Dobbies Expected to Purchase 30 Garden Centres From Wyevale

According to an article in trade publication Horticulture Week, Dobbies is looking to purchase a considerable number of garden centres from Wyevale.

The deals are not yet finalised but discussions are underway and deals are expected to complete in a few weeks.

Wyevale commenced a sale process in May 2018 and continues to evaluate a wide range of competitive offers from the group buyers, regional operators and local entrepreneurs.  It has so far sold a total of 48 garden centres to put the business in a much stronger financial position. 

Dobbies bought five garden centres from Wyevale in late 2018, bringing its estate to 39 centres across the UK.  Graeme Jenkins, Chief Executive Officer of Dobbies Garden Centres, said at the time, “The acquisition of these five centres is in line with our strategic growth plan for Dobbies."

In January, Wyevale announced a number of changes to its executive and senior leadership team, including the departure of Roger Mclaughlan, Chief Executive and Paul Emslie, Trading & Marketing Director.  Anthony Jones has been promoted from Chief Financial Officer to Chief Operating Officer is now running the business.

Nisa Retail

In other Dobbies news, Nisa Retail has announced it has signed a deal with leading UK garden centre chain Dobbies to support the specialist retailer’s new Foodhall strategy across 35 of its stores.

The decision to join forces with Nisa was driven by Dobbies desire to develop its Foodhall offer. Customers can still expect to find unique, premium quality ‘foodie’ items in the Dobbies Foodhalls, but now a wide range of everyday groceries will be provided by Nisa. This extended range will give customers more choice and convenience, allowing Dobbies to cater for all customers’ needs under one roof.

The move allows Dobbies to harmonise its existing range with that of Nisa’s, utilising Nisa’s expertise available in range selection, planogram capability and promotional support.  
“We’re delighted to partner with Dobbies and look forward to helping them on a journey to establish their Foodhall as a one stop shopping destination, and unlocking the full sales potential of these sites,” said Steve Leach, Nisa Retail sales director.

Nisa has worked closely with Dobbies retail team to develop a range of fresh, chilled and frozen products, while helping to dovetail an everyday range of ambient products into the existing Dobbies Foodhall range.

The Dobbies team identified the potential sales in addressing visitors everyday shopping needs and moved to address this through the deal with Nisa.

Archie Stewart, Head of Food at Dobbies said: “I am delighted to see our new strategy come to life in the Foodhalls. Customers are increasingly shopping for less, more often and so we have created a Foodhall offer that caters to this top up shop mission, whilst also maintaining Dobbies uniqueness.  The Nisa product range has provided Dobbies with a credible breadth of range, while other well-loved brand collaborations such as Booths and Luca’s Ice Cream, and a continued commitment to local suppliers, have helped to differentiate our foodhalls and enhance the shopping experience”.

“Nisa has enjoyed an exceptional period of recruitment and has proven again that it is perfectly suited to partnering with a wide range of different retail formats and we know that Dobbies will benefit greatly from the input of our specialist retail support teams,” added Steve.

Source : Insight DIY Team

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