Apr 29, 2011

Big Boxes Battle for Exclusive Rights to New GeneticsSource: Wall Street Journal

According to an article in the Wall Street Journal last week, as gardeners across the country strive to be the envy of the neighborhood, big box retailers are battling to develop and sell genetically enhanced plant material exclusive to their stores only.

According to this article in the Wall Street Journal last week, as gardeners across the country strive to be the envy of the neighborhood, big box retailers are battling to develop and sell genetically enhanced plant material exclusive to their stores only.

In the article, Home Depot’s chief plant merchant for the Southern United States says, “We want to be better than the other guy. It could be a flower with a stalk that sits up a little higher or has eight blooms instead of four. But we want to sell something that the other guy doesn’t.”

In the article, Lowe’s representatives said the company reviews 1,000 flower varieties each year to select a few dozen to test and then, over a three or four year period, it ultimately will select 10 to sell.

To read the full story click here.