Get inspired! See fantastic pop-up stores brought to life at Glee 2024 and find out how you can take part in the Talent Store next year...
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Talent Store
How it works
20 Talent Store students will be selected to participate in a full day retail boot-camp with Debbie Flowerday and Michael Perry to further their industry knowledge.
From those 20 students, 12 will then be chosen and put in two groups where they must work together and come up with an original concept for their pop-up store.
The groups will have a tight budget to focus on recycling and upcycling and create a physical pop-up store at Glee 2024, followed by the awards ceremony!
Designed for up-and-coming retailers, the Talent Store, in association with The Garden Centre Association, is a crash course in visual merchandising, branding and retail, giving participants the chance to learn from experts across the retail industry. Participants are nominated to be part of the Talent Store via the Glee website. Nominations are now open for this year and we look forward to receiving your entries!
Get inspired and see their work brought to life in the atrium of the show. Whilst you're there, you can also find out more about how to get involved next year. Any full-time team member with less than 5 years of experience is invited to be nominated. Must be a GCA member to enter.
The winning team of 2024...
Urban Oasis
‘Urban Oasis’ created a place to unwind and transported visitors into space the showed how houseplants can create and transform urban spaces. With the increase in urban living in mind, they highlighted how houseplants can play a key role in bringing nature back to the customer! With sustainability at the heart of the design through redesign and repurposing, reinvention was a key theme in creating a space that highlights the different benefits and elements of houseplants through customer focused and immersive living displays. From air purifying walls to drought tolerant wall art, and humidity loving coffee table, they showed how houseplants can become the heart of the urban home and reinvent the ways we can merchandise them with houseplant focused products marketed accordingly.
Lucia Hopcraft
Lucia started working for Stewart's at the age of 16 as a seasonal Christmas temp and has now been with the company for 11 years. Whilst working for Stewart's she has undertaken 2 apprenticeships in retail skills and customer service gaining distinctions for both. It was whilst Lucia was completing her retail skills apprenticeship that she found she had a passion for visual merchandising so after completing her apprenticeship she enrolled on a level 2 floristry diploma at the Academy of floristry in Bournemouth.
Annie Gundry
Annie joined Playhatch Garden Centre after graduating from Oxford Brookes University in the pandemic in 2020. Initially joining in a part time customer service role at Playhatch Garden Centre, Annie has now progressed onto become the Shop Manager. Despite being a smaller Centre within BGC, Playhatch punches well above its weight, successfully run by a hard-working, committed and tight-knit team. Working in a great Centre that has a heavy plant focus, Annie has fostered a love of plants, and sense of creativity.
The runners up...
Pet Friendly Garden
Making an outdoor space that works for both you and the furry members of your family is easy and simple. Making our garden fun for our furry friends as well as keeping it safe. We have focused on activities in the garden to encourage natural animal behaviour such as sniffing, foraging and exploring, its an easy way to enrich their lives and improve their welfare.
Catrin Jones
A fun bubbly girl who likes to travel from North Wales. In my spare time I take advantage of what North Wales has to offer, by walking all our lovely mountains. An average day consists of managing and merchandising Fron Goch Garden Centre, I take a lot of pride in my work and a bit of a perfections some may say. I’ve been working at Fron Goch Garden Centre for 5 years; it is a small family run business that has evolved into a very special place for the community to come together and enjoy a unique retail experience.
Steve Chase
Modern-day middle-aged chappie and part of British Garden Centres team. A busy day includes Buying, Booking-In, Merchandising, Team Management, Stock Management, Operational Compliance and other everyday Centre Management activities linked to running a large Garden Centre. Proud to be quite fit averaging 25-30,000 steps a day and I can still carry 2 bags of compost at the same time! Claim to fame in my history, I've climbed the 3 peaks of the UK in a tiny bit over 24hrs and guest presented on QVC the shopping channel before You Tube became a thing!
