Glee 2019 Retail Lab sponsor interview: Scheurich

Retailers seeking products of the future and the latest in-store merchandising ideas need look no further than the Retail Lab at Glee. Now in its third year, this inspirational feature area, in association with the Horticultural Trades Association, is bursting with ideas. In fact, 61% of Glee's visitors say they will attend Glee 2019 as a result of seeing the Retail Lab last year. Here, we meet one of the sponsors of this year's feature – the German pot, container and plant accessories manufacturer Scheurich, which is eager to demonstrate its latest creations when the Retail Lab throws open its doors.

When it comes to stylish pots and plant accessories, Scheurich is a household name for both garden centre buyers and consumers alike. The Retail Lab at Glee holds strong appeal for Scheurich, as it is a repeat sponsor. The company's Sales Director, Peter Taylor explains why: “Scheurich has chosen again to sponsor the Retail lab as it shares the same forward-thinking strategy, strongly focusing attention on innovation and customer story-telling, as well as capturing and inspiring the fast developing 'social consumer' in their quest to achieve the right look.”

Scheurich will showcase its indoor house plant ceramics and outdoor planters at the Retail Lab. Peter explains why the lab ticks the boxes as a centrepiece for innovation: “The appeal to Scheurich is the promotion and development of forward-thinking across the gardening category. Retail is evolving fast, and attention must be focused on who our customers are, how they wish to buy 'the look' and share images with their friends.”

Houseplants are one of the fastest-growing garden centre categories. Popular with millennials who share images of their urban jungles on social media, Scheurich is witnessing a resurgence of interest in accessories for indoor plants. Peter says: “Trendy indoor plants such as cacti and succulents will continue to develop, along with a greater emphasis on architectural foliage plants. This is leading to demand for bigger sizes of pots - fashionable ceramic containers with an emphasis on practicality. Consumers are looking for a guarantee that containers are water tight and offer ease of watering.”

Scheurich believes that environmental issues will shape consumer choices of pots and containers: “Planet-friendly materials such as clay appeal more as consumers see the effects of a disposable, throwaway world.

Product materials, fuel, labour, production processes, packaging and even the distance a product has had to travel to be on our shelves will define a retailer and shape consumer decisions in years to come,” Peter adds.

Scheurich says it plans to “tantalise” Glee visitors with a raft of new designs that mirror current trends. Peter sums-up: “The jungle look, distressed metal and retro kitchen memorabilia are just some of the inspired designs to be showcased alongside the latest fashionable colours. In a world filled with social media, creating a library of inspiration online, Scheurich pots with their colours, sizes and designs fulfil consumer requirements and meet both new and developing trends.”