FEATURE: BIOPHILIC DESIGN

Published on&nbsp;24 November 2020

While traditional construction is based on the idea to protect the human from the outside, biophilic buildings focus on connecting us with nature. The intelligent concept of the glass constructions enable&nbsp;a &lsquo;cooperation&rsquo; with the natural elements like sun, wind and water. The result is a healthy micro-climate for the people who live, work or shop there. Garden Centre Owners embracing biophilic construction make a strong statement towards the growing group of environmentally conscious customers.

EFSA member&nbsp;<a href="https://www.smiemansprojecten.com/en/aboutus/knowlegde-based-builder/biophilic">Smiemans</a>&nbsp;Projecten&nbsp;is a certified specialist in biophilic design and construction. Owner en managing director Jeroen Smiemans, explains the growing demand and the benefits of this forward-looking design.&nbsp;

What does biophilic design mean?

The word Biophilie originates from the greek language and means&nbsp;Love for Life&nbsp;or&nbsp;Love for the living.&nbsp;Biophilic design focuses on human&#39;s innate attraction to nature and natural processes.&nbsp;Our physical and mental health profits from &lsquo;biofhilia&rsquo; when we are outside. Nature has a healing effect on our health.&nbsp;

What are biophilic buildings?

A biophilic building is an inspiring healthy place where you can sense nature on all kinds of ways. You can feel the connection with nature: see and sense the natural light, smell the pure air and even sense a wind flow. .&nbsp;There is no other building where nature is so perceptible/observable as in a glass construction.

Smiemans is specialising on biophilic development and construction.&nbsp;What type of customers request this type of design?

Our clients realize that people do not function well when they are indoors all day. Everyone prefers to stay in a light and fresh environment rather than a dark and musty surrounding. The use of glass automatically increases the size of the building, one does not feel trapped in a space. We have already built many projects for healthcare, now we also see an increase for offices and meeting centres. Actually, it&#39;s better for everyone..

Can you construct biophilic buildings anywhere or are there certain requirements a location has to fulfil?&nbsp;

Generally, it can be done anywhere. The best thing is of course a location such as the Bomencentrum in Baarn. The extraordinary pavilion we built is surrounded by trees. . A row of amber trees on the south side of the complex act as a sunscreen in the summer and in the winter the bare trees allow the sun to heat the building.. The adjacent water feature also makes an important contribution to the cooling of the property. On top of the wooden construction there is an ultra-modern glass roof that gives the new pavilion a natural yet stylish appearance.&nbsp;We also realized a biophilic greenhouse construction for Planon&#39;s head office that is used as a workshop, recreation room and showcase for their products. The design of EdenParks, where the connection with nature is central, is operating energy neutral.

Why should Garden Centre owners go for biophilic design of their store?

Because in addition to the many benefits for the visitors, it also has many financial benefits for the owners themselves. Think of a green roof, this ensures, among other things, water retention, heat regulation and energy savings. A biophilic glass construction also reduces the energy requirement indoors, especially in the areas of lighting, ventilation and temperature control.&nbsp;All excellent financial incentives for a biophilic design approach.&nbsp;But there are more benefits. A glass construction is also functional, affordable, technically advanced, durable and above all beautiful to see!

There has been a rising demand for biophilic architecture in the past years. Why do you think this is?

The lack of nature in our lives. Especially in urban areas one lacks the connection with nature. We either have less time to indulge in it or we simply live too far away from nature. We are more and more indoors. Especially in winter when the days are short, you see that this has a negative impact on the well-being of people.&nbsp;This is reinforced by the arrival of the Corona virus. Especially now ventilation and air quality are more important than ever.

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More information about biophilic glass constructions&nbsp;can be found at&nbsp;<a href="https://www.smiemansprojecten.com/en/aboutus/knowlegde-based-builder/biophilic">Smiemans</a>

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FEATURE: Biophilic design

spoga+gafa is the largest garden trade fair in the world. For many years, EFSA&rsquo;s extensive presence in Hall 10.1 has been attracting&nbsp;a large number of visitors who want to experience upcoming product and retail&nbsp;trends.

