Home Depot's secret garden
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One morning this winter, I woke up and smelled the roses. And the petunias.
It was a chilly day in early March when I walked into an industrial warehouse behind Suite 900 of an office park, only to find that it was bursting with flowers and the people who breed, grow and sell them. There were angelonias here, dahlias there and vincas everywhere.
The space had been transformed into a garden center for a spectacle that Home Depot HD 1.99%increase; green up pointing triangle shoppers will never get to see. Or smell.
The event is known inside the company as spring trials. This invitation-only showcase is where breeders flaunt their latest offerings and Home Depot’s suppliers get their first glimpse of new plants that the retailer spent years helping to develop.
Soon they will make their way from greenhouses to Home Depots—and then your garden.
The garden business rakes in about $20 billion a year for Home Depot—more than appliances, lumber or paint. It’s one of the biggest departments of the biggest home-improvement retailer, covering everything from live goods like plants, flowers and shrubs to soils, grills and patio furniture. In fact, it’s so big that Home Depot makes more money from its garden divisions than Hermès does from all of its luxury goods.
WSJ:
