2007 National Winner:
Petitti Garden Center
Cleveland, OH

Petitti Garden Centers earned our top award as National Winner for its revolutionary take on technology, training, production and, of course, retailing.

 

 

Petitte Garden CentersWhat makes a retailer revolutionary? Is it a focus on technology that streamlines the operation to make it more efficient and accessible to the customer? Is it employee training, which enhances the customer's experience and provides workers with the tools necessary to be successful? Or maybe it's a knack for marketing and promoting the business in a way that separates the retailer from all others and gives customers a reason to come back.

For Petitti Garden Centers, with eight locations in the Cleveland area, revolutionary is all of the above, plus a passion for the industry that drives the business forward. It's clear from talking with owner Angelo Petitti and his son, A.J., vice president of operations, that the passion found in the retail locations is coming from the top down. They dedicate vast amounts of time to in-person appearances to speak at gardening events, including the Cleveland Home & Garden Show, as well as on radio and television. Angelo hosts a popular gardening radio show each Saturday morning, while A.J. makes regular appearances on the local FOX television affiliate.

Those efforts have contributed to Petitti's brand, Angelo says. "Running ads in the newspaper doesn't say anything. When you look at marketing, you have to look at the brand," he says. "To create that you have to develop a sense in the community that you are the brand."

Petitti Garden Centers have been in Cleveland for four decades. Angelo initially started out with a landscaping operation, but quickly opened the first retail location when customers were clamoring for plant sales on the spot. Since then, the operation has exploded into seven locations and a new one set to open in March.

The new location in Avon, Ohio, is about 30 minutes west of Cleveland and has seen housing growth with more retailers setting up shop there. Angelo purchased the land in mid-September 2006 after seeing the fun park that had occupied the land was going out of business. The decision was quick, but a solid one. The location came with two unique, pentagonal-shaped structures that are very visible from a major highway and were easily modified for retail. One structure, which previously housed a Laser Tag battlefield, will now feature home accents and the florist, while the other structure, where kids gathered to eat pizza and popcorn, will turn into garden solutions.

Ideation Studio from Chicago designed the color schemes inside the structures and formulated a plan for the lighting. Nature Stone flooring of Cleveland laid the flooring inside both pentagon-shaped buildings, creating a beautiful, natural-looking feel that will help accent the merchandise.

But the piece de résistance is the Thermoflor structure that will set off the entire location. It's 50 feet wide by 40 feet high and will crown what the Petitti's are calling "Garden Street" with a cathedral ceiling that will attach to Cravo structures on either side. The Cravo houses will feature roll-up sides to allow for all-weather shopping. Also, off from one of the already-existing structures, customers will be able to walk out to a 10,000-square-foot Cravo house full of outdoor living furniture and accents. About 95 percent of the location will be under glass.

Changing To Meet Demand
In 2001, the retail garden center the Petittis built in Strongsville was a premier location. While it still is quite impressive today, the market has changed even since then. "There's a lot we learn every time we build a new store," A.J. says. "Customer needs will dictate where we go. You have to be willing to change and make adjustments. When we built Strongsville, it was the garden center of the future."

Petitti Garden CenterAngelo credits the help of Chris Primett of the U.K.-based architecture firm Malcolm Scott Consultants with setting the right tone for each of the new construction projects the family has undergone. Because of his knowledge of retail trends, the Petittis have been able to stay on the cutting edge.

And considering that 85 percent of Petitti's customers are women, it's also important to listen to the client base. "I believe women today are looking for a beautiful place to shop," Angelo says. "If you're not there, you either drop off the list or you don't get repeat visits."

Keep ‘Em Coming Back
For the Petittis, part of the allure of repeat visits has to be in the customer service and the experience. To facilitate that, an upstairs portion of the new Avon store will be turned into a permanent training room. There, Angelo and A.J. hope to conduct training sessions two to three times a week. And while they know that will mean more costs when it comes to replacement labor and time off the floor, it will also mean a well-trained, well-oiled retail machine, which can only mean good things for customers.

"The payoff is going to be the retention," adds A.J. "They'll have the confidence to serve the customer. I think it's really going to raise the whole bar."

The training will include customer service, the philosophy of the brand overall, and specific departmental training, as well as some cross-training opportunities. It will include all eight stores, and Angelo says it will take a few years to get fully in place, but the goal is to have each employee go through the mandatory training program.

High-Tech For The Future
With the new addition to the chain, Petitti Garden Centers is upgrading its point-of-sale software. It’s continuing with the same type, Retail Pro, but getting an update. All the stores are connected on the software, and they are adding a new Oracle database to the mix. The technology is not only designed to help staff monitor margins and turns but will assist in connecting with the customers, as well.

The retailer is launching a new Web site, which will integrate the rewards program into the online component. Visitors also will be able to access message boards and community forums, as well as conduct searches and see products available at Petitti Garden Centers. They will be able to see and hear clips from Angelo’s radio show and A.J.’s television spots. Horticulturist Noelle Akin will be dedicated to updating the Web site frequently to keep the content fresh and the products current.

The Web site will be designed with the idea of e-commerce in mind, but won’t launch into it just yet. And, employees will be able to enter the company’s Intranet via the site, which will give them access to handbook information, forms, an employee message board and announcements.

The Box Store War - Or Not
You'd think all of the preparations above would prepare the Petitti family for doing war with the box stores, seemingly the enemy to all independents. But that's not the philosophy taken by Angelo and A.J. Instead, they embrace the presence of the box stores. Perhaps it's because they can actually compete on price with live goods, since they grow their own very efficiently. "One reason I don't fear the big box is if you do your job right and take care of your customer and give them added value, the boxes will help you," Angelo explains. "They'll bring more traffic. If you don't do your job, they'll eat you alive."

Size also is a factor, says A.J. "We've got more square footage dedicated to lawn and garden than they do to all their categories," he adds.

Angelo says the box stores have helped lawn and garden by bringing awareness to the products. He takes that awareness and creates an ambiance to go with it, so customers like shopping in the stores and have an experience beyond what they get at the boxes. Much of that falls into the hands of buyers Martha Rancourt and Lisa Petitti, Angelo's daughter. Together, they fill the store with high-end gifts and accents that tickle the fancy of customers and make them feel as though it's a one-of-a-kind purchase. It's that shift into lifestyle, too, that has continued to push the profitability of the company.

So whether it is investing in new locations and structures, training or technology or even people, the investment is paying off for Petitti Garden Centers - a truly revolutionary operation.