The innovative Concept Stores, located in the centre of the EFSA area are built in partnership with the spoga+gafa.&nbsp;The majority of EFSA Members are exhibiting together on a total space of almost 3.000 square meters. &nbsp;

EFSA Members are committed to exhibit again at the spoga+gafa 2021, from May 30 - June 1. However, we will keep a close eye on the developments in context with Corona.&nbsp;

More information will follow at a closer date to the fair.

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spoga+gafa Cologne

IPM ESSEN is the world&#39;s leading fair for horticulture. In the past years the number of EFSA members joining as a group of exhibitors in hall 5 has grown continuously. At the EFSA Lounge which is directly connected to the EFSA member booths, visitors can get a personal copy of the new EFSA trend publication and enjoy a drink.&nbsp;

Unfortunately, due&nbsp;Corona restrictions the IPM 2021 has been cancelled by the fair organisation. We will keep you updated about the EFSA planning for IPM 2022 from 25 - 28 January&nbsp;as soon as possible.

IPM Essen

Amsterdam, August 2020&nbsp;- EFSA, the European Floral and Lifestyle Product Suppliers Association announces the publication of the colour and style trends for the season Spring/ Summer 2021. The four themes are presented in a completely new format and design.&nbsp;

EFSA has developed the former trend magazine into a 6-page colour and style trend folder for each theme. The themes for Spring / Summer 2021 are presented with characteristic photography, detailed keywords, colour ranges and floral inspiration:

<ul>
	<li style="text-align: justify;">Core Country&nbsp;is a traditional, charming and rustic theme for those who are attracted to naturality and have an affection for the simple things. The colour range is a seasonal fruit flirt playing with of mauves and pinks inspired by luscious wild blackberries, blood peaches and plums framed by fresh greens.&nbsp;</li>
	<li style="text-align: justify;">Tropical Tour&nbsp;is an homage to a modern &ldquo;Latino&quot; style atmosphere, with a striking pool, exotic plants and the hint of a jungle. The colour range is a harmonious jungle pallet with a base of woody brown and vegetal green accented with a lush pink, sunny yellow, an azure blue.&nbsp;</li>
	<li style="text-align: justify;">Sunny Soul&nbsp;is a mood for those who seek the vacation spirit of a cabin-house in a cove by the sea. A bohemian &ldquo;hippie chic&rdquo;&nbsp;romanticism with references to 50s-60s inspired furniture and accessories. Soft caramel and beige base tones give way to sun-bleached green, orange, light yellow and wine-red.&nbsp;</li>
	<li style="text-align: justify;">The late summer theme&nbsp;Wild Wise&nbsp;has an exotic home spirit of a sophisticated, self-sustaining cabin. A retreat for recharging the batteries in the wilderness. For those who like to travel and are interested in contemporary arts &amp; crafts. The colour range is inspired by black-tarred and teak wood serving as a base for a contrasting spectrum of jade, marine and purple.&nbsp;</li>
</ul>

The EFSA Trend folders Spring / Summer 2021 can be requested as digital version via www.efsa.com.

<img alt="EFSA SS 21 Core Country" height="100" src="https://www.efsa.com/files/images/Core%20Country%20SS21.png" style="width: 138px; height: 100px;" width="138" />&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;<img alt="EFSA SS 21 Sunny Soul" height="100" src="https://www.efsa.com/files/images/Sunny%20Soul%20SS%2021.png" style="width: 136px; height: 100px;" width="136" />&nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp;<img alt="EFSA SS 21 Tropical Tour" height="100" src="https://www.efsa.com/files/images/Tropical%20Tour%20SS21.png" style="width: 141px; height: 100px;" width="141" />&nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp;<img alt="EFSA SS 21 Wild Wise" height="100" src="https://www.efsa.com/files/images/Wild%20Wise%20SS21.png" style="width: 138px; height: 100px;" width="138" />

EFSA presents Spring/ Summer 2021 trends

<img alt="" height="100" src="https://www.efsa.com/files/images/GRD%20logo(1).png" style="width: 252px; height: 100px;" width="252" />

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During the&nbsp;Green Retail Days from August 24 to September 18, 2020 customers get&nbsp;the possibility to view new collections, network with EFSA members and other retailers and get information on latest trends.

