2. A study by Ipsos-NPD Inc revealed that consumer spending on flowers and plants reached $4.6 billion in 2001. Spending on these products has grown by an average of 4.5% each year since 1993. The lawn and garden segment should continue to account for a major part of the home improvement industry and is expected to reach $200 billion by 2004, according to Hoovers Online.

3. Home Accents Today magazine reported that 62% of households did their lawn and garden shopping at home improvement centers. The movement of big-box retailers such as Home Depot and Wal-Mart into the outdoor category has dramatically increased the competition for independent garden centers. Another competitive niche challenging independent garden centers, according to Home Channel News, is the emergence of House2Home, which features interior décor as well as outdoor living products.

4. To counter the push by big-box retailers, independent garden centers turned to growing their own flowers and plants with overwhelming success. This accomplishes two tasks: First, it affords them a way to ensure quality and, second, it gives them a point of differentiation from their new competitors. Ironically, National Home Center News reported that retailers are now being confronted with a shortage of competent workers that know gardening and lawn care.

5. New homeowners are considered a vital portion of the market because they typically lack the tools necessary to grow and keep a lawn and garden. These buyers are also eager to bring their own look to their new surroundings. The lawn and garden industry is so dependent on the housing market that success should be guaranteed thanks to a booming market that has responded opposite from the rest of the economy.

6. DSN Retailing Today reported that consumer interest has expanded to include items such as stained-glass bird feeders, artistic wind chimes and water gardens for their lawn and garden. Small outdoor statues like garden gnomes have also increased their popularity and have now appeared in recent home magazines, catalogs and even in advertising for other industries. Martha Stewart Everyday is just one example of how licensed products have permeated the garden industry. The Everyday line has now expanded to include outdoor décor, seeds, plants, tools, and patio furniture. A report in Gifts & Decorative Accessories magazine stated that garden-themed home décor has been on the rise and now is the fastest growing in the decorative accessories market.

7. Despite the seasonality involved in lawn and garden products, the opposite is true for television advertising. A steady ad campaign will keep your company name in front of homeowners who know that they could always be doing something to prepare their lawn for the next season. This is especially true for those retailers in warmer climate zones around the country. Independent retailers need to distinguish themselves from competing big-box retailers that are permeating the lawn and garden industry. A simple but creative television ad can help retailers meet their potential customers and show them how they provide better products and services than their competition.

8. Television is the only medium that can emotionally connect with lawn and garden customers and what they hope to accomplish with their home. Whether it is a bubbling water feature, a chorus of wind chimes or a bird feeder with colorful birds surrounding it…the use of sight, sound, color and motion enables TV to touch consumers. Homeowners are prime customers for lawn and garden retailers. Consider that more than 98% of households have a TV and that television reaches more than 105 million households and the choice is simple on what medium to choose to reach the most customers.

9. The answer is three simple reasons!

10. Your customers and potential customers use it — viewing daily for long periods of time 1. TV’s attributes of sight, sound, motion and emotion let you best communicate your message to these people 2. Television works in dollars returned! 3.

11. Remember, Only television can give you: The right message To the right people At the right time In the right place!