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Published on: 10/11/2006
Last Visited: 6/28/2008
When Jim and Jennifer Monroe first came up with the idea for the Hort Couture brand, they thought it might be a good idea , a marketing program for independent retailers with high-fashion design and marketing as well as high-quality plants.
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"We thought it was a pretty good idea," says Jim Monroe.
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The slant towards fashion came as part of Jim's and Jennifer's study of shoppers for not only plants, but other retail areas such as home décor and fashion. "The existing brands in the marketplace really lacked style or sophistication in their message and packaging," Jim Monroe says."The fashion concept was a perfect tie-in that allows use of fashion terms, trends and themes to permeate the brand and directly relate to our target customer."Hort Couture marketing materials include a boutique backdrop for retail, branded containers with a decor-type color scheme, the Lady Couture silhouette to display plants with, drop-in urns and the Haute Tote, a specially sized and decorative shopping bag.
"We want the consumer to view our plants the way a Louis Vuitton handbag or Prada shoes are," Monroe says.
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Jim Monroe's Top Marketing Tips
Be prepared for success.
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Many of the current varieties are underused and not necessarily proprietary to the line, Monroe says.Blackeyed Susan ,Early Bird Gold,' Pennisetum setaceum ,Fireworks,' the coleus Fruit Stand series, dwarf sweet potato vine Ipomoea batatas ,Chihuahua' and rare banana, musa ,Siam Ruby' are currently in the line.
"We want to work with lots of different companies to develop the very best genetics we can offer at the retail level," Monroe says."We're not trying to be exclusionary of any genetics company, but to bring together a product line that is the best for the consumer."He says breeders are approaching Hort Couture on a weekly basis with something new and exciting to add to the line.
Success From The Start"I don't think the term ,phenomenon' is too strong for what has occurred over the last four months," Monroe says.
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Monroe says he suspects the success of the line has had something to do with the realignment going on in the industry.
"I think independent retailers are starting to realize they have had no voice in this change and have gotten left out," he says."Several major plant brands have aligned themselves with places like Wal-Mart and the Home Depot over the last few years.It is hard for independents to compete on these products.We offer not only change, but a change that is truly different and upscale."
For the future, Monroe says he hopes Hort Couture will become the leading plant brand for the independent retailer.He says he sees the grower network continuing to expand, as well as the brand's plant selection.Three major new programs will also be introduced by Hort Couture in 2009.They'll premiere at OFA Short Course 2008. "They will create a lot of buzz again, I promise!"Monroe says.GG
For Hort Couture's Jim Monroe on design and color for 2008, click here.
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