| Rebook
Orders NOW! |
| RIGHT NOW is great time to rebook
your order for 2001. Quality nursery stock is going to be in strong demand again this
year. There is no slow down in housing starts, income continues to rise, and available
stock in many varieties is low. Verterns in the nursery business are quick to get
thier orders rebooked to lock in the stock they need. Please do youself a favor and book
your orders today. I'm always happy to help you project your future needs. Making
necessary changes later in the season is not a problem. I can usually shift the material
you don't need to another customer looking for the same item. |
| Drought? |
| Will the Summer of 2000 bring
another drought? We had the wettest February on record where I live. 7.26" of rain
fell including a one day total of 3.86"! In late April a salesman friend called from
the East Coast. He could not remember the last time he saw the sun. Nothing but cold, wet,
and cloudy. It is now mid May and irrigation systems at gardens I have visited in Missouri
and Ohio are already going strong. Toledo is dry already. I have seen many losses in taxus and picea from what I
suspect is drought related. More losses will show up as soon as material gets stressed
this Summer. This may be the Summer to start offering irrigation services. |
| Gas going up,
up, and away. |
| The average price for a gallon of
gas in the U.S. $1.46. When I read that figure it sounded a little high. But after
traveling for a couple of weeks it may be a low. I have been paying up to $1.78 a
gallon. My daily gas cost when traveling is usually $8-12.00. It
has been topping $20.00 on a regular basis. I suspect my fuel costs will increase 30-50%
if prices remain high. Keep fuel prices in mind when bidding. On the flip side I just purchased all my plane tickets
for the Summer sales season. 12 round trip tickets (that's equal to 48 flights, 96 times
up and down, about 2 to 6 cancelled flights, 15 to 30 delays, and a couple of free meals
on the airlines!). I saved an average of $100 per ticket from what I paid last year. So
how can fuel go up over 30% and tickets go down 25 to 50%. Go figure. |
| Burpee
retail stores. |
| The Burpee folks have opened
several retail stores. The basic idea is to gather information and better gauge customer
response to merchandising and marketing changes. The information gathered will be
used to improve the sales relationship Burpee has with vendors like Walmart and Kmart.
Several more stores could be opened in various areas to better gauge regional trends,
tastes, and demands. I think this is
great news....if you own stock in Kmart, Walmart or any other company that will benefit
from their marketing information. But will Burpee share the information with their smaller
accounts?
I have a gut feeling Burpee will be very good
at creating a successful store concept. Will they stop at 6 or so stores or roll them out
nationwide? With 50-100 successful stores scattered about the nation the independent
garden centers may have something to worry about. It may not stop there. |
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| Shipping |
| Just a reminder ... Lake County
Nursery ships all summer long. Blue Sterling has no regular delivery schedule into the
area but they are happy to send a truck when you place a minimum order. Both companies
have been shipping summer reorders and welcome a stop at your garden center, nursery or
holding yard. |
| Customer
update form |
| THANKS TO EVERYONE FOR
HELPING ME UPDATE MY FILES. KEEP THOSE UPDATES COMING IN!!!! |
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