&ldquo;The cancellation of this year&rsquo;s spoga+gafa&nbsp;and other trade shows has been a challenge to us, especially now as Green business is booming&rdquo;, says Toine van de Ven, Chairman of EFSA.&nbsp;&ldquo;To fill the gap, EFSA members join forces&nbsp;to provide their customers a&nbsp;safe, convenient and pleasant way to do business. Of course, we will strictly handle the official requirements in terms of distancing and hygiene at the locations we visit and during our bus tours. We are looking forward to welcome our guests.&rdquo;

The program of the&nbsp;Green Retail days includes the following activities:

SHOWROOM VISITS &agrave;&nbsp;la carte 
A tailor-made program of showroom visits to&nbsp;EFSA suppliers&nbsp;of the customer&rsquo;s choice.&nbsp;Retailers can select a preferred date and choose the companies they&nbsp;want to visit on one or two consecutive days. EFSA will assist to arrange the schedule, lunch, dinner and accommodation.&nbsp;

GREEN RETAIL TOUR 
A two-day inspiration tour by bus to leading&nbsp;suppliers&nbsp;and&nbsp;garden centres&nbsp;in the Netherlands. Each Monday and Tuesday participants can join two optional bus tours to different&nbsp;locations, either in the East or South part of the country. EFSA will take care of lunches, dinners and accommodation. Minimum number of participants per bus tour is six.&nbsp; 
 
EFSA WEBINARS 
A series of four webinars focusing on trends and&nbsp;developments in times of COVID-19. The online sessions feature the topics;&nbsp;Online Sales,&nbsp;Consumer Trends,&nbsp;Secure and Hygienic Shopping&nbsp;and&nbsp;Colour &amp; Style Trends. The webinars will take place on the four&nbsp;Wednesdays during the&nbsp;Green Retail Days&nbsp;and will be given in English.

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The following 10 EFSA Members participate in the&nbsp;Green Retail Days: Baltus Bloembollen, Beeztees, Capi Europe, De Haan Group, Dijk Natural Collections, Esschert Design, Garden Connect, NDT International, Smiemans Projecten and Van der Leeden Mandwerk.&nbsp;

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EFSA organises Green Retail Days

Marianne Guedin is one of today&rsquo;s most in-demand designers and scenographers. Having grown up on the Burgundy countryside, she graduated from &Eacute;cole nationale sup&eacute;rieure des Arts D&eacute;coratifs and got her design career underway in Paris in 1998. She now specialises in vegetal scenographies, artistic creations and designing objects.

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You have a broad artistic spectrum. Where does your heart most lie?

My work is based around plant life, that&rsquo;s what most inspires me. I grew up in the countryside. My mother did landscaping in our back garden and my father was a doctor &ndash; and also a magician! They both inspired me in my early years. I would say my heart is primarily energised by flowers, followed by contemporary art in all its forms.

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You have achieved a lot of success with your artistic glass creations. What is the idea behind these?

I create blown glass vases particularly for presenting flowers. They are simple in form and reflect our collective memory, in the timeless way inspired by the Medici Vase and Brancusi&rsquo;s &ldquo;The Kiss&rdquo;.&nbsp;

<img alt="" src="https://www.efsa.com/files/images/Marianne%20Guedin%2004.jpg" style="width: 100%;" />

What are the ingredients of your success?

The ingredients of my success are a comprehensive education in the decorative arts of Paris, a formidable team, strong endurance and a continually burning passion. I look for excellence in every detail.

You design vegetal scenographies for prestigeous fashion houses and top-level brands. Is this interest in plantlife a hype or an environmental concern?

Flowers are part of our cultural heritage and lifestyle. The French don&rsquo;t see them as a trend, but as a symbol of good taste. Now, my work just happens to bring all this together. For my customers&rsquo; shows and events, I stage plants, flowers and fruit to communicate emotions and get their message across. My profession is both creative and physical. Creatively, I develop moodboards to specify materials, colours and flowers. Physically, I am heavily involved on-site, selecting and transporting products, as well as assembling and dismantling displays. The viewer only sees the elegant side. I&rsquo;ve stopped counting the number of buckets of water I move in a day! I also design objects &ndash; vases, candles, candlesticks &ndash; which brands distribute under my name.&nbsp;

Sustainability is a major topic throughout the economy, not just in the horticulture sector. Does this affect your work?

