If life at Bents is anything to go by then the mood of the country is definitely on the up as more people than ever have visited the UK's Best Garden Centre for an early injection of Christmas cheer.
Since its official Christmas opening on 13th October, Bents has welcomed more customers than ever before, a fantastic achievement especially in today's economic climate, but not an entirely unexpected outcome thanks to a number of improvements and changes that have been made at Bents this Christmas time.
There may be fewer displays than previous years, but this new approach has paved the way for more style and inspiration with lots more space making it easier to shop and enjoy the experience. A fantastic range of products has also had a big impact from great value bauble collections designed to match the exclusive colour schemes, to expert services such as personal shoppers and Christmas at Home where one of Bents' colleagues will re-create any of the stunning displays in customers' homes.
With such extensive improvements, Bents anticipated an increase in customer numbers and with this in mind it also put a number of service changes in place. Express tills, more trolleys and new wheeled baskets are just a few of the additional improvements. Over 40 new temporary colleagues have been recruited and trained to cover the Christmas period and the car park has been extended with 100 new spaces and improved lighting. All the changes have been introduced to help accommodate the growing number of customers during this busy time whilst providing the same high levels of standards and care that Bents has become known for.
Says Matthew Bent, Managing Director of Bents Garden & Home: “We always expect to be busy over the Christmas period, but we can't believe the response we've had this year and are delighted to have had such positive feedback. We've been so busy it has been all hands to deck and our management team are working extra weekends to make sure everything goes as smoothly as possible during what is a very exciting time for us.”
Another reason for the huge surge in popularity at Bents this Christmas could be thanks to the stylish TV advert that ran in the Granada region. The advert, only the second of its kind for Bents, was very popular and has proved hugely successful.
Bents is also open until 9pm every weekday evening and this, combined with its out-of-town location, makes it an ideal location for late night Christmas shopping and a perfect antidote to a hard day at work.