According to concession company First Franchise, "an alarming number" of UK garden centres have concession tenants on site that either have no official agreement in place, are trading after an agreement has expired or have not reviewed their tenants' agreement terms since they installed.
It means these garden centres have left themselves "exposed to legal ramifications" if these issues are not resolved, and according to First Franchise, not having the right paperwork will affect the overall value of a site. "As an owner of a garden centre thinking of selling of even planning for the future," said the group, "having a secure concession agreement is integral to the business model."

In some cases, concession agreements are rolled over with no review of rent and terms, which means that tenants on site are not paying the market value - this also has a negative impact on the total valuation potential.

First Franchise business development manager Richard Lewis said: "Garden centres need to have a current concession agreement governing the terms of operation on their sites as a legal requirement. They are landlords to these retail tenants and need to protect themselves with a fair agreement that is in line with the current market values.

"We often find that completing these agreements is a distraction from the day to day running of the site, but the reality is that these contracts are no less important to a sites value than the sales from an in-store department. We have the experience and market knowledge to help garden centres through the process and secure revenues."