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When writing this towards the beginning of October, I always feel that this time of year is probably the most complicated in terms of product mix. Autumns have stretched well into November in recent years, so sales of gardening products such as spring flowering bulbs, lawn care and, of course, plants, have generally remained strong have stretched forward accordingly. However, as our reputation for a wonderful Christmas display continues to grow, we are busy from late September putting the infrastructure for this together; we have to stop briefly to put a (small) Halloween display together before putting the finishing touches to Christmas. One of our most regularly received comments is: “Crikey, Christmas gets earlier every year”, but for the last few years we have always opened our Christmas display in time for the autumn school holiday, so I can confidently say our Christmas has not opened any earlier than usual. I always trot out my line about trying to find a happy medium between our “Grumpy” gardeners (probably a category that my Dad would have fitted comfortably into!) who want to just get on with their gardening and dislike seeing anything glittery until December, against those creative homemakers who cannot wait to see what we have created this year, and would happily look at Christmas from early September. As usual we have lots of events and activities lined up this Christmas, including ‘Storytime with Santa’ which is new for this year. The Christmas Craft and Food Fair is back, along with Santa’s Grotto, Tea with Santa and of course our Snowglobe. Details of all these and how to book are all on our website www.bosworthsgc.co.uk/ our-events Many people cannot believe it when I tell them about shoplifters that we spot and/or catch here, to many it is a crime committed against bigger retailers with an attitude of ‘they can afford it’. But it is something we suffer from and, as owners, Tania and I take it very personally. So it is with a smile that I tell you about a lady who entered the store recently, and hid a nice clock and some cards underneath her pushchair, covering it carefully with a coat, before walking straight out without paying. Unfortunately for her this was all recorded on CCTV, as was her exit from the store, her getting into the car and her driving out. She may have got away with it if she had not had an advertisement for her small business stuck to the inside of her car window, complete with contact details. A quick phone call that evening, lots of tears in the Garden Centre the next morning when she came back in to pay, and potentially a criminal record. Not what you would expect from a quite respectable middle-class person. Why do it? During this year my brother has been developing and setting up a new brewing venture called ‘Boot Town Brewery’. He now has all the licences and paperwork in place to brew ale, as well as sell home-brewing equipment. This is all taking place here at the Garden Centre, so when you see Boot Town Brewery-bootled beers for sale here in the Garden Centre you can guarantee that they have been produced and sold with virtually ‘No Food Miles’. Have a Peaceful Christmas and Best Wishes for the New Year. Not Just A Garden Centre Only minutes from J10 off the A14 and midway between Kettering and Wellingborough |
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