Sainsbury's is planning to stock more fresh-cut British flowers following a 40% rise in value sales of some home-grown varieties during the past year.
The retailer, which now sources 25% of its flowers from British growers up from 15% five years ago said there was an opportunity to build on a recent range review and stock more UK varieties from 2011. "We believe we can build on the growth we have already seen in British flowers," said flower technologist Robert Honeysett.
Growth so far has been driven by favourites such as gladioli, tulips and daffodils, but Sainsbury's has been experimenting with dahlias and lesser-known flowers such as larkspur, delphinium and allium.
Seasonal fresh flowers labelled 'British' carried a powerful message, said Honeysett. "We can get British flowers between January and October so we should make the most of that." The rise in demand also signalled an opportunity to pull in new customers, he said. "The growth has been driven by new shoppers to the category."
Sainsbury's commitment to selling British flowers represented an opportunity for suppliers, said Gavin Gill, technical manager at Flamingo Flowers, which also supplies Tesco, Asda and M&S. "Our main British line into Sainsbury's has been sunflowers, although it has also allowed us to try a Seasonal Select different seasonal varieties to see what works best."
Sainsbury's said shorter transport times would open up the market to varieties that could not withstand long transport times, and result in supply of fresher flowers.
The retailer, which now sources 25% of its flowers from British growers up from 15% five years ago said there was an opportunity to build on a recent range review and stock more UK varieties from 2011. "We believe we can build on the growth we have already seen in British flowers," said flower technologist Robert Honeysett.
Growth so far has been driven by favourites such as gladioli, tulips and daffodils, but Sainsbury's has been experimenting with dahlias and lesser-known flowers such as larkspur, delphinium and allium.
Seasonal fresh flowers labelled 'British' carried a powerful message, said Honeysett. "We can get British flowers between January and October so we should make the most of that." The rise in demand also signalled an opportunity to pull in new customers, he said. "The growth has been driven by new shoppers to the category."
Sainsbury's commitment to selling British flowers represented an opportunity for suppliers, said Gavin Gill, technical manager at Flamingo Flowers, which also supplies Tesco, Asda and M&S. "Our main British line into Sainsbury's has been sunflowers, although it has also allowed us to try a Seasonal Select different seasonal varieties to see what works best."
Sainsbury's said shorter transport times would open up the market to varieties that could not withstand long transport times, and result in supply of fresher flowers.
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