Plants are the hardest product in retail. They die, they need water, they look worst on the day they sell slowest, and they are usually displayed in the part of the site with the least design attention. That is where the margin is hiding.
Routing, layout and the order people buy in
Retail nursery design is a routing problem before it is an aesthetic one. Where the customer enters, what they meet first, how the seasonal offer intercepts them, where impulse sits, where the heavy goods sit, and how a trolley actually moves through the outdoor area in the rain.
We design the indoor and outdoor sales areas as one route, with the assortment logic built into the layout rather than applied to it afterwards.
Displaying plants so they still sell in week three
- Bench and table systems sized for the pot sizes you actually trade
- Light, shade and wind protection per plant group
- Irrigation designed into the display, not draped over it
- Drainage and safe, non-slip surfaces for wet trading areas
- Covered and canopied areas to extend the trading season
- Shelving, fixtures and fit-out — including our Datec metal shelving range
- Signage and price communication that survives sun and water
Designed by people who have grown the product
Our background is horticulture, not shopfitting. That shows up in small decisions that cost retailers a lot of money: bench heights that let staff work a full shift, aisle widths that take a trolley and a customer, irrigation that does not soak the cardboard displays, and shade that protects the stock without making the area feel like a car park.
We have designed retail plant areas for clients across Europe and the Middle East, from full garden centres to plant departments inside larger retail formats.
The outdoor sales area is where most money is lost
Indoor retail gets the design budget; the outdoor plant area gets whatever is left. Yet it usually carries the largest share of the plant turnover, in the worst conditions, with the highest shrink.
Wind dries stock out and blows displays over. Full sun scorches anything unshaded by midday. Rain turns surfaces dangerous and cardboard to pulp. Trolleys will not turn in the aisles anyone drew at 1.2 metres. Each of those is solvable at design stage and expensive to solve afterwards.
Seasonality built into the layout
- A flexible front zone that can be re-themed six to eight times a year without rebuilding
- Bulk positions for peak season stock that do not block the route out of season
- Covered trading space so bad weather does not close the outdoor area
- Storage and watering positions within reach of staff, out of sight of customers
- Clear sightlines from the entrance to the seasonal offer
- Sufficient till and trolley capacity for the two peak weekends, not the average day
Frequently asked questions
Is retail nursery design the same as garden centre design?
It is a part of it. Garden centre design covers the whole building, structure and masterplan; retail nursery design focuses on the plant sales areas — indoor and outdoor layout, display, irrigation and routing — and can be done on its own inside an existing store.
Can you redesign our plant area without rebuilding the store?
Yes. A routing and display redesign within the existing shell is one of the most common briefs, and one of the fastest returns.
Do you supply the benching and shelving too?
Yes, including the Datec metal shelving range, alongside display and fit-out.
Projects we have delivered
- Intratuin Nuenen — indoor and outdoor routing
- Waterdrinker Plant Center (Netherlands)
- Garden centre Abbing, Zeist (Netherlands)
Send us your floor plan
A current layout and your sales per square metre by area are enough for us to say where the route is losing you money.