I thought something was up when I visited one of my local stores back in late spring. As an ex garden centre worker I know what a store should be like at that time of year and it was fairly empty with stock thinly spread and looking sparse.
Dobbies reported a massive loss last year and I think have gone down the same path as Wyevale did. They have investors behind them hungry for payback. They actually bought a couple of the Wyevale sites locally when they came a cropper. Initially it was a positive move but those centres have gone very bland, faceless and also expensive in the last few years.
Luckily one of the Wyevale sites near me was taken over by British Garden Centres and it is pretty good. The plants always seem in decent condition and are reasonably priced, good range of sundries and although there are gifts and bits, it just feels more like a traditional garden centre than a department store with added gardening bits
