Garden centre will breathe new life into area

15/02/2012

A business park near Beverley is facing a bright future after swift action to replace a garden centre tenant which closed down just before Christmas.

Jon Los, Managing Director of Keygrowing Limited, owners of the 60-acre site, used his own contacts in the garden centre industry to identify candidates to take on the premises vacated by The Garden Centre Group.

Garness Jones then came on board to help conclude the deal which will see the site re-open next month as part of the Scottish-based Klondyke empire, which operates 26 outlets trading as Klondkye Garden Centres and Strikes Garden Centres in England, Scotland and Wales.

A key factor in the deal was Keygrowing’s success in securing changes to planning regulations which will give Klondyke more flexibility with their product range. The new tenants are giving the premises a major facelift, and Jon says the benefits will be felt by all the other tenants.

“We’ve got food businesses here, accountancy businesses, electricians, builders – there are up to 20 businesses here,” said Jon.

“The garden centre was a £4-million project when we built it nearly five years ago. We operated it ourselves but then sold it, and then it was sold again to The Garden Centre Group. It sits on six acres, with 32,000 square feet indoors and 50,000 square feet outdoors.

“Klondyke is run by people who are prepared to roll their sleeves up and have a go at something and they are on an expansion roll at the moment. This deal will be a catalyst to encourage other businesses into the area, creating partnerships and supporting each other.

“Our approach is to work in partnership, putting in a joint effort to make everybody feel comfortable. Garness Jones were part of that and did a good job for us.”

Klondyke have been contacting former staff of The Garden Centre Group as part of their recruitment process for the new centre.

Bob Hewitt, Chief Executive of Klondyke Group Limited, said: 'We are very pleased to acquire Beverley Garden Centre and are excited about the prospects for the future. It is a relatively new, purpose built centre in a good location and we have secured a much improved planning consent.

“The centre will be fully refurbished prior to re-launch at the beginning of March. We look forward to welcoming all customers back to the garden centre.”

Dave Garness, Managing Director of Garness Jones, said: “This is an excellent site and will be improved further as the result of the investment by Klondyke, who have exciting plans and will operate to a high standard.

“It was a big disappointment when the previous business closed and we were delighted that we were able to support the various parties in getting things up and running again so quickly.”