More and more customers are concerned about what happens afterwards to the plants used in their decoration. There is increasing demand for potted plants, and cut flowers are now sometimes given away instead of being thrown away, but it is quite rare. We do try to use seasonal, locally grown flowers as much as possible, but if a bride wants peonies in December, I have to source them from Colombia...

You used to work for nelly rodi, who is efsa&rsquo;s trend partner. Do you still work with seasonal trends or hypes?

Of course, to please the greatest number of people, you must be in fashion. The colourful harmony must correspond with the desires of the moment. The same applies to how compositions are styled. I always take pictures of my flowers together, they make great patterns. I evoke the value we hold for our wonderful nature by incorporating lots of foliage, even weeds, in my compositions in an attempt to reproduce nature&rsquo;s wildness. Nelly Rodi gave me some pointers on how to anticipate trends. And my art studies showed me how to create the future.&nbsp;

<img alt="" src="https://www.efsa.com/files/images/Marianne%20Guedin%2006.jpg" style="width: 50%;" /><img alt="" src="https://www.efsa.com/files/images/Marianne%20Guedin%2002.jpg" style="width: 50%;" />

On the subject of hype: monstera leaves have been in our face for a few years now. How long will this go on and what is the next &lsquo;hot plant&rsquo; or big thing?

Calathea leaves will certainly replace Monstera. These come in a great variety of shapes and colours, and have a very graphic, sometimes even surreal appearance.

Expert interview: Marianne Guedin

While EFSA has been busy showcasing sustainable ideas and innovations at spoga+gafa, our members have spent years investing in new products and technologies designed to protect the environment. To them sustainability is not a trend, but an integral part of their corporate mission.

CAPI EUROPE - Time to prepare the world for truly sustainable products

Made with recycled materials

Sustainability is something nobody can ignore any longer. Especially those of us in the gardening industry, where we have such a close connection with nature. At Capi, we started by creating recyclable planters via a sustainable process and are now expanding the collection with a biodiversity range (rain Barrels, bee hotels, bird houses). However, this is not enough. We now are now capable of producing 100% biobased planters made from sugarcane, but consumers are not yet ready for them. It is therefore time for us to increase awareness, so we can work on a better and more sustainable future for ourselves and for future generations.

<img align="left" alt="" height="149" src="https://www.efsa.com/files/images/Toine%20van%20de%20Ven.jpg" style="height: 149px; width: 100px; float: left; margin-left: 10px; margin-right: 10px;" width="100" />

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Toine van de Ven - Director Capi Europe

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ESSCHERT DESIGN - Nature inspires us to act responsibly

Esschert Design was actively engaged in socially responsible practices long before it became fashionable. Since 2009, we have been employing youngsters and people with disabilities in all kinds of roles. We currently have a group of twelve such people undergoing a training programme specially designed to help them integrate better in society. Because our products are inspired by nature, we also think about our role in preserving it. One of our new products is the cleanup tool, designed to help keep beaches and other natural areas free from litter. In 2020 we will be cooperating with large retailers to promote this tool during World Cleanup Day on 19th September.

<img align="left" alt="" height="149" src="https://www.efsa.com/files/images/Arend%20Mosterd.jpg" style="margin-left: 10px; margin-right: 10px; float: left; height: 149px; width: 100px;" width="100" />

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Arend Mosterd - Director Esschert Design

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DIJK NATURAL COLLECTIONS - Our Teak Collection: Sustainable &amp; unique

Teak root wood is a hardy, natural, weathered material. We reclaim old teak roots by carefully digging, cleaning and drying them, before hand-carving them into sculptures and home decoration items. Thanks to the individual artistic carving and finishing of each piece, Every one is completely unique. Because ongoing de-forestation is wreaking such devastation on both our planet and the communities who live in the affected areas, we support sustainability together with these communities by assisting the replanting of trees in areas where teak roots have been dug. Choosing sustainably sourced products shows a commitment to being eco-friendly. It also brings nature right into your living area.

