" We are about 5 % up on last year , which is quite amazing considering 75 % of our men were off on Furlough for 6 workweek , " says Neil Alcock Managing Director at Seiont Nurseries , when comparing the 2020 results with that of last year . As for many agriculturist , it has been a ambitious year for this Caernarfon ( UK ) based stopper and lining manufacturer , but all in all he is very pleased and bet forward to 2021 which will be a thought-provoking twelvemonth as well as the Brexit passage period end on December 31 , 2020 . On top of that , the nursery is planning to expand and will introduce new varieties with Heuchera Frilly as their biggest launch .
Heuchera Frilly
Looking back on 20202020 has been challenge for obvious reasons , explain Alcock . " We had a slow start , then Covid lockdown , then a giving surge in demand " , he summarizes . The demand started to ameliorate in May . " The public went crazy on buying plants from Mail Order companies . We supply most of the UK ’s enceinte online retailers and most of our production is in 9 centimeter dope which are double-dyed for this marketplace .
MajorchallengeAccording to Alcock , the major challenge was dealing with a berth he had never faced before . " We had huge amounts of blood line cancelled by the Garden Centre supply concatenation in March and Early April , our nursery was full and only 25 % of the workforce was working so we had no choice but to cancel our incoming plant stuff , which was very hard to do . gratefully , most of our provider empathise the situation but it was a very nerve-racking clock time . "
Production site Seiont Nurseries in Caernarfon
All in all good salesThey have been very engaged through the summer and fall catch up with production as we could n’t propagate or pot for 6 weeks . All in all , sale have been right . " We are about 5 % up on last twelvemonth , which is quite amazing considering 75 % of our workforce were off on Furlough for 6 weeks "
B2C website - LoveGardeningDirect.comIn the thick of the pandemic , they ’ve have also set in motion their own B2C website with their parent fellowship , Lovania . With this web site , www.lovegardeningdirect.com , they offered their plants to the consumers . " We used this website to aid clear plants , which had been offset during April and May . We made collections in trays of 20 and delivered by courier . We have stopped sale for now and will review for 2021 . "
Brexit and exportsOrders for 2021 are very strong , Alcock explains . " The pandemic has proved one thing ; hoi polloi need plants . " They sell around 20 % of their product across Europe , mainly France , Spain and Italy , and exports have been skilful this year . Also for next year orders are already come in . " We have been very busy in November with many customers taking in orders to avoid possible supernumerary costs after January 2021 as the Brexit transition phase angle will terminate on December 31 . Early 2021 will be challenging as we still do n’t get laid incisively how our Imports / Exports to and from the EU will be affected . We have groom as best we can with the data we have at the moment . We are driven to carry on with as little dislocation as potential ! "
What more in 2021At the moment , they are busy with increasing the output and are see onwards to expand their nursery next year . On top of that , they will also introduce new varieties . Heuchera Frilly is their biggest launch and they will also have Cordyline Lime Passion , which will be in smaller numbers in 2021 but heavy numbers in 2022 They are already taking order for then .
For more selective information : Seiont NurseriesNeil AlcockEmail:[email protected]www.seiontnurseries.com
© FloralDaily.com/Elita Vellekoop
