Part 1: Sales Performance & Plant Trends

 

1. How did your overall spring sales revenue compare to last year’s season?

• A. Significantly higher (Increase of 15% or more)

• B. Moderately higher (Increase of 5% to 14%)

• C. About the same (Within +/- 4%)

• D. Moderately lower (Decrease of 5% to 14%)

• E. Significantly lower (Decrease of 15% or more)

 

2. Which product category was your absolute top volume seller this spring?

• A. Annual bedding plants (flats, packs)

• B. Premium hanging baskets and combination planters

• C. Perennials and ornamental grasses

• D. Edibles (vegetables, herbs, fruit plants)

• E. Shrubs, trees, or woody ornamentals

 

3. Which product category fell the shortest of your sales expectations?

• A. Annual bedding plants

• B. Hanging baskets and combination planters

• C. Perennials

• D. Edibles (vegetables and herbs)

• E. Houseplants / Indoor tropicals brought outdoors

 

4. What was the biggest trend you noticed in customer preferences this year?

• A. High demand for native and pollinator-friendly plants

• B. Strong preference for larger, "instant-gratification" container sizes

• C. High interest in unique, premium foliage over traditional flowers

• D. A surge in budget-conscious, DIY gardening options

• E. No major shift; traditional favorites dominated

 

5. How did your sell-through rate on premium, branded plants (e.g., Proven Winners, Wave Petunias) compare to unbranded options?

• A. Branded plants sold out much faster and at a higher margin

• B. Branded plants sold well, but the higher input cost ate into margins

• C. Unbranded options sold better due to lower price points

• D. There was no noticeable difference in consumer preference

• E. We do not grow/sell branded plants

 

6. When did your spring sales hit their absolute peak?

• A. Early Spring (Before Easter / Mid-April)

• B. Mid-Spring (Late April to Mother's Day weekend)

• C. Late Spring (Post-Mother's Day through Memorial Day)

• D. Early Summer (June onwards)

• E. Sales were evenly distributed with no distinct peak

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Part 2: Weather & Production Impacts

 

7. How would you describe the impact of this spring's weather on your walk-in retail traffic?

• A. Highly favorable (Warm, sunny weekends drove record traffic)

• B. Moderately favorable (A few bad days, but generally good)

• C. Neutral (Typical spring weather variations)

• D. Moderately unfavorable (Cold/rainy weekends delayed the start)

• E. Disastrous (Extended poor weather ruined key holiday weekends)

 

8. Did weather conditions cause any major production or crop timing failures in the greenhouse?

• A. No major issues; crops finished exactly on schedule

• B. Minor issues (Slight delays or minor stretching, but manageable)

• C. Moderate issues (We had to dump or heavily discount some stalled/overgrown crops)

• D. Severe issues (Significant crop loss due to disease, dampening off, or extreme temperature swings)

• E. Not applicable (We buy in all finished product)

 

9. How did you manage greenhouse heating and energy costs compared to your spring budget?

• A. Well under budget due to a mild winter/early spring

• B. Right on target with our projections

• C. Slightly over budget (1% to 15% higher than expected)

• D. Significantly over budget (More than 15% higher than expected)

• E. We use alternative energy/passive heating that mitigated costs

 

10. To what extent did shrink (dumped or unsellable plant material) impact your bottom line this season?

• A. Minimal shrink (Less than 3% of total inventory)

• B. Average shrink (3% to 7% of total inventory)

• C. Higher than average shrink (8% to 15% of total inventory)

• D. Critical shrink (Over 15% of inventory lost to weather, pests, or overproduction)

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Part 3: Marketing & Customer Engagement

 

11. Which marketing channel drove the most verifiable traffic or sales to your business this spring?

• A. Social media organic posts and reels (Facebook, Instagram, TikTok)

• B. Paid digital advertising (Facebook/Google Ads)

• C. Email marketing / Newsletters

• D. Traditional media (Radio, print, billboards, local TV)

• E. Word of mouth / Signage / Community reputation

 

12. How effective were your pre-season promotions or early-bird events (e.g., pre-orders, gift card sales)?

• A. Highly successful; generated great early cash flow

• B. Moderately successful; saw decent participation

• C. Low success; high effort for very little return

• D. We did not run any pre-season promotions

 

13. What was your strategy regarding plant pricing this spring?

• A. Raised prices significantly to cover inflation and rising input costs

• B. Raised prices slightly on select premium items only

• C. Kept prices identical to last year to remain competitive

• D. Lowered prices or ran more aggressive sales to stimulate volume

 

14. How did customers react to your pricing structure this year?

• A. No pushback; customers paid premium prices willingly

• B. Minor grumbling, but it did not noticeably impact sales volume

• C. Visible price resistance; customers bought fewer items per basket

• D. Severe resistance; we had to implement heavy discounting to move product

 

15. Did you utilize a loyalty program or customer rewards system this season?

• A. Yes, and it was a primary driver of repeat weekend traffic

• B. Yes, but it needs better staff training or software integration

• C. No, but we are actively looking to implement one for next year

• D. No, and we have no interest in a loyalty program

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Part 4: Staffing & Operations

 

