Martin Vergien new Vice President and Managing Director of Coleman EMEA GmbH

New senior leadership at the Coleman EMEA Group: Martin Vergien has been promoted with immediate effect to become Vice President and Managing Director of Coleman EMEA GmbH. Through this promotion, he takes on responsibility for managing the brands belonging to the Newell Group (Coleman, Campingaz, Sevylor and Aerobed) in the EMEA region. Read more - open to all

Martin Vergien

New roles at Bransford Webbs

Adrian Marskell has officially taken on the role of Managing Director, following the departure of Geoff Caesar. Read more - open to all

Directors at Bransford Webbs

GCA Wales & West winners receive awards

The Old Railway Line Garden Centre scooped the most awards during the Garden Centre Association's (GCA) Wales & West regional awards evening yesterday (Thursday, July 13, 2017) at Monkton Elm Garden & Pet Centre in Somerset. Read more - open to all

Ladies race for life and raise £245 for charity

Nine members of staff at a nursery in Hereford raised £245 for charity by taking part in the city's Race for Life event last Sunday (July 9, 2017). Read more - open to all

Wyevale Nurseries - Race for Life

Haskins promotes Andy Harriss to Senior Buyer

Haskins Garden Centres is pleased to announce the promotion of Andy Harris from Garden Lifestyle Buyer to Gardening Senior Buyer. Read more - open to all

Andy Hariss

Steve Guy hopes to remain within the garden industry

Steve Guy, who left Dobbies in the middle of June says he is actively looking for his next role, which he hopes will be within the garden industry? Read more - open to all

Alistair Lorimer loses his fight against cancer - Updated

News has emerged that Alistair Lorimer, a respected garden centre expert, died last Thursday after a long fight against cancer. There's to be a service of celebration of his life on Tues 11th July. Read more - open to all

Alistair Lorimer

The Gardens Group founders receive Outstanding Contribution Award

On Thursday 15 June, Mike and Louise Burks, who founded The Gardens Group together in 1987, were presented with an Outstanding Contribution Award at the Western Gazette Business Awards, held at Westlands in Yeovil. Read more - open to all

Clive Wakely, Louise Burks and Mike Burks.

Steph McGovern to host HTA Garden Futures Conference 2017

Garden retail – the great escape – is the theme for this year’s HTA Garden Futures Conference and Dinner, which takes place on Wednesday 4 October at Heythrop Park in Oxfordshire. This one day conference and dinner is aimed at all those from across the garden industry from business owners to directors and managers. Read more - open to all

Steph McGovern

Silver Merit medal for Thrive students at BBC Gardeners’ World Live!

Students attending Birmingham gardening therapy charity Thrive are celebrating winning a coveted Silver Merit Medal for their display at BBC Gardeners’ World Live. Read more - open to all

Business development appointment at Mr Fothergill's

Matt Jackson has joined Mr Fothergill’s as Business Development Manager. This is a new role and Matt will work with the key garden centre groups and collaborate closely with the field sales teams. He comes to the Suffolk seedsman after 12 years in the garden centre supply trade and brings great experience to the position. Read more - open to all

Dobbies to open at 7am for ‘Coffee to Go’

A highlight of the first day of the HTA Catering Conference was Costas Constantinou explaining to Matthew Appleby, how he would improve the Dobbies restaurants. Read more - members only

Costas Constantinou

Richard Lockwood joins Dobbies as senior plant buyer

Richard Lockwood has re-joined his former Country Gardens boss, Nicholas Marshall as senior plant buyer at Dobbies. Read more - open to all

Richard Lockwood

Conna Powles signs up to wing-walk challenge

Haskins Buying Director, Conna Powles, signs up to a life-long ambition to complete a wing walk and in doing so hopes to raise £1k for Greenfingers Charity. Read more - open to all

Kathryn completes her challenge for Thrive

Thrive’s Chief Executive Kathryn Rossiter swapped her wellies for trainers for five days in May when she took on a massive sporting challenge to raise £5,000 for the gardening therapy charity. Read more - open to all

Kathryn finishing

GCA reveals N.East and N.West regional winners

North East and North West regional members of The Garden Centre Association (GCA) are celebrating after picking up awards during a presentation evening yesterday (Wednesday, July 19, 2017) at Klondyke Strikes Wilmslow Garden Centre. Read more - open to all

Bents Garden & Home

The future looks bright for HPW Architecture

HPW Architecture (“HPW”), the Hampshire based architectural practice with a growing reputation for cutting edge, low energy, sustainable design, announces a new corporate structure as the business begins a new phase in its development. Four new directors have also been appointed, giving key members of staff a greater role in HPW’s future. Read more - open to all

L-R: Alan Powell, John Lee, Paul Stansfield, Gary Wilburn, Ben Jepson, Alex Urquhart.

