Plant suppliers to Wyevale have been left angry and concerned this week after the retailer wrote to them asking for a financial contribution to its development programme.
The UK’s largest garden centre chain says that it is in the process of making its most significant investment in its plant retail offer for seven years, including new bed cards, POS holders and directional signage. The company says plans are in place to develop a further 22 stores, starting in June.
In a letter signed by Wyevale’s category manager for horticulture, Neil Fishlock, the firm said: “As a preferred supplier, who shares our objective to grow our mutual business together, this presents a fantastic opportunity to demonstrate your long term support and commitment to Wyevale and contribute towards our future success.
“To this end we would plan to secure an additional 1.5 percent rebate based on our forecasted 2007 turnover with our company as a one-off debit taken from your July payment.”
The letter adds that the ‘contribution’ will allow Wyevale to ‘roll out this exciting new format to more stores more quickly, accelerating the opportunity for growth.’
One supplier to Wyevale, who asked not to be named, told Commercial Grower that his company was not happy about the situation, and will refuse to pay the contribution. He added though that Wyevale had been open to discussions and the two had reached a compromise agreement.
“The sheds have been doing this kind of thing before. And as most of the Wyevele management team worked at the sheds before, I’m just surprised it has taken this long,” the supplier said.
“I don’t think anyone will just pay it. If you don’t make a bit of a stand then they’ll keep on doing it,” he added.
A spokesperson for Wyevale confirmed that the company had written to all its plant suppliers to ask for the contributions. He explained: “The letter invites a response and a number of people have come back and entered into a positive dialogue over the issues it raises.”
The NFU said that it was disappointed to see the ‘undesirable trading practices, more commonly associated with the big multiples, now being employed by garden centre retailers.’
“While the Wyevale letter does not go so far as to detail the implications for suppliers who fail to accept the ‘step-change initiative’, the veiled threat is clear - support us or lose your preferred supplier status,” a spokesman for the union told Commercial Grower.
He went on to say that the situation again demonstrated the need for an industry code of fair trading for plants and flowers, an area of work that both the NFU and British Protected Ornamentals Association are currently actively engaged in.
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