Hailing from The Netherlands, eco-friendly firm Elho creates design pottery from recycled materials. David Nicholson, sales manager UK & Ireland, talks to Garden Trade Specialist Magazine about Elho’s growing sales…

How are sales in the pots and planters category? 

We’re continuing to see a fantastic year on year uplift, with double digit growth in 2017. Indoor, outdoor and grow your own ranges are all performing really well. 

A major highlight is that indoor pots in the UK are taking off. We’ve had a 125% uplift year on year. The 2018 season is seeing retailers devoting more floor space and online presence to indoor pots. 

Why do you think this is? 

For many years the UK has been behind the European market for indoor pots and planters. Led by a resurgence of interest in house plants – particularly cacti, small succulents and orchids – retailers are increasing their offer. Presenting stylish pots alongside plants is an easy win, increasing the basket size and maximising profit in every transaction. Adding accessories such as watering cans is also valuable income for Elho. 

What other key trends do you see in the market? 

Grow your own is becoming mainstream. Products such as the Elho Grow Table, which is perfect for patios and balconies, are appealing to a wide audience. We’ve also seen this trend with the introduction of our Potato Pot, which is currently our bestselling innovation. 

'The vision at Elho is to see people surrounded by beautiful plants'

Colour continues to attract and draw in customers. It’s particularly effective at drawing customers from the central aisle to experience the section. And we have seen this interest converting to sales. Our Lime Green Grow Table is selling just as well as the Anthracite version. 

Any advice on how retailers could improve sales? 

Display is still key. Retailers need to inspire their customers. Combining pots in different colours and sizes that are planted up really increases sales. 

We also recommend hosting demonstrations on how to pot and care for plants. Our customer research found that guilt over not being able to look after plants is one of the key things that puts people off. As the garden trade, it’s our job to empower consumers with the right amount of knowledge, the right plants and the right pots. Then they’ll have success in growing and become repeat customers. 

What is the outlook for the market? 

We’re incredibly positive about the future. We’ve seen in market research that, with busy lives and more of us living in confined urban spaces, there is an increase in the desire to experience nature. That’s why people are buying indoor pots and turning their patios and balconies into a green oasis. 

For Elho, we’ve taken this trend to heart. Our new logo and strapline is ‘Give room to nature’. Our vision is to see people surrounded by beautiful plants, displayed in beautiful pots, so they can experience all the benefits of green. Retailers who tap into this trend, who recognise that people want to embrace nature and bring it into their daily lives, will continue to do well. 

See the Elho website and Facebook for the company’s product range.