Planters is calling time on its Garden King garden centre in Bradley, Staffordshire, and closing it down on March 30.
The failure of the business, one of two Planters centres that trade under the Garden King name, is being put down to a combination of bad weather, competition from supermarkets and the fact that the business is so off the beaten track.

Pitched at the value end of the garden centre market, Garden King also has a site at Newhall, near Swadlincote, Derbyshire. The award-winning Planters and Planters at Bretby centres are both in Staffordshire.

Darren Sanders, who manages both Garden King Bradley and Newhall, told diyweek.net: "Garden King have had Bradley for two and a half years now, and the year we took over was a very bad year, so we didn't see any sales growth at all and the franchises were in the same position."

He said the franchises, including a mower repair business and an aquatic centre, had gradually quit over time, with the restaurant now the only one left.

"So without their rent bolstering up the bottom line it's just been losing too much money. And it's quite out of the way so it's a long drive for anybody to get there, and with the franchises going there's even less of a reason to travel out there," he said.

Supermarkets had not helped. "They take all the cream away, such as your Tomorite and Miracle-Gro," Mr Sanders said, and he went on: "It's an old garden centre and the buildings are very old, so they needed a lot of money invested in them to bring them up to modern standards, and it wasn't worth the risk at the end of the day."

Ten people employed in the garden centre and eight in the restaurant will now lose their jobs, and alternative uses are being sought for the site.

The closure announcement on Garden King Bradley's website says: "Bradley had been on the market for three years before we bought it so a buyer was unlikely to be found."

And Mr Sanders confirmed: "It won't be sold as a garden centre. In the last seven years it's been sold three times so it's not a viable business. I don't think it's suitable for retail so I think they'll try and get planning permission to put houses or another unit on it."

Meanwhile: "Garden King are still looking for other sites," he told diyweek.net. And he added that business at the two Planters centres and Garden King Newhall had picked up.

"We're concentrating on Newhall, having an extension and a restaurant put on it. We're just investing the money more sensibly in the other sites that are doing well," he said.

Garden King Bradley is now running a closing-down sale and is also looking to sell off all its fixtures and fittings to other businesses. For more information ring Darren Sanders or Dave Winfield on 01785 780208.