AmericanHort and its research endowment affiliate, the Horticulture Research Institute (HRI), have announced the SHIFT initiative. SHIFT is a multi-year research project that aims to discover the industry’s true potential and how to capitalize on the opportunities based on changing consumer demographics and behavior. The project will be unveiled at Cultivate'15, July 11-14 in Columbus.
The field-research phase began in 2014 in conjunction with the MindMarket program at the Columbus College of Art & Design (CCAD). The research digs deep into the horticulture industry's current business and retail models and how they can effectively evolve.
“It’s important to our industry,” says Mark Foertmeyer, owner of Foertmeyer and Sons Greenhouse and Chairman of the AmericanHort board of directors, “because a shift in marketing and retailing of our products is critical in giving thought to our customers, and how they interpret what we do. They don’t see it the way we do. We are utilizing design thinking because it’s a great way to get into the minds of our customers, figure out where they’re at, and then move them to a place where they can see the benefits of what we offer. Then, they can quit looking at the ‘plant in the pot’ as a commodity but see rather what the plant can do for them. It’s a really important shift, and our industry has a lot to look forward to. We have a bright, bright future.”
Nursery Management spoke with AmericanHort president and CEO Michael Geary about SHIFT last month. Read the Q&A here.
Like many industries in the post-2008 economy, the horticulture industry is actively looking for new perspectives and business models. With a shrinking Baby Boomer population – formerly the industry’s bread-and-butter at a population of 75.4 million in its prime and expected to only be 16.6 million by 2050 – and a rising Generation X and Millennial generation (total population 140.6 Million by 2018), the handwriting is on the wall: consumer shopping and lifestyle habits at-large are changing across generations and demographics.
The resulting data, insights, and recommendations paint a clear picture of opportunity for all industry businesses to capitalize on trends and even get ahead. By providing insights and recommendations for businesses at all stages and sizes, SHIFT aims to offer small steps and big changes to help the industry evolve and thrive for the future.
While it was once announced as the organization's “future of retail” research project, AmericanHort says SHIFT isn’t just about retail anymore – it’s about the future of our industry and how to meet modern and future consumers’ expectations.
In the coming months and years, AmericanHort members will see insights and recommendations of this continuing research in several ways. These will include training pieces for employees, webinars, educational sessions at various AmericanHort events, content in industry and association publications, and marketing and communication strategies.
Learn more about the initiative at the SHIFT website here.
Also, you can visit the SHIFT exhibit at Cultivate'15.