<img align="left" alt="" height="149" src="https://www.efsa.com/files/images/Wim%20Dijk%20(1).jpg" style="margin-left: 10px; margin-right: 10px; float: left; height: 149px; width: 100px;" width="100" />

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Wim Dijk - Founder / Co-owner Dijk Natural Collections

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PHOENOX TEXTILES

Meeting the needs of the present without compromising the future Phoenox Textiles has been developing and creating environmentally friendly products for over 10 years. We strive to embed sustainable practices in every part of our business, while creating products that are practical and efficient, due to having a long and useful life, so thereby do less harm to the environment. Our products are made from recycled cotton, plastics and water and our factories are powered by renewable energy. We are proud to be a zero to landfill company and working towards becoming carbon neutral by 2022. Giving back is also hugely important, so we sponsor Plastic Oceans UK and work with several environmentally conscious charities.

<img align="left" alt="" height="150" src="https://www.efsa.com/files/images/Liz%20Mosley%20(1).jpg" style="margin-left: 10px; margin-right: 10px; float: left; height: 150px; width: 100px;" width="100" />

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Liz Mosley - Director Phoenox Textiles

Member portrait: Sustainability

Today&rsquo;s consumers are showing increasing interest in surrounding themselves with plantlife. The same is also happening in restaurants, shops and hotels. While green roofs and walls, via vertical gardening, are becoming very popular, garden centres and other plant retailers have numerous opportunities to benefit from this trend. Yet it appears these are not being taken as much as they should be. EFSA members and experts Kees de Haan, Ben Boon, Edwin Meijer and Jeroen Smiemans talk about what &ndash; from their point of view &ndash; retailers need to do to capitalise on the trend.

EDWIN MEIJER<img align="right" alt="" height="294" src="https://www.efsa.com/files/images/Edwin.jpg" style="margin-left: 10px; margin-right: 10px; float: right; width: 200px; height: 294px;" width="200" />

Marketing Director at Garden Connect&nbsp;

Successful retailers are focussing on solutions rather than products. Do customers actually want a plant, or a nice patio? Are they looking for a container, or do they want to cheer up their living room? Offering ready-to-use solutions is a necessity. You can&rsquo;t afford to just be a warehouse full of products. Garden centres need to offer easy solutions, like Hello Fresh does in the food industry. Most garden retailers are still focusing on individual products while startups are trying to disrupt the industry. Bloomon is offering a subscription-based bouquet service. Plantsome is selling plants with a useful service app that tells you how to look after them.

These are small initiatives. But most big brands were small when they first started. It might sound difficult, but successful retailers are the ones who dare to do things differently. What&rsquo;s your unique selling point? Why should I buy from your garden centre and not from Amazon? How do you deliver a top-notch experience both online and offline? Focusing helps retailers to become successful. Only 1% of retailers manage to get everything 100% right. So turn your mind to ask yourself what solutions you can offer your customers. How can you help them online and offline? What makes you different from Amazon? Find the answers and you&rsquo;ll be on your way to achieving your ambitions.

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BEN BOO<img align="left" alt="" height="294" src="https://www.efsa.com/files/images/BEN%20BOON.jpg" style="margin-left: 10px; margin-right: 10px; float: left; width: 200px; height: 294px;" width="200" />N

Sales and Marketing Manager at Thermoflor 

As the leading garden centre builder in Europe, our job is to visit many stores and speak with gardening industry business owners. Our discussions cover everything from buildings and facilities to industry trends and developments. After all, buildings have their part to play in changes to retail behaviour and trends, and should contribute whenever possible. We try to design buildings that are trend-proof for the foreseeable future. A trend I&rsquo;m currently encountering is the establishment of larger stores with even more entertainment, to counteract the cold, sterile nature of online shopping.

Two decades ago we were talking about garden centres being &ldquo;an afternoon out&rdquo; or even a daytrip. This has taken on a new relevance in 2019. Consumers need a good reason to come to your store and business owners have to offer it. Alongside this, you absolutely have to pay attention to what&rsquo;s going on in the hospitality industry, where the coffee machine has been replaced by the WMF, a cup of coffee has become a Latte Macchiato and a ham sandwich is now a carpaccio baguette. Furthermore, the store must be beautiful and needs to feel good. Everything has to be right: staff, products, interior, hospitality, social media, advertisements and... the plants of course. Plants have to return to being the common thread in the garden store. These&nbsp;are the heart of the industry and where garden centres must be dominant. Possessing drive and having the ability to create a good store set-up are prerequisites for a successful retailer. But the willingness and ability to respond to changing circumstances are also essential. If you continue to do the same as 10 years ago, you may not last much longer. Embracing change is the key to being future-proof.

