Daring displays

This year, we came back from California Spring Trials with more than just a great tan and visions of amazing new varieties floating through our head. We were inspired by the merchandising displays that we saw at the 17 stops on the Spring Trials path, and thought you would be as well. Throughout the following pages you’ll see a small sampling of the creative displays that the breeders created for attendees.

Take the road less-traveled from “A” to "B”
Just say “No” to boring horizontal displays, and jazz them up with unique lines. By creating a display that makes customers look twice, you’ll see your sales of those products increase as customers spend more time checking them out. Here are some of our top picks for creative use of angles and vertical space to inspire you to create your own top-notch displays in the IGC.
 

1. Ball Horticultural got a slam dunk with this sports-themed display that conveyed motion. 2. We loved the staggered shelves and basic background on this display at Floranova. 3. The triangular shape, bright colors and angles of this Ball Horticultural display caught our eye. 4. The diagonal lines and use of cinder blocks gave this display pizazz at American Takii. 5. Ball's simple, angular display showcased the flowers well. 6. At the Fides Oro/Green Fuse Botanical/Ecke stop, we saw this display, which made us think "modern art."

Pop go the sales
Flowers can seem foreign and daunting to new gardeners, who may have never heard of an Osteospermum or Verbena. By associating these plants with different aspects of pop culture - from music to movies to social media - customers may find them more relatable, or you’ll at least catch their eye with a play on something familiar. From Planterest to plants with their own stars in Hollywood to movie parodies, there was something for everyone at Spring Trials.
 

1-3. Skagit Gardens impressed us with their creative use of social media references. We were rolling on the floor at some of the Vasebook profiles they created, which presented useful information in a fun way and got us to linger a little longer in front of each display. 4. Sakata referenced classic pop icons like Elvis in their displays.  5. Syngenta and 6. Dummen's displays used plays on movie titles like "Plants in Black" instead of "Men in Black" to create buzz around their displays.

One size does not fit all
The popularity of container gardening has exploded in recent years, and customers aren’t satisfied with the same old containers any longer. Many want to be able to design the container themselves. Others can’t decide between growing veggies or sticking with pansies and yet others are looking for the perfect gift-ready containers to give to friends and family. During Spring Trials, we had the chance to see some different takes on containers, and were inspired by the ideas we brought back.
 

1. For customers who may want to try their container combo before they buy, Ball created this simple, inexpensive column where customers can place different plants to see how they look together, an idea you can replicate in your IGC. 2. & 3. By placing these pots in colorful gift bags, ABZ Seeds and Flamingo (respectively) added perceived value with little additional cost, and create an easy-to-transport hostess gift. 4. Combining edibles and flowers is hot this year, as we saw at several stops. Syngenta gave us this beautiful example: 'Sugar Heart' snap pea paired with 'WonderFall Blue Picotee Shades.'

 Photos by Karen E. Varga