Garden centre near Gloucester plans £1m makeover
Highfield Garden World will begin a refurbishment in January after its takeover by Blue Diamond Garden Centres. The work, expected to cost over £1 million and…
Highfield Garden World will get a major makeover from January, following its takeover by Blue Diamond Garden Centres. The garden centre near Gloucester plans to remain open during work expected to cost over £1 million and take around two months.
The refurbishment will change the customer offer as well as the look of the site. Plans include food concessions, a redeveloped plant area and more capacity at the car park and restaurant. The project is also expected to create around 20 jobs.
Garden centre near Gloucester adds food concessions
Blue Diamond Garden Centres acquired Highfield over the summer. The group runs 55 locations around the UK and is planning a total refit at the centre, which first opened in 1992.
Customers can expect a new greengrocery concession in the foyer, alongside an indoor butcher’s and deli. The plant area will be redeveloped, while the restaurant will be refitted to increase capacity. The company has also set out plans to expand the car park.
The work is scheduled to start in January, with the team hoping to finish by March 1. Operations manager Sam Carey said the scale of the project would require substantial work, but the garden centre intends to keep trading throughout the refurbishment.
“We've got a huge investment planned for the centre in January. We will really transform the centre, it will have a completely new look and feel to it from when you walk in. It will be unrecognisable,” Carey said.
For shoppers, staying open means access to the centre during the changes, although the source does not specify whether particular areas or services will be affected while work is under way. The new food concessions and expanded restaurant capacity will broaden what visitors can find on site once the refit is complete.
Blue Diamond aims to retain loyal customers
Carey said the company wants to preserve what has made Highfield successful while introducing its own changes. He said Blue Diamond was taking customer feedback into account as it develops the plans.
“We recognise that Highfield has a really loyal customer base and that's fantastic, we want to look after that and preserve the DNA of what's made Highfield so successful already,” Carey said.
The jobs created by the refurbishment are expected to support the expanded operation. Carey also hopes the changes will attract customers from further afield, including Bristol and Cheltenham, though the source does not give a forecast for visitor numbers.
The makeover is coming as the centre displays its Christmas range. Highfield began showing festive stock in early September and held its official Christmas preview evening on Thursday, October 22, with carollers, seasonal gifts, a complimentary glass of fizz and a mince pie.
At the back of the store, the Christmas department features full-sized trees, baubles and ornaments, along with a living-room display and a giant nutcracker beside a fireplace. Carey said the range had been positively received and that the team was seeing good early growth.
“This garden centre is really nice already, and we just want to put our own Blue Diamond stamp on it,” Carey said. The company’s planned investment is over £1 million.
Source: gloucestershirelive.co.uk