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JEROEN SMIEMANS

Director at Smiemans Projecten BV <img align="right" alt="" height="294" src="https://www.efsa.com/files/images/JEROEN%20SMIEMANS.jpg" style="margin-left: 10px; margin-right: 10px; float: right; width: 200px; height: 294px;" width="200" />

Continuing growth in the garden retail market suggests that garden centres have a promising future ahead. This isn&rsquo;t just down to favourable weather conditions. A significant increase in social awareness about climate change and environmental issues means consumers are feeling a greater need to preserve nature and surround themselves with it. It is now an established fact that having more plantlife around us improves quality of life. So all this adds up to enormous opportunities for garden centres. Successful garden centres make customers feel close to nature. Achieving this starts with how the buildings are constructed. An innovative glass construction can create complete awareness of nature and its processes, with people being able to feel the natural ventilation, see the movement of the clouds and experience the seasons.

Smiemans calls this nature-inspired design &ldquo;biophilic building&rdquo;. The term derives from the word biophilia, meaning a human affinity with nature, and the practice adds 5% to a building&rsquo;s value. Integration of plantlife leads to intelligent solutions such as natural climate control and better water management. Natural, biophilic elements inside a store evidently create a feel-goodexperience. By offering a sustainable, pleasant and prosperous environment, owners encourage customers to stay longer in store. Garden centres are currently getting bigger and more diverse, incorporating restaurants, florists, local farm shops, areas for indoor and outdoor plants and more. All of these open up opportunities to make stores more entertaining and exciting, without compromising on comfort and retail space. For example, you could have a &ldquo;convertible&rdquo; greenhouse with a corridor in which customers can make an &ldquo;extra and cheaper connection with nature&rdquo;. That&rsquo;s a physical connection that not even the most advanced virtual store can offer.

The future of the garden centre

For over a decade, Alexis Tricoire has been one of the most influential furniture designers and scenographers in his field. Now leading the way in the new discipline of vegetal design, he is addressing the growing call to integrate nature within urban environments. Alexis stages plants in a spectacular and original way, combining artistry with nature. In our interview, Alexis talks about nature&rsquo;s spiritual dimension, the new environmental consciousness among young consumers and how retail can grow along with these values.

<img alt="" height="251" src="https://www.efsa.com/files/images/green-amazement(1).jpg" style="width: 350px; height: 251px;" width="350" /><img alt="" height="250" src="https://www.efsa.com/files/images/green3.jpg" style="width: 350px; height: 250px;" width="350" /><img alt="" height="248" src="https://www.efsa.com/files/images/green4.jpg" style="width: 350px; height: 248px;" width="350" />

You are called a vegetal designer and artist. What does this involve?

I am involved with a number of activities. For a start, I am dedicated to putting plants in the city via permanent installations. So I design green furniture and develop lighting, which works together to improve urban landscapes through qualitative additions. When it comes to nature, quantity matters: our cities need a lot of trees to clean the air, lower the temperature and preserve biodiversity. But it is important to integrate these natural elements in a qualitative way: there needs to be some kind of poetic perspective that people connect with, emotionally and culturally.

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Can you give us a few examples of your work?

The benches I made for Court Edouard VII in Paris introduce the paved square and the plant world to each other providing seating together with plantlife. A big thing I&rsquo;m currently involved with is work space. The aim of which is to incorporate more plantlife within the office environment. The presence of plants is now acknowledged to improve quality of life and be conducive to a positive, creative and productive atmosphere. I&rsquo;ll be introducing this concept at this September&lsquo;s Maison et Object event by designing its new reception area and giving a presentation and talkshow on the subject, explaining how we can make our office spaces more agreeable and pleasant. Another aspect of my work is participating in exhibitions providing indoor landscaping in commercial centres and devising event scenographies. I create temporary installations which demonstrate the biodiversity present in places such as forests and jungles in an artistic way. These incorporate political aspects which give real food for thought. But the emotional, instinctive aspect is also very important. Decisions are mostly based on emotive factors. I also design objects, lighting and furniture. The Babylone lamp is an interior hybrid object which is both greenhouse and chandelier. It offers a new way to observe nature and reflect on the wealth of biodiversity.&nbsp;

<img alt="" src="https://www.efsa.com/files/images/green5(1).jpg" style="width: 100%;" />

What makes your work so unique?

