The Busy Season Gets Busier
Even though spring doesn’t officially arrive until next week, several big growers are already having a very busy season.
Last week, it was announced that Costa Farms in Miami, Florida, was going to acquire Delray Plants. That announcement came shortly after we had heard that Altman Plants in Vista California, would be buying the inventory and facilities of EuroAmerican Propagators in Bonsall, California.
Ken Altman told GPN his company acquired the plants at EuroAmerican after a trustee from the bankruptcy court approached Altman Plants and asked if the company would be interested in maintaining the plants at EuroAmerican during the bankruptcy process — which his company agreed to do. “It went from there to discussing purchasing those plants,” Altman said.
Around the same time Altman was purchasing the EuroAmerican inventory, he also was talking to Jerry Church, one of the co-owners of EuroAmerican, about buying the property where the company was located. “Jerry said he was interested in selling it. We were interested in buying it. And, so we made a deal.” The transaction currently is in escrow.
Altman said the acquisition just made a lot of sense to his business. The facilities are “really close to our offices. It is very convenient to the rest of our operations and we almost always need more space.”
Altman said the Bonsall facilities will now be used to produce young plants as well as succulent propagation for Plug Connection in Vista, which was purchased by Altman last fall.
At Costa Farms, company CEO Jose Smith said purchasing Delray Plants was a unique opportunity. He said his company “has long admired Delray Plants and its contributions to our industry.”
Delray’s diversified product adds “significant synergies” to the Costa organization, Smith said. The Delray purchase will enhance and broaden Costa’s product offerings and market reach. Three years ago, Costa Farms acquired the Hermann Engelmann Greenhouses.
Delray’s CEO Randy Gilde is pleased with how the transaction evolved. “The hard working team at Costa Farms is committed to the same values and principles that guided the Koornneef and Gilde families for almost 50 years. Their goal is our goal — to bring the best foliage and newest varieties to market, educate the consumer and grow a sustainable product,” Gilde said.
As if the spring season isn’t already busy enough for growers, it’s really going to be a busy season at Altman Plants and Costa Farms this year.
Home Depot to Hire 80,000 This Spring
The Home Depot plans to fill more than 80,000 positions this spring at its 2,000 U.S. stores and 75 distribution facilities. The positions include customer service and sales, lot associates, freight and receiving, store support and cashier positions. The company’s Merchandising Execution Team also is hiring this spring. The company has simplified its online application process so now it only takes about 15 minutes for someone to fill out an application using any device at careers.homedepot.com.
Wal-Mart Targets Shoppers’ Spending Habits
In an effort to gain a better understanding of its customers, Wal-Mart recently partnered with the market research firm Quid to analyze how shoppers are spending their money. According to Quid’s research, the retailer’s customers are focusing on buying more foods with healthful properties; pre-cooked rotisserie chicken sales are rising as consumers look for healthy and convenient meal options; and home improvement products and home décor sales continue to rise as home ownership increases. Wal-Mart CEO Doug McMillon said the research will help the company “adapt our business to meet [the consumers’] evolving needs.”
Meijer Rolls Out Home Delivery Service
Later this month, Michigan-based retailer Meijer plans to introduce a new home delivery service called Shipt. The new service will be available across Meijer’s six-state footprint, starting with Grand Rapids, Fort Wayne and Indianapolis, and will quickly follow with other major markets in Michigan, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, Kentucky and Wisconsin. Beginning March 29, Meijer customers in Grand Rapids with a Shipt membership will have the ability to shop 55,000 items using the Shipt smartphone app or place orders directly through shipt.com. Customers can schedule their orders to be delivered in as little as one hour, seven days a week.
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