Garden Centre outgrows high street

The Garden Centre Group benefited from a 90 per cent surge in sales of plants, with Christmas lights up 26 per cent and sales of pet products 147 per cent higher.

The group has 129 outlets in England and Wales under brands including Blooms and Wyevale. Among its outlets are Poppleton Garden Centre, Carr Gate Garden Centre, Beverley Garden Centre and Coley Garden Centre, which are all in Yorkshire.

While the figures were helped by the absence of snow disruption this year, the group’s chief executive Nicholas Marshall said sales were still six per cent higher than 2009 following an “outstanding” Christmas period.

The update comes as advisers at Rothschild oversee the potential sale of the business, which is majority owned by Lloyds Banking Group.

Private equity firm Terra Firma is reportedly among the frontrunners to buy the group, which is believed to be valued at around £300m.