The combination of design and deep empathy with botanical nature. My specialty is design, but I collaborate with specialists, such as botanists, to choose the most suitable plants for the object or space I&lsquo;m designing. I recently did a project in Shanghai which was inspired by a rice field. I worked with a Singapore company who did the fabrication, while I was the art director. I start by envisioning what I really want and then adapt my idea to reality, to the constraints of realisation. Usually you are just one thing or another: designer or florist. I enhance plants through design. Bridging the gap between the two is what&rsquo;s unique.&nbsp;&nbsp;

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Expert interview: Green amazement

Showcasing the role and relevance of gardening stores in tomorrow&rsquo;s sustainable world

In times of digitalisation and climate change, gardening retail has an opportunity to be more relevant to consumers than ever before. This year&rsquo;s EFSA Concept Store at spoga+gafa, a joint presentation by the two organisations, was once again an inspiring, future-oriented, showcase. Divided into 4 sections, it displayed tangible examples and product ideas relating to Sustainability, Biodiversity, Technology and Food.

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SU<img align="left" alt="" src="https://www.efsa.com/files/images/FACTS%20%26%20FIGURES%20ABOUT%20SPOGA%2BGAFA%2003.jpg" style="width: 300px; float: left; margin-left: 10px; margin-right: 10px;" width="300" />STAINABILITY

Expanding the focus beyond just products and sales, the Store demonstrated responsibility in its approach to resources and hazardous materials. Plastic was nowhere to be found, except as an upcycled flower pot or in an instructional presentation about recycling. All four zones gave concrete answers to the question of how horticulture will contribute to halving the use of plastic materials or recycling by 2025. Visitors to the sustainability zone encountered plant containers made of 80% recycled materials and self-fill stations for substrates and flower bulbs designed to eliminate packaging waste.

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BIODIVERSITY<img align="right" alt="" src="https://www.efsa.com/files/images/FACTS%20%26%20FIGURES%20ABOUT%20SPOGA%2BGAFA%2004.jpg" style="width: 25%; float: right; margin-left: 10px; margin-right: 10px;" />

Another part of the Store looked at how we&rsquo;ll be able to do things which are important for tomorrow&rsquo;s world, such as protecting useful insects and setting up water recycling systems that prevent drinking water from being wasted.

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TECHNOLOGY

<img align="left" alt="" src="https://www.efsa.com/files/images/FACTS%20%26%20FIGURES%20ABOUT%20SPOGA%2BGAFA%2005.jpg" style="width: 25%; margin-left: 10px; margin-right: 10px; float: left;" />The Concept Store demonstrated a new approach to establishing dialogue with customers, including using new technologies to enable customers to make better choices, as well as methods for instant, real-time interaction through social channels. The best interactions often take place in an environment that&rsquo;s physically pleasant. Gardening stores with good hospitality facilities are on to a winner here. We showed what you can do with seating areas, big tables, a bar counter and food prepared from freshly harvested ingredients, locally sourced from sustainable cycles.

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FOOD<img align="right" alt="" src="https://www.efsa.com/files/images/FACTS%20%26%20FIGURES%20ABOUT%20SPOGA%2BGAFA%2008.jpg" style="margin-left: 10px; margin-right: 10px; float: right; width: 20%;" />

The Food Innovation zone presented a powerful case for the future of sustainable nutrition with cuisine that sparked plenty of curiosity and tempted visitors to try. A selection of vegetarian dishes and others made with completely new and innovative ingredients were presented for tasting. One of these was a quiche made with mealworms, which generated a great deal of interest while answering the question of how we can reduce and replace consumption of &lsquo;traditional&rsquo; meat. The taste experience was rounded off with a bottle of &ldquo;Beer from Heaven&rsquo;s Bar&rdquo;, made with purified rainwater. And to make sure everything was truly sustainable, the glass-bottled drinks were served in glasses and the snack service ware was made from renewable raw materials.

