A move to one of Yorkshire’s leading garden centres has proved a huge success for home improvement specialists EYG with sales exceeding expectations and surpassing £250,000 in the first six months on site.
Hull-based EYG opened up its latest new showroom at Langlands Garden Centre, in Shiptonthorpe near York, last autumn.
The move attracted widespread media coverage as former sales consultant Trevor Bottomley – aged 85 at the time – came out of retirement following the death of his wife Maureen to head up the new venture.
Mr Bottomley’s appointment culminated with an appearance on Channel Four’s ‘Steph’s Packed Lunch’ where he was interviewed about his return to work, whilst he was also invited to be a contestant on ITV’s The Chase (which is due to be broadcast later this year).
The publicity – and Trevor’s story – helped attract many new visitors to the site, and the showroom has been such a success since that a second member of staff has since been added to the team to ensure demand is met as the busy summer months approach.
‘Surpassed expectations’
“We’ve been absolutely thrilled with the success of our showroom at Langlands Garden Centre, it has already proved to be a great new home for us and we’ve exceeded expectations,” said John Waugh, sales and marketing director at EYG.
“Trevor of course has been central to that, having come out of retirement to help us launch the new venture last year as he was keen to keep himself busy and give himself a new lease of life following the sad passing of his wife.
“His story seemed to catch the imagination of many people, and we know there have been many visit the centre simply just to meet Trevor, have a chat to him, and congratulate him on returning to work and to wish him well.
“Significantly, being based at Langlands has opened the door to us reaching new customers who perhaps travel from out towards the York, who were not previously aware of EYG, and the fact that we are a business with more than 50 years of experience in the home improvements market.”
Since opening at Langlands, EYG has added another member to its sales team on the site, Sharon Armitstead, with demand expected to increase over the coming months.
Spring sale offers huge discounts on popular Garden Rooms
EYG is currently offering a Spring Sale, with discounts of up to 30% on its popular Garden Rooms, which are on display at Langlands and are all double-glazed for maximum energy efficiency, have a 35-year lifespan, and come with a ten-year warranty.
“This is the time of the year where our garden centre sites get particularly busy, especially given we now have some excellent offers available,” added Mr Waugh.
“We have already seen demand rising for our garden rooms, with many people looking to take advantage of the fact that they are usually fitted in around six weeks from order, and so can be installed and ready for a full summer of use.” added Mr Waugh.
EYG recently celebrated 15 years of trading at Pennells Garden Centre, in Lincoln, and also has a showroom at Walkers Nurseries Garden Centre in Doncaster.