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With inflation affecting purchases from the grocery retailer to the gasoline station, gardeners are being attentive to increased costs, based on a current report from Simple Spring. With the vacations quick approaching, the brand new knowledge platform launched its Grownomics Report on present perceptions and future forecasts.

Simple Spring surveyed 1,012 attendees of The Great Grow Along digital backyard competition, in addition to gardeners throughout the US between August 1st and September fifteenth. Of these surveyed, 50% stated they do most of their backyard purchasing at unbiased backyard facilities, stated Peter Wigren, founder and CEO of Simple Spring.

Retail backyard bills

Garden Center The journal’s 2022 State of the Industry report discovered that 92% of IGCs raised their plant costs this 12 months, and Simple Spring’s survey discovered that almost all clients have thought-about these value will increase throughout all classes, from vegetation to laborious items. On common, lower than 20% of respondents say they have not seen or aren’t certain if costs for gardening merchandise have elevated this 12 months.

“Gardening is still going strong and garden centers will still benefit from people wanting to spend. But there will definitely be a decline,” Wigren said.

But just because consumers are noticing higher prices doesn’t mean they aren’t shopping at IGC. Just as our State of the Industry Report showed steady spending in the spring of 2022, the Simple Spring report found that in 2022, 60% of gardeners spent more or the same amount as in 2021.

“We find it interesting that there is a delay between when people notice [prices increases] and when they started caring,” Wigren said. “They said they noticed it and it will affect them going forward, but it didn’t affect them during the spring.”

Holiday spending forecasts

Consumers are noticing higher prices everywhere, and many expect to rein in their holiday spending. “I think the message is that people have noticed inflation, they’re going to spend less during the holidays because of that, and that’s going to have an impact,” Wigren said.

Of particular interest to IGCs, the report found that nearly half of respondents plan to spend less on Christmas trees and almost 60% plan to spend less on holiday decorations, whether they’re shopping at an IGC or elsewhere other.

“There is a significant percentage who say they will cut back during the holidays, but there is also a significant number of people who say there will be no impact on their spending,” Wigren said. “So there seems to be a segment of the population that is comfortable with their financial situation. And so even though they’ve noticed price increases, it won’t affect how they spend on vacation.”

For more information

Simple Spring will complete its full data platform in January, with forecast information through 2023. “Simple Spring surveys look ahead. Much of the industry is looking back. We’re trying to give garden centers and other entities in the industry a glimpse of the future instead of just stating what happened in the past,” Wigren stated.

A key piece of data for subsequent 12 months is that 94% of shoppers surveyed stated they are going to look for reductions within the coming 12 months – above all clearances.

“Clearance gross sales appear to be extra fashionable than loyalty applications,” Wigren said. “It was actually attention-grabbing for us to see that you simply would possibly suppose that BOGO or loyalty applications is perhaps the simplest, however it was actually the clearance gross sales that got here by.”

For extra insights, go to Simple Spring’s full Grownomics Report on-line.