Gardening in France

2020 IMPACT

Home seclusion trend encourages consumers to invest greater time and energy into outdoor areas, benefiting certain areas of gardening in 2020

While 2020 saw overall gardening in France record similar current value growth to the previous year, different areas of the category saw a notable upturn during the year as gardening was a major focus by many local consumers, not just during the initial lockdown in the spring but also into the summer with various restrictions remaining in force.

Indoor plants suffer as consumers move outside for spring and summer

Polarising trends influenced the performance of horticulture within gardening in 2020: overall declining value sales were linked to the move away from the previously strongly performing indoor plants as the French switched to outside living during the warmer months, not only tending their lawns and flower beds, but also attempting to grow their own produce. The review period had seen an increasing trend for consumers residing in large cities, particularly apartment dwellers, to purchase indoor plants from local florists as a way to bring “the outside in”.

Highly fragmented competitive landscape led by affordable private label

The competitive landscape of gardening remained highly fragmented in 2020, with private label holding the highest overall combined share. Identifying specific brands in terms of plants in France is difficult, although labels marketed as “Made in France” are becoming increasingly popular amongst local consumers.

RECOVERY AND OPPORTUNITIES

Overall positive prospects for gardening despite possible influential negative factors

One negative factor which emerged from the initial lockdown and subsequent restrictions was the disposal of plants by specialist retailers; many stores which had already ordered in their usual stock levels were unprepared and were forced to dispose of flowers and plants which they were unable to care for during enforced closures. This is likely to influence their decision making for spring 2021, and whether they will see a further surge in demand due to ongoing restrictions and the home seclusion trend or whether the French a year on will be less enthusiastic about investing as much time and money into their gardens.

Branded plants have potential to attract more consumers

Despite the likely ongoing popularity of private label within gardening, horticulture in particular is set to see the further emergence of brands, which will make it easier to consumers to identify locally-produced plants of good quality. Pure online player Bergamotte started to offer flowers in 2015 before adding indoor and outdoor plants to its range in 2017.

E-commerce likely to gain further ground amongst increasingly busy consumers

While home improvement and gardening stores is likely to remain the dominant distribution channel for gardening as local consumers appreciate being able to physically check the quality of many products within the category, the convenience of home delivery and the opportunity to find competitive prices are likely to continue to attract tech-savvy younger generations, particularly as they gradually return their busy lifestyles. The pandemic and initial restrictions emphasised the need for players and retailers to strengthen or adopt an omnichannel strategy, with some brands such as Gardena and Stihl launching their own direct to consumer e-commerce sites rather than through third party marketplaces.