Value garden centre group, Cherry Lane, has acquired Retford & Gainsborough Garden Centre in Nottinghamshire.
Retford & Gainsborough Garden Centre is located on Bar Road, Saundby. The acquisition, the latest in Cherry Lane’s strategy of ongoing expansion, brings the group total to 16 garden centres across East Anglia, Yorkshire and the Midlands. Cherry Lane has acquired both the garden centre and its on-site Citrus Café.
Nick Rubins, chief executive of the QD Group which owns Cherry Lane, says: “The latest acquisition of Retford & Gainsborough Garden Centre is another step in the ongoing growth and success of Cherry Lane. We already have garden centres in Tickhill and Beverley so this is an ideal new location for us. Retford & Gainsborough has been trading for more than 20 years and is well known and loved locally.
“We are very pleased to welcome the garden centre team, who bring with them outstanding gardening knowledge and expertise. As a family run business, we look forward to continuing the centre’s rich history of serving the community and to introducing our great value, excellent quality and ever-changing spectacular deals.”
The garden centre, which currently employs 18 members of staff, will be known as Retford & Gainsborough Garden Centre by Cherry Lane and all staff will be retained. The garden centre will be managed initially by Lee Jackson, current manager at nearby Cherry Lane Beverley.
Cherry Lane is introducing a number of improvements and developments over the next few months. New product ranges will include Cherry Lane’s famous range of outdoor furniture, as well as solar lighting, water features and barbecues, not to mention indoor furnishings and homewares, with many ranges exclusive to Cherry Lane. A brand-new Scallywags pet shop is also coming to the centre. The garden centre will remain open to customers throughout the improvement works.
The new owners also plan to continue the garden centre’s well-established homegrown hanging basket operation, which will work alongside Cherry Lane’s existing four nursery operations where they produce the popular Grown By Us range, which is sold across all Cherry Lane garden centres. A new menu is being developed for Citrus Café too, including customers’ existing favourites.
The Cherry Lane environmental strategy, Value Our Planet, is the company’s commitment to responsible retailing, caring for the environment and the world in which we live. The initiative will see Retford & Gainsborough stocking more environmentally friendly ranges and eco products, as well as the introduction of a flowerpot and compost bag recycling scheme, where customers will be encouraged not to throw them away but to bring them to the centre for recycling or reuse.
