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Big Jims Garden Centre, New Zealand
New Zealand Garden Retailer of the Year 2010
Vince Naus and Ann Walker, employees of well known production nursery, Duncan & Davies, resigned their positions and leased Big Jims Garden Centre in 1999.
Five years later they purchased the business including land and buildings, seeking advice from Bill Brett of Brett & Associates. It was a steep learning curve, making the transition from product focussed growers, to customer focussed retailers. At this point they began reinvesting in improvements, and sales growth stepped up a notch. 
Big Jims is located approximately 7kms north of the city of New Plymouth on the west coast of the North Island of New Zealand. They have not been without competition. A long-established grower / retailer nearby; a Palmers store and a Mitre 10 Mega are all between the city and Big Jims.
In 2006 Ann & Vince became founding members of the Garden Independents Network (GIN) Group in New Zealand.They are emphatic that a combination of the 'Gin' Group's membership of the Brett & Associates Mentoring Programme; the structured networking of the Group; and their excellent staff are the main reasons for their success. They have had a whopping 76% sales increase in the four years since joining the group.
As a team they strive to provide customers with excellent service, knowledge, top quality products and value. Customers soak up inspiration from in-store installations such as a working vege patch, water feature garden and landscape design service.
A Univex Point of Sale system has just been installed at Big Jims. World leading technology that will help immensely to improve sales, management, communications and operations. This along with recent re-branding and new signage throughout; matched by intensive in-store promotion, will ensure sales growth continues.
