Trade Fair Aalsmeer and IFTF 2023: Our takeaways

Well, Graham is back in the office, fresh from his trip to Aalsmeer and IFTF earlier this month. Providing a great opportunity to meet with contacts and friends alike, visiting trade shows allows us to keep our ear to the ground. And, after a bumpy few years, it was fantastic to see the shows bustling with industry.

Didn’t make it to the shows? Never fear, for we’ve jotted down our key takeaways from the shows here.

The rise of smaller pots?

It was interesting to see several exhibitors showing plants in very small pot sizes – sub 9cm. Of note was our Ajuga reptans ‘Black Scallop’ and Euphorbia martini ‘Ascot Rainbow’, which, although typically sold as larger plants, work well in small pots.

These should attract impulse purchases, as well as being good filler options for tubs and planters. Sub-9cm pots are ideal for maximising shelf space in garden centres, homeware shops and supermarkets.

Plus, requiring that much less growing and nurturing time, these mini pots allow growers and finishers to get fresh plants to market much faster. An interesting development for these fantastic varieties.

Christmas Cacti and festive marketing

Love it or hate it, the festive clamour is here for another year. We saw several Christmas-based offerings, including these Father Christmas felt-bedecked Cacti. We know, we know, they’re very Marmite, and let’s not mention glitter-covered plants. However, is there a place for encouraging more people look after and enjoy plants? Yes!

These googly-eyed cacti might offend your senses but if they’re a route for children to take their first steps into plant care, we’re all for it. Just look at John Lewis’ latest Christmas advert, featuring Snapper the Venus fly trap.

Many will be quick to say this kind of marketing encourages our throwaway culture to extend to plants, and that is a concern. Key, we believe, is to market these plants as a longer-term gift. After Christmas, simply pluck the felt hat off and voila, a cactus that’s not just for Christmas.

Plant holidays on the rise

No, we’re not talking about a long weekend in Wisley’s Glasshouse. What we did spot during the show was indoor/outdoor plants gaining in popularity.

A few years ago, there seemed to be a nervousness about owning plants that had to be moved indoors for the winter, however, we saw lots of Echeverias being marketed this way at this year’s Trade Fair. It seems consumers are warming up to the idea of giving their houseplants a summer holiday in the garden.

Houseplants go large 

On a similar thread, houseplants were at both the Trade Fair Aalsmeer and IFTF in a big way. And when we say big, we mean it. As houseplant popularity has soared since the pandemic, we’ve started to see shoppers that are willing to invest in their houseplants.

As a result, we saw a lot of big, bold houseplants, from large Echeverias to enormous Alocasias. The Alocasia Regal Shields from Forever Plants Group came third in the Glass Tulip Award 2023-2024: Houseplants Green category, with its huge, eye-catching leaves.

No longer the second-thought side to gardening and homeware, houseplants are big business. Will this inclination for well established, large-foliaged plants migrate to garden plants as well? We enjoyed seeing our Begonias, including Begonia Sterling Silver (pictured). Brought to us by Angela Treadwell-Palmer at Plants Nouveau, these beautiful plants look tender but are actually hardy.

Jazzy sticks

Marketing summer-blooming beauties through the dormant season is an annual problem, so we were excited to see these life-size flower labels showing customers what to expect from BIG HIBISKISS® Walberton’s® Rose Moon. It’s a simple concept, but a neat way to sell the variety out of season.

Buoyancy in the industry

But the biggest takeaway for us has to be the overwhelmingly buoyant, positive mood at both Aalsmeer Trade Show and IFTF. It has been a rough few years for all in horticulture, so it was uplifting to see the shows bustling and thriving. Many that we spoke to are increasing their orders for next year, with indications hinting that demand for plants will increase.

It was also fantastic to see so much innovation from across the industry, from fresh, new varieties to discussions around peat and materials. The industry feels vibrant, and we predict an exciting season next year.

Plants for Europe will be going to IPM in January! If you’d like to book in a meeting, or chat to us before then, get in touch.