Work underway on Worcester garden centre extension

Published by

Nicky Godding

Work is underway on an extension at a family-operated Worcester garden centre as it aims to provide an enhanced experience to visitors as part of its plan to grow the business.

The 470m² extension at Laylocks garden centre in Cotheridge, Worcester, will enable the centre to offer a wider range of products, improve the ambience and create a more modern appearance for its customers and support higher levels of footfall.

Design and planning specialists Malcolm Scott Consultants, based in St Mary’s Street in the city, obtained planning permission for the extension, and said that it would have a significant impact on the centre’s turnover.

Hannah Warr, Laylocks manager, said: “This development marks the first stage of our long-term plans. While the extension will help us maintain our strength as a quality garden centre growing much of its own plants, it will also see us increase retail ranges, improve the ambience of the centre and give our customers a much-improved shopping experience.”

“It is such an exciting time for our family – Laylocks is a family-run business which my father Martin has built up since 1973. Having been involved in the running of the centre alongside him for the past three years, it’s fantastic to be involved in developing our vision for the future, and everyone here is looking forward to seeing it start to take shape.”

Andrew Burton, of MSC, said: “Laylocks’ indoor sales area was too small to achieve everything Hannah and Martin wanted to, and these extensions will provide the centre with an enlarged retail footprint which will have a real impact on its performance, allowing the business to grow its sales significantly over the next five years.

“Hannah and Martin’s passion for improving things to achieve their own long-term plans for their garden centre and in supporting the local community is infectious”.

“The extension will allow the business to be ready for increased levels of footfall due to the local housing developments currently under construction,” he added.

The extension is expected to be completed by Spring 2020.

Nicky Godding

Nicky Godding is editor of The Business Magazine. Before her journalism career, she worked mainly in public relations moving into writing when she was invited to launch Retail Watch, a publication covering retail and real estate across Europe. After some years of constant travelling, she tucked away her passport and concentrated on business writing, co-founding a successful regional business magazine. She has interviewed some of the UK’s most successful entrepreneurs who have built multi-million-pound businesses and reported on many science and technology firsts. She reports on the region’s thriving business economy from start-ups, family businesses and multi-million-pound corporations, to the professionals that support their growth and the institutions that educate the next generation of business leaders.