Sustainability Project
Matthew G. Siedlecki
mgs@uchicago.edu
Final Project
6.1.2007
Prairie Ecosystems: Lessons of Sustainability Past, Present, and Future
Instructor: Justin Borevitz
Assistant: Geoff Morris
Premise
Greener Gardens
will solve this problem
• Sometimes things
don’t make sense
• Like when this slide is
not oriented right
• And like when there are
lots of great products that
are good for the
environment, but nobody
knows about them or
where to buy them
Company Description
Greener Gardens is a retail store concept.
We provide products that not only make
your lawn and garden more beautiful, but
also make it fun and safe for your family,
pets and the environment.
Why build a business to encourage
sustainability?
• “Green washing” and ineffective labeling
standards hurt the credibility of green
products with the consumer?
– Solution: Build a retail brand that has
credibility with consumers
• Increase the visibility and availability of
environmentally friendly products
– 4 out of 10 people don’t know if their stores
sell green products (Mintel). They will know
our store sells them.
Why build a business to encourage
sustainability?
• Education
– In-store demonstrations and knowledgeable
employees will educate our customers
– This will also be a key element of our sales
efforts. The sales of many products skyrocket
when the consumers are educated.
• E.g. non-toxic cleaning products. When people
realize all of the benefits both to themselves and
the environment – they buy
Outline:
I. Market Analysis
II. Merchandising
III. Finances
I.
Market Analysis
• Market Size
• Customer Profile
• Competitors
How big is the market for
garden products?
U.S. retail sales of gardening products
2003 Prices, Source: Global Market Information Database
50,000
45,000
40,000
35,000
30,000
25,000
20,000
15,000
10,000
5,000
0
1998
2000
2002
2004
Sales in millions
2006
2008
• There is a tremendously large market for
lawn and garden products/services in the
United States.
• We will tap into this market and promote
sustainability
Who are our Customers?
• Two key questions:
– Who gardens?
– Who buys green products?
• Are these two groups compatible?
– hint: the answer begins with a “y” and ends with an “es”
Gardening By Age
Source: Mintel/Simmons NCS
25
20
15
10
5
0
18-24
25-34
35-44
45-54
55-64
Gardened in the last 12 months
65+
Gardening By Race
Source: Mintel/Simmons NCS
100
90
80
70
60
50
40
30
20
10
0
White
Black
Asian
Gardened in last 12 months
Hispanic
Gardening By Sex
Source: Mintel/Simmons NCS
70
60
50
40
30
20
10
0
Male
Female
Percentage gardeners by sex
Gardening By Income
Source: Mintel/Simmons NCS
45
40
35
30
25
20
15
10
5
0
Under $25K
$25K-49.9K
$50K-74.9K
Household Income
$75K+
Typical Gardener Is:
•
•
•
•
White
Female
2-4 Member Household
High Household Income
Demographic Changes:
Median Age of Women
Source: Global Market Information Database
40
35
30
25
20
15
10
Women are predicted to get older.
Our target demographic is predicted to
increase!!!
5
0
Median Age of U.S. Women 1977-2020
Purchasing Green Products By Age
“How often do you buy green products?”
Adults with Internet Access, Source: Greenfield Online/Mintel
80
70
60
50
Regularly
Sometimes
Never
40
30
20
10
0
All
18-24 25-34 35-44 45-54 55-64
65+
• The perception is that younger consumers
are more interested in sustainability
• However, it is actually middle-age people
are the leading the effort
– These are the people who garden. So it
works well for our business model!!!
Purchasing Green Products By Income
“How often do you buy green products?”
Adults with Internet Access, Source: Greenfield Online/Mintel
70
60
50
40
Regularly
Sometimes
Never
30
20
10
0
All
< $25K $25K- $50K- $75K>
49.9K 74.9K 99.9K $100K
• It is not surprising that wealthier people
are more likely to buy green products, as
they are generally more expensive
• However, the difference is barely
significant. Green products appeal to
people from all income groups
– This means that we do have a large base of
people to draw our customers from!!!
Who are our competitors?
Distribution Channels
60
50
40
2000
2002
30
20
10
0
Home centers
Mass
merchandiser
Garden
centers
Hardware
stores
Supermarket
or drug store
Seed store
Mail order
• There are lots of different ways
to buy lawn and garden
products
• There is a trend towards
specialization in the retail
industry
– We can thrive by tapping into the niche
market for Greener Gardens
– As education and awareness increase our
niche market will become the market
II.
Merchandising
What are examples of some
products we will sell?
How are these products better for
the environment?
Product Overview
•
•
•
•
•
Fertilizers
Seeds
Lawn/Garden Tools
Educational Information
Recycling
Fertilizers
• Everyone wants their lawn and garden to look
good
• There are some problems with traditional
fertilizers
– Soil fertility can be lost
– Nitrogen runs off because it isn’t absorbed fast
enough (or too much is applied!)