New area sales manager joins Vitax

Following a period of sustained growth, Vitax has added to its sales team with the appointment of a new area sales manager to work across the South West. Read more - open to all

Daniel Wilkinson, Vitax’s md - welcoming new joint area sales manager Julian Franklin.

HTA is to recruit a chairman, a figurehead for the industry

The HTA is to complete its restructuring by recruiting a part-time chairman to be the figurehead that speaks for the industry.  Read more - members only

Adam Wigglesworth

Chris is off to the IPPS European Conference

A management trainee at one of the UK’s leading nurseries will this month (July, 2017) be attending the 2017 IPPS European Region Annual Conference as part of the 6 Packer Award. Read more - open to all

Chris King

Award from the Springfields Horticultural Society recognises the work of Brian Taylor

The Carlo Naef trophy has been awarded to Mr Brian Taylor in recognition of his life-time involvement within the Taylor family’s horticultural and farming business based in Holbeach. Read more - open to all

Brian Taylor (right) with his wife Anne, receives the 2017 Carlo Naef Trophy from Peter Ruysen.

Retail Lab @ Glee: Creative Director, Romeo Sommers

Romeo Sommers interview about his new your role as Creative Director of the Retail Lab @ Glee. Read more - open to all

Romeo Sommers

Bernard Tickner awarded MBE in Her Majesty the Queen’s Birthday Honours

Bernard Tickner has been awarded an MBE in Her Majesty the Queen’s Birthday Honours. The award has been given in recognition for services to wildlife conservation and horticulture, relating to his voluntary conservation work in Suffolk and for his work at Fullers Mill Garden in West Stow. Read more - open to all

Bernard Tickner (Photo: Gregg Brown)

Steve Pitcher joins Homebase / Bunnings

Steve Pitcher started work with Homebase / Bunnings last week, a year after leaving B&Q. Read more - open to all

Steve Pitcher

Maxwell Asare joins Evergreen Horticulture as National Account Manager

Evergreen Horticulture welcomes Maxwell Asare who joins this month as National Account Manager to the UK mainland. Read more - open to all

Maxwell Asare

Bransford Webbs Plant Company Managing Director Geoff Caesar is moving on!

After 25 years at the Bransford Webbs Plant Company Managing Director Geoff Caesar is moving on at the end of July to take up a role with Ball Colegrave as Director at their Bordon Hill Nursery in Stratford upon Avon. Read more - members only

Geoff Caesar

Grange strengthens marketing team with two new appointments

Leading garden structures company, Grange Fencing has boosted its marketing team with the appointment of two dedicated team members. Read more - open to all

Grange marketing team: Peter Holloway, Julie Hall, Mark Morris and Rob Giles.

GIMA praises Perennial’s ‘Play the Pitch’ football fundraiser

Last month’s Perennial ‘Play the Pitch’ charity football tournament was hailed a success by GIMA Director Vicky Nuttall, President Chris Ramsden (Hozelock), and council member Craig Hall from Deco-Pak. The event raised approximately £15,000 for Perennial from 16 teams and was hosted by Leicester City Football Club at the King Power stadium. Read more - open to all

The GIMA team reach the final

New finance director at Mr Fothergill's Seeds

Phil Hurst has joined Mr Fothergill’s as Finance Director. He comes to the Suffolk seedsman from the food group Hain Daniels where he was Financial Controller. This followed spells at Molton Brown and Activity Superstore. Read more - open to all

Phil Hurst has joined Mr Fothergill’s as Finance Director

Is this the most experienced sales team in the industry?

Richard Pyrah is celebrating almost 20 years in the industry and the last 10 of those as Sales Director at Kelkay but in terms of his length of service at the East Yorkshire company he is really still one of the rooky team! Read more - open to all

From top left : Richard Pyrah, Neil Willimason, Anthony Bradbeer, Spencer Goodall

To see earlier stories - Look in the News Archive