16. What was your biggest hurdle regarding seasonal labor this spring?

• A. Finding enough applicants to fill open positions

• B. Retention (Staff quitting mid-season)

• C. High labor costs / Meeting wage expectations

• D. Inadequate training / Lack of plant knowledge among staff

• E. We had no major staffing hurdles this year

 

17. How well did your team handle peak-weekend checkout lines and customer volume?

• A. Flawlessly; wait times were minimal and operations were smooth

• B. Acceptably, but we hit bottlenecks during the post-Mother's Day rush

• C. Poorly; long wait times likely caused some customer walkouts

• D. We struggled heavily due to POS system failures or understaffing

 

18. How would you rate the overall morale of your greenhouse and retail crew by the end of May?

• A. Excellent; the team stayed energized, motivated, and positive

• B. Good; standard seasonal fatigue, but overall good spirits

• C. Strained; burnout was visible and affected customer service

• D. Low; high turnover and stress created a toxic environment

 

19. Did you implement any new automation or labor-saving technology this season (e.g., flat fillers, automated watering, new POS)?

• A. Yes, and it significantly reduced our labor hours/stress

• B. Yes, but the learning curve caused temporary setbacks

• C. No, but we desperately need to invest in it for next year

• D. No, our manual processes work perfectly fine for our scale

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Part 5: Inventory, Supply Chain, & Logistics

 

20. How would you rate your inventory management and ordering accuracy for this spring?

• A. Perfect balance; we sold out just as the season wrapped up

• B. Overstocked; we were left with too much holding-over or dumped product

• C. Understocked; we ran out of core items too early and missed out on revenue

• D. Disorganized; we had stock, but couldn't get it to the retail floor efficiently

 

21. Did you experience any significant supply chain disruptions (plugs, liners, soil, pots, tags) that delayed production?

• A. No disruptions; everything arrived on time and as ordered

• B. Minor delays or substitutions, but we adapted without sales loss

• C. Moderate disruptions that delayed specific crop readiness for key holidays

• D. Severe disruptions that resulted in empty benches during peak weeks

 

22. What percentage of your retail product mix was grown in-house versus bought-in as finished product?

• A. 100% grown in-house

• B. 75% grown in-house / 25% bought-in finished

• C. 50% grown in-house / 50% bought-in finished

• D. 25% grown in-house / 75% bought-in finished

• E. 100% bought-in finished wholesale

 

23. If you bought in finished product, how satisfied were you with the quality and delivery of your wholesale vendors?

• A. Highly satisfied; excellent quality and punctual delivery

• B. Moderately satisfied; quality was good, but delivery timing was inconsistent

• C. Dissatisfied; poor plant quality or late arrivals hurt our retail display

• D. Not applicable (We grow everything ourselves)

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Part 6: Lessons Learned & Looking Ahead

 

24. What was the single biggest operational bottleneck during your busiest weeks?

• A. Unloading delivery trucks and restocking retail benches

• B. Watering and plant maintenance on the retail floor

• C. The physical checkout/POS line

• D. Parking lot congestion and traffic flow

• E. Custom potting/container planting services

 

25. Which of the following areas represents your greatest "failure" or missed opportunity this spring?

• A. Failing to react quickly to shifting weather patterns

• B. Underestimating the demand for specific niche trends (e.g., organics, natives)

• C. Poor staff scheduling leading to high labor costs or low customer service

• D. Inadequate marketing before the season kicked off

• E. Lack of clear signage and pricing on the retail floor

 

26. What was your most successful pivot or "audible" called mid-season?

• A. Bundling slow-moving items into discounted custom arrangements

• B. Shifting marketing spend rapidly onto digital platforms during a rainy stretch

• C. Hiring emergency temporary labor or cross-training staff

• D. Securing last-minute finished truckloads from wholesale partners to meet unexpected demand

• E. We didn't make any major mid-season pivots

 

27. Looking toward next spring, what is your primary production goal?

• A. Increase production volume of top-selling lines

• B. Decrease production volume to cut down on waste/shrink

• C. Diversify our crop mix to include more unusual or trendy varieties

• D. Keep volume steady but focus strictly on improving plant quality and sizing

• E. Shift more towards buying in finished product rather than growing from plugs

 

28. How do you plan to address your top staffing challenge before next spring?

• A. Increase starting wages and offer seasonal completion bonuses

• B. Start the hiring and interviewing process much earlier in the winter

• C. Implement a more robust, standardized training program before the rush

• D. Invest in greenhouse automation to reduce the total number of bodies needed

 

29. What is your top priority for facility/infrastructure improvement before next season?

• A. Upgrading greenhouse structures, coverings, or heating/cooling systems

• B. Improving the retail layout, benching, or customer traffic flow

• C. Upgrading tech infrastructure (POS systems, Wi-Fi, inventory software)

• D. Expanding parking, loading zones, or holding areas

• E. No major infrastructure changes planned

 

30. Overall, how would you rate the success of the spring season?

• A. An absolute home run (Exceeded all financial and operational goals)

• B. A solid success (Profitable, with normal, manageable issues)

• C. Average/Mediocre (Met baseline goals, but left a lot of money on the table)

• D. Disappointing (Slight financial loss or severe operational headaches)

• E. Failure (Significant financial loss or major systemic breakdowns)