Business Barometer January 2011
Water Garden News regularly surveys pond and water garden companies about their business climate and sales trends. Respondents are granted anonymity. These responses came from a January 28 survey.
 Winter Season Makes a Slow Start
A part-time koi breeder and retailer in Canoga Park, Calif.
Business is slow because of the time of year. Usually it picks up around early summer when the weather gets more stable.
People still are holding tight to their money. The economy is holding its own right now, and business was OK last year. I did about what I expected to do, but it's rough.
Sales Down for Third Year
A pond and water garden product retailer in Spokane, Wash.
We provide everything needed for the do-it-yourself customer to put in his or her own garden. In the last three years we're down about 80 percent.
We were up a little bit last year from 2009, but we're down from that this year. We are in our slow time right now; our business doesn't even get started until May.
The trend is going down. I've noticed this with vendors in our area as well as seeing less activity from club members. The hobby of ponding and water gardening is suffering due to the economy.
We remain active in local shows and through advertising. We have done fish health and pond build seminars and workshops at our facility. I also speak to garden clubs about bringing water into the garden.
Diversification Helps Business Stand
An aquatic gardener and wholesaler in Riverview, Fla.
I grow and sell ornamentals for water gardens, wetlands and aquariums. Business was steady, and we're taking it easy lately.
The industry was great about 10 years ago, but prices got bad around 5 years ago. To combat it, I kept to my stock and diversified. I'm getting into organics to avoid dealing with pesticides and such. California inspections were a challenge this year because of new inspectors.
I can feel the spring bug coming on. Most of my business is out-of-state, and it's slow-to-steady. It's about 33 percent off because of the economy, and the season hasn't started yet. I'd love to become a certified organic aquatic nursery, but it takes time.
Uptick in Museums, Theme Parks
A theme and specialty construction company in Seattle, Wash.
We've seen an uptick since last year. Zoo museum fabrications and theme parks provided a significant amount of growth.
Residential and commercial interest is there, but not much actual work right now. These things lag, especially with projects our size, which is large commercial and residential development projects. They take time.
We're seeing a lot of high-end, one-of-a-kind water features. Clients want very customized designs, integration of programmable systems, LEDs, a variety of features and aspects that add experience to the water features themselves.
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Business Barometer January 2011
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