Garden item you couldnt live without

Could you all tell me what it is your garden that you think is the best in its category...What is your favorite garden gloves...who makes them...great hats...yard ornaments or bird baths....we are at a do or die stage, have a ups type store that is huge and has extra space...have to do something....wanted to do some sort of florida food...something that was made in florida...something you could only get here and poeple would want to ship along with their packages...cant find what im looking for...dont know where to look is the problem I guess...so know Im thinking after doing the messenger co-op...and even the people at the post office asking where they could get it....I thought...well...maybe I could sell my hobby...gardening...any help appreciated...pam

I just want to make sure I understand...you have an existing UPS type store and want ideas about how to use extra space?

If I have this right, then my thoughts are... I am not sure I would do gardening stuff. I don't know what the mark up is, but it's a niche market and if I am shopping for gardening stuff, I want to shop plants and stuff, too.

I think I might do something like a Hallmark store. Cards, gifts, candles, inexpensive pressies...people could one stop shop for stuff to then turn around and mail.

Well...there is a gift store in the center....not allowed to compete with alot of stuff...we do sell cards and I have tried to stay away from other than what our business is...long story...but we got stuck with this big store..have to do something else.....i would have never even remotely thought about anything to do with gardening...but altho people will look at candles and hallmark type stuff when I have it in there...they wont buy it. But one day...I had a box of messenger sitting on the counter getting ready to divvy up...could have sold it all...go figure...so that got me thinking.

Our biggest problem is we are in a retirement community...period....these are people who are cleaning out there stuff and they really dont seem interested in adding to it....so..they golf and garden and fish and ride motorcycles...really wanted to put in some nice hats...down here..you need wibe brim on down....other avenue is food...anything I make and put out people will eat...they love candy ...anything...cant find any that is made in florida that fits the bill...looking for something native..so like you say...people will want to mail it with other packages...has to be good...want it to be fruity somehow...they seem to go for anything with fruit I make more than straight chocolate or something like that.......sorry to ramble...

I guess I'd be worried about food, because it seems to me that's a whole different set of laws/regulations to contend with, you know? I know from when I had goats, I couldn't sell the milk because I didn't have exactly the right set up in terms of plumbing, etc.

What about books/magazines?

what about a consignment shop? everyone in the neighborhood could contribute as they clean out and you can sell it to the next person who absolutley has to have it! LOL

are you asking, too, about favorite gardening items in general? or just as a selling item? that's confusing, i know, but so was your post, so i'm not sure. anyway, i can't live without my aluminum scoop! LOL

consignment shop is an excellent idea...actually one of the women who ran a pack and ship store, and got into a franchise fight...turned it into a consignment store. Leesburg is a rare bird tho...a giant retirement villiage.....I guess I think more of childrens things.....the aluminum scoop...there is something I would like to hear about...I guess I should have been far more clear, and said im looking for more point of sale items...like the messenger I can sit on the counter...was even thinking of putting some of the eon markers...we have sharpies and every other kind of pen...but how many times have I looked for something as simple as an eon...and cant find it. The books and magazines is a winner...but im next to publix...so its redundat. We do sell for others on ebay...like the i sold it stores....but I relly dont like doing that...nobody wants to even pay the ebay fees...they moan about every cent and of course there stuff is worth three times what ebay gets day in and day out. We will still do it for poeple...but i stopped advertising

i'm sure you will find something useful to put into your shop. i'm familiar with the Villages as they are only about 15 mins. from me and it is a growing community. a gentle thought here, perhaps your postings would be less confusing if you used periods to end your sentences and also wrote complete sentences. it is rather difficult to read your postings and you may get more helpful input that way. just a suggestion!

I live in a retirement center too. In fact, our county seat was voted the No. 1 place to retire some years ago. It lost that designation when housing got too expensive. We have had consignment shops come and go. Antiques do well here, so do coffee shops. We also have 2 or 3 spas; one is called La Petite Spa. They seem stable.
But the most sucessful are the coffee shops. And the bakery, which now has a second outlet. If you don't have a lot of Starbucks stores, you could make a go of this. However, if you do any baking on site, you will have to put in a minimal commercial kitchen and meet health department codes. Perhaps you would just rent the extra space?

Thanks...called the orlando sentinel...putting it up for sale. Interesting thing about the villages, well, one of the interesting things, we get customers all the time who live in sight of two nice village pack and ships. We are very lucky, that poeple will drive fifteen minutes to our store for better prices and service. We try our very best...thats for sure. Wont be trying in that big store any longer im afraid.

Wow! that was sudden. Hope you find a new home that is more affordable but still spacious enough for some expansion.