Floral features supplier Plantscape is looking to kick-start its 2017 export campaign by exhibiting at the world’s largest horticultural trade show this week.
Plantscape, based in Hulland Ward near Ashbourne, will showcase its entire range of self-watering raised and floor-standing planters at the giant IPM show in Essen, Germany, which will be attended by 1,587 exhibitors from 49 countries when it begins tomorrow (January 24).
The majority of Plantscape’s business concerns planting up, supplying and maintaining planters to councils and organisations all over the UK. However, its work extends further through the exporting of its British manufactured planters.
Plantscape has sold thousands of planters to countries across Europe, as well as to the USA, China and Israel over the years, and regularly supplies distributers, working on its behalf, in Austria and Norway. Keen to continue with its exporting success, Plantscape has high hopes for Essen.
Mark Stone, managing director of Plantscape, said: “Essen is a huge event and has been extremely fruitful for us in the past, but we have high hopes for this year’s event because the exchange rate is so favourable for exporting.
“We are very used to seeing hanging baskets and planters decorating the streets of the UK, but there is a very strong tradition of installing floral features across Europe, especially in Austria, where our distributors supply products for some of, arguably, the country’s best displays.
“Last time we were at Essen we had visitors from 28 different countries showing an interest in our products and chatting to us on our stall, including people from Australia, Qatar and Mongolia.
“It demonstrates how communities all over the world enjoy floral displays and we are very much looking forward to promoting our products again."
Plantscape recorded its busiest-ever year in 2016, having supplied 12,000 planters to councils and organisations all over the country.
Its displays also helped a number of customers win prizes at the prestigious RHS Britain in Bloom Finals, including Loughborough, which won a Gold award in the Small City category.
Last year also saw Plantscape acquired by landscape services, estate management and play space services providers, TCL Group.