Through its Concept Store 2019, EFSA once again demonstrated how retailers can take on a new role by switching from just being distributors to being innovative partners who take responsibility for keeping our world habitable. Only those who dare to&nbsp;re-think and put new ideas into practice will remain credible to their future customers.

EFSA Concept Store 2019

Sharing knowledge and information online via Content Marketing helps your business gain more followers on social media and better search engine rankings. Both of which are highly effective for getting more customers into your store. Garden Connect, who provide online marketing services to over 300 garden centres in the Netherlands, Belgium, Ireland and UK, believes Content Marketing is a hugely powerful and increasingly important tool. To help you get a slice of the action, they&rsquo;ve compiled their Top 5 tips for effective Content Marketing.

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1.SHARING IS CARING

It may seem counterintuitive, but the more information you give customers before they come to your store, the more likely they actually are to do so. Garden centres are a go-to place for knowledge and advice, but you might think customers will save themselves the trip if everything they want to know is online. However, extensive research shows that businesses who share information online do get more customers, to both their physical and online stores.

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2.USE INFLUENCERS

Talking about your own business is always good. But when others talk about your business, you gain a whole lot more! Online influencers such as bloggers are essential for generating more awareness about your products and store. Grabbing their attention with content inspiration will help spread your message among their readers and followers, thereby significantly broadening your reach and credibility. At Garden Connect, we use influencers for two reasons:

1. to gain more attention for the garden centres we work with

2. to get valuable inbound links to our clients&rsquo; websites.

As well as generating more traffic to your website, inbound links from reputable influencers do wonders for improving your site&rsquo;s search engine ranking.

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3. SET YOUR GOALS

Different goals require different kinds of content. Do you want to boost&nbsp;online sales? Drive more visitors to a physical store? Or generally increase brand awareness? Knowing what you&rsquo;re aiming for is essential for determining the right content. So be clear about what you want to happen before you start writing. For example, to help a customer who wanted to boost garden furniture sales, we created a topic &ldquo;How to buy the right garden furniture?&rdquo; Through this, we advised consumers on choosing furniture and what to do before coming to the store to buy. The article included practical tips such as:

<ul>
	<li>Make photos of your garden</li>
	<li>Measure the size of the area where the furniture will be</li>
	<li>Search online for furniture you like via Google Images</li>
</ul>

Customers who came to the garden centre having already prepared in this way had a very high conversion rate. Why? Because they were better informed about their own needs and preferences, so were able to make the purchase decision on the spot.

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4. MAKE IT RELEVANT

thinking carefully about your target audience. An article about luxurious outdoor rooms for an inner city garden centre doesn&rsquo;t add up &ndash; its customers won&rsquo;t have that kind of space. But writing about creating an attractive outdoor area on a small balcony could be really effective. You also need to consider what actually interests your audience and how they&rsquo;ll consume your content. For example, the younger generation tend to be less into &ldquo;die-hard&rdquo; gardening and more interested in house plants and grow-your-own. This audience loves Instagram, so that&rsquo;s a great medium for reaching them. We have a customer who uses Instagram very successfully. They know their target audience likes fashionable plants and easy solutions &ndash; and they&rsquo;re willing to spend on nice products! So they capture attention by posting about ready-to-buy products.

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5. BE VISUAL

Let the plants do the hard work! Their own natural beauty is always an attention grabber. We&rsquo;ve been creating posts like &ldquo;Top 5 container plants this summer&rdquo; which generated a lot of views and helped drive in-store traffic to our customer. Creating these posts wasn&rsquo;t hard: we just had to figure out trends in container planting and describe them in a list, accompanied by stunning photos of course! People love lists. They are so easy to digest. Lists are a strategy that often works well and are perfectly suited to social media such as Facebook.&nbsp;

Are you ready to join the buzz?

At Garden Connect, we&rsquo;re really excited about the opportunities Content Marketing opens up for garden centres. However, making it work takes time, effort and know-how. You need to define a good strategy and allocate sufficient budget and staff resources. But the investment will bring returns! Contact Garden Connect if you want to learn more: www.gardenconnect.com, www.instagram.com/gardenconnectonline or e-mail Edwin Meijer at edwin@gardenconnect.com

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