Tulsa has to offer, it's no wonder more people relocate here every day. Oklahoma placed Number 6 in the first "Happiness Index" from the personal finance site MainStreet.com, and we would be more than glad to share our happiness with you.

From Re-Locate America Magazine

“America’s top 100 places to live in 2009”

#47 OUR FIRST STORE * (revised 6/4) "choosing the location"

“ I would walk to the end of the street

And out over the prairie.

With the clickity grasshoppers

Bunging in arcs ahead of me,

And I could hear the hum and twang

Of the wind

And the great prairie harp of the telephone wires.

Standing there,

With the total thrust of the prairie sun on my vulnerable head,

I guess I learned at a very young age

That I was mortal”

W.O. Mitchell

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It had been a long journey,

She clocked 120 days of freeways and back roads, 7000 miles, three oil changes, two flat tires, a fender bender, and enough Wendy’s hamburger wrappers to wallpaper a small room. Twyla unloaded the worn boxes filled with chamber of commerce pamphlets and reached under the worn seats for stray business cards and sticky notes that had slipped off the passenger seat. The search was finally over. Now comes the fun stuff.

The four had decided that the first green garden gates would be somewhere in the lower Midwest of the United States. They had followed the checklist Nick had written years ago in his brown notebook and the group updated the questions for any changes that had occurred since his writing. Twyla worked the checklist as she visited the states, cities and towns in this region and carefully answered each question.

All the data for each area was e-mailed the others, weighted and rated in order to make the choice. Finally, last night, after the long conference call, they decided. They general area and the specific property was chosen

The first green garden gates, the model for all the others to follow, the model that would tell them if their dreams could work, was to be located in Tulsa and Tulsa County, Oklahoma, just on the outer edge of the city of Tulsa, on the edge of our great American prairie

#46 TRAILBLAZES * (revised 6/4) "procedures, protocol, and order

We, at green garden gates, while having the appearance of a free wheeling marketplace for plants and plant care products, subscribe to a firm foundation of standardized procedures, protocol and order.

It is important that our customers move from one of our stores to another in any area of the region and the country and feel comfortable that they are able to shop and transact for their gardening needs in a similar manner, with little confusion and much familiarity.

Our employee training includes standard protocols for attending to customers, our procedures for purchases, returns and credits are the same, our promotions are similar, exchanges can be honored in the network at any green garden gates location, our advertising is recognizable throughout the store system, and the handling of the products is a standard system for all the stores.

It is also important that the stores have order both in procedure, and physical appearance. Signing is the same, the equipment for operation is the same, shopping baskets and checkout are the same, and forms and guarantees are the same. The appearance of the buildings and the look of the employees are the same, the colors of the presentations and the “feel” and atmosphere is interchangeable from one store to another.

We further understand that standardizing these operations can lead to a “wooden” or lifeless atmosphere in our stores. Every attempt is made to foster innovation, thoughtful decision making outside the box in each store and innovation that encourages customer sales and service, breaking the absolute rigidity that order and standardization often brings to a retail facility.


In other words, we want our customers to believe that we, at green garden gates, are a little bit crazy and freewheeling. In fact, we are well ordered and know exactly what we are doing at all times