– It can be dangerous to children and animals
– It is fossil fuel intensive (lots of problems)
– Packaging is also a source of waste
Fertilizers
• What if there was a product that
addressed these concerns?
• There is:
TerraCycle
terracycle.net
• Made from organic
materials headed to
the landfill
• Processed by worms
• Packaged in reused
pop bottles
It is the first mass-produced
product in the world to be
packaged in used plastic
bottles
TerraCycle
terracycle.net
• Garden Fertilizer
Concentrate
• Lawn Fertilizer
Concentrate
• Tomato Plant Food
• All Purpose Plant
Food
• Potting Mix
• Seed Starter
Native Plant Seeds
• Provide habitat for native wildlife
• Have adapted to their environment
– Two implications:
• They are more durable than non-native plants
• They can live with less-intensive maintenance
• That means you get to do less work!!!
• There are many great plants that are
native to the Chicago area…
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
Traditional Lawnmowers
• Traditional mowers:
– Are expensive:
• Expensive to buy
• Expensive to fuel
• Expensive to service
– Are loud
– Are Extremely bad for the environment…
Traditional Lawnmowers
– It takes a car 100 miles to
pollute as much as a
lawnmower does in 40
minutes (peoplepoweredmachines.com)
– Lawnmowers may account
for as much as 5% of all air
pollution
(EPA/peoplepoweredmachines.com)
Souce: Pollution Prevention Institute
Hand Powered Lawnmower
• Eliminate the pollution
you otherwise would have
created
• Are cheaper
• Are hassle-free
• Give you exercise as you
take care of your lawn
• Are easy to use
– Especially important for children
and the elderly
– Traditional lawnmowers can be
difficult to control
Composters
• Reduce landfill waste
• Creates free fertilizer
• Helps the soil retain
water
• Composting is made
easy with our
composting supplies
Garden Tools
• We will also be
source for all of the
traditional tools that
are needed in the
garden
• This will make us the
“one-stop-shop” for all
of your gardening
needs
Educational Materials
• A selection of books
and videos on
building lawns and
gardens that are
healthy and good for
the environment will
be sold
• These products will
also help drive sales
as people become
better educated
Recycling Center
• Our store will be a place where people can
recycle
• Recycling is easy and free to the customer
• Our recycling “depot” will be a free service
that will introduce the community to our
store
• Many items are not recycled as often as
they could be…
Recycling Center
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Motor Oil
Car tires
Packaging “Peanuts”
Batteries
Christmas Trees
Ink Cartridges
Household toxins
– Paints, cleaners, etc.
III. Finances
Key factors that must be addressed
• Operational Costs
–
–
–
–
–
Payroll
Rent
Utilities/Phone
Insurance
Advertising/Promotion
• Start-Up Costs
–
–
–
–
–
Legal/Accounting
Starting Inventory
Fixtures/Furniture
Opening Promotions
Cash
Operational Costs
Payroll
• Pay competitive
wages
• Utilize interns to
create in-store
demonstrations
during peak
summer months
Salary
Manager
$/Hr
Hrs/
Week
Weeks/Yr
50,000
Annual Total
50,000
Full Time
16
40
48
30,720
Seasonal
14
35
25
12,250
Intern
10
35
12
3,990
Annual
Total
96,960
Monthly
Total
8,080
Operational Costs
Rent
Square Feet
1800
Phone (3 lines: credit card/fax/phone)
$/Foot2
2.2
Annual Total
47520
Monthly Total
3960
Annual Total
3,240
Monthly Total
Water (typically included in rent)
Electricity
Gas
Insurance
Legal/Accounting
Advertising/Promotion
270
Annual Total
0
Monthly Total
0
Annual Total
1,200
Monthly Total
100
Annual Total
450
Monthly Total
75
Annual Total
1,500
Monthly Total
125
Annual Total
500
Monthly Total
42
Annual Total
3,000
Monthly Total
Annual Total (Including Payroll) =
250
154,370
Initial Costs
Fixtures/Renovation (includes office
equipment, furniture, etc)
Total
10000
Initial Legal/Licensing/Incorporation Costs
Total
1200
Computers/Cash Registers/Credit Card
Machine
Total
3500
Grand Opening-Promotions/Advertising
Total
5000
Initial Inventory
Total
30000
Initial Cash
(=12 months operating expenses)
Total
154,370
Total Start Up Cost
204,070
Special thanks to Chad Helbert
Owner/Manager, Pak Mail – Perrysburg, Ohio
Chad helped compile and estimate the
initial and operating expenses.
Greener Gardens
End of Slide Show
Matthew G. Siedlecki
mgs@uchicago.edu
Prairie Ecosystems: Lessons of Sustainability Past, Present, and Future
Instructor: Justin Borevitz
Assistant: Geoff Morris