Sustainability Project Matthew G. Siedlecki Class Presentation Prairie Ecosystems: Lessons of Sustainability Past, Present, and Future Instructor: Justin Borevitz Assistant: Geoff Morris
Why build a business to encourage sustainability? “Green washing” and ineffective labeling standards hurt the credibility of green products with the consumer? Increase the visibility and availability of environmentally friendly products Education
Outline Market Analysis Merchandising Funding Requirements
Market Analysis Market Size Customer Profile Competitors Strategic Implications
How big is the market for garden products?
U.S. retail sales of gardening products 2003 Prices, Source: Global Market Information Database
Who are our customers?
Gardening By Age Source: Mintel/Simmons NCS
Gardening By Sex Source: Mintel/Simmons NCS
Demographic Changes: Median Age of Women Source: Global Market Information Database
Gardening By Income Source: Mintel/Simmons NCS
Gardening By Race Source: Mintel/Simmons NCS
Typical Gardener Is: White Female 2-4 Member Household High Household Income
Purchasing Green Products By Age “How often do you buy green products?” Adults with Internet Access, Source: Greenfield Online/Mintel
Purchasing Green Products By Race “How often do you buy green products?” Adults with Internet Access, Source: Greenfield Online/Mintel
Purchasing Green Products By Income “How often do you buy green products?” Adults with Internet Access, Source: Greenfield Online/Mintel
Who are our competitors?
Distribution Channels
Strategic Implications There is a large, established market for garden products and growing awareness for environmentally friendly products Serve a niche market for gardening products Cater to the needs of middle-aged women –Store location and design –Product availability –Service
Merchandising What are we going to sell? Why do these products help the environment?
Product Overview Fertilizers Seeds Lawn/Garden Tools Educational Information
Fertilizers Soil Fertility Dangers to animals and children Fossil fuels Packaging
TerraCycle terracycle.net Garden Fertilizer Concentrate Lawn Fertilizer Concentrate Tomato Plant Food All Purpose Plant Food Potting Mix Seed Starter
About TerraCycle Products Made from organic materials headed to the landfill Processed by worms Packaged in reused pop bottles –Pay groups to collect used bottles
Native Plant Seeds Habitat Less-intensive More durable
Native Plants - Full Sun Source: Chicago Wilderness, chicagowilderness.org Big Bluestem Little Bluestem Marsh Milkweed Smooth Blue Aster New England Aster Side-Oats Grama New Jersey Tea Prairie Coreopsis (pictured) Pale Purple Coneflower Wild Bergamot Switch Grass Wild Quinine Purple Prairie Clover Shrubby Cinquefoil Yellow (Gray-headed) Coneflower Compass Plant Showy Goldenrod Indiangrass Prairie Dropseed Spiderwort Ironweed
Native Plants - Partial Sun Source: Chicago Wilderness, chicagowilderness.org Nodding Wild Onion Wild Columbine Short's Aster Tall Bellflower (pictured) Purple-Sheathed Graceful Sedge (Midland) Shooting Star Sweet Joe Pyeweed Wild Geranium Alumroot Sweet (Vanilla) Grass Kalm's St. Johns Wort Bottlebrush Grass Blue Flag Iris Cardinal Flower Great Blue Lobelia Foxglove Beardtongue Jacob's Ladder Heartleaf Golden Alexander
Native Plants - Shady Source: Chicago Wilderness, chicagowilderness.org Maidenhair Fern Jack-in-the-Pulpit Side-Flowering Aster Lady Fern Black Cohosh Virgin's Bower Marginal Shield Fern (Leatherwood) Virginia Waterleaf Virginia Bluebells Cinnamon Fern (pictured) Blue Phlox May Apple Blood Root False Solomons Seal Elm-leaved Goldenrod Great White Trillium Prairie Trillium
Hand Powered Lawnmower Pollution Hassles Exercise Easy to use
Other Lawn Tools Composters Wheelbarrows Carts Shovels/Rakes