Horticultural associations are demanding a change in the law to let garden centres open on Easter Sunday - but garden centres say that if they must close then none should break the rules.
Both the Garden Centre Association and the Horticultural Trades Association want the Easter trading laws to be relaxed so that gardeners can be sure of finding their garden centre open throughout the holiday weekend. Under the 1994 Sunday Trading Act, retailers in England and Wales with over 3,000sq ft of selling space are not allowed to open on Easter Day, despite it being one of the busiest gardening weekends of the year.

But according to GCA chairman Peter Burks: "The general public finds it very upsetting, confusing and frustrating that they cannot visit their favourite local garden centre, which they often view as a social and community hub, on Easter Sunday for a gentle potter or to get essential supplies to be able to complete important gardening projects. They get very angry and vent this on our members, who they feel are closed by choice as they have no idea about the law.

"It's silly that a garden centre's restaurant can be open on Easter Sunday but no other sales can be made," he added.

He said the association wanted to see garden centres exempt from the law and that a campaign for the relaxation of the legislation was not out of the question.

"The relaxation of the Sunday trading laws during the Olympics last year was an interesting development for the industry," he went on, "and we saw this as a glimmer of hope. In order to stimulate the economy, improved trading conditions are needed for businesses."

And the HTA is backing the call for a change in what director general Carol Paris described as "this outdated and unnecessary legislation. The existing laws increasingly look out of place in an era of 24-hour internet trading," she said.

However, at Planters Garden Centre in Tamworth, manager Stuart Gooden told diyweek.net: "I've got no problem with the legislation, it's been there for many years. You could argue that it's quite sad if businesses can't close for one day of the year. We're all in the same boat, so if all garden centres of our size are adhering to that it's a level playing field.

"I do believe that customers understand the situation now. We used to get 300 to 400 cars turn up on an Easter Sunday when we were first closed. We used to put somebody on the gate to say, sorry, we're closed. But we don't need to do that now because the number of customers appearing at the gate have dropped and dropped."

He admitted that business would be very good on Easter Sunday. "But, as I say, it's a level playing field."

But at All In One, which has garden centres in Middleton and Knutsford, managing director Rod Slater is not so sure. "I'd rather be open because it's a busy weekend and the potential sales would be very good," he said. "But if I have to be closed I'd like everyone to close - and if they don't close I'd like them fined, hung, drawn and quartered!

"We like to think we're law-abiding citizens, but what spoils the whole scenario is people flouting the law - someone sneaking in behind you and getting the business you'd get if you were also flouting the law."

And he agreed with Peter Burks that the legislation causes confusion for the public. He recalled: "One Easter Sunday our burglar alarm went off (it was a false alarm), and when I arrived two things happened: I found staff from the local B&Q handing out leaflets at my gate, and the other thing was the amount of cars that were pulling up was amazing - even though we'd been shut for a good number of years on Easter Sunday."

He added: "We lose a lot of turnover and we don't get that back on Easter Saturday and Monday because people are looking for a day out."

Nearly every garden centre in the country is unable to open on Easter Day and the GCA says this is costing the horticultural industry at least £10m as the Easter weekend traditionally falls during the peak gardening season. It estimates that Easter Sunday trading may be worth 25% of the total sales for the Easter week.