Sadiq Khan has said he intends to appoint Suki Kalirai to chair the new London Legacy Development Corporation (LLDC) leadership team. Shazia Hussain has also been appointed the new chief executive as the group prepares to deliver the next stage of the Games’ legacy at...
Business
‘Exponential’ sale growth following Hallstone relaunch
Hallstone has recorded a ‘marked increase’ in sales for the first half of 2023, following a relaunch to become a trade only brand in March of this year. Sales of its bulk bags have increased by more than 50% from last year. The landscape product supplier, which is...

Nurture Group acquires Northern Estates Services
Nationwide green services provider, Nurture Group has acquired Lancashire landscape maintenance company, Northern Estates Services Ltd (NESL). The acquisition follows on from the Group’s £60m investment by All Seas Capital earlier this year, marking its ninth acquisition in the past twelve months and further operates as an important step to...

Mitie secures £62m IFM Phoenix Group contract
National facilities management company, Mitie has secured a five-year integrated facilities management (IFM) service contract with savings and retirement business, Phoenix Group. Mitie will provide planned and reactive maintenance, including waste management, landscaping and decarbonisation, across six Phoenix Group locations in five cities...

idverde holds onto prolific Olympic Park contract
Award-winning landscaping provider idverde has been re-awarded the ground maintenance contract for the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park and the surrounding public realm, 11 years on from the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games. The London Legacy Development Corporation has renewed idverde’s existing ten-year contract for an additional eight...

RSK Group acquires Crowders Nurseries
Sustainable solutions provider RSK has acquired Crowders Nurseries, a seventh-generation family-run wholesale nursery business. Crowders has been cultivating plants for more than 200 years, operating out of two locations in Lincolnshire: Horncastle and Woodhall Spa. It provides wholesale solutions on a multi-sector scale from government...

Mitie secures two-year expansion of FM contract
National facilities management company, Mitie has secured a two-year extension of its FM contract, providing total facilities management services to the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) sites in London and Handslope Park, Milton Keynes. Mitie will provide planned and reactive maintenance in the form of custodial and reception...

Husqvarna partners with Kew Gardens
Husqvarna, providers of robotic mowing solutions in the professional sector is partnering with the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew to strengthen the gardens’ journey to become carbon positive by 2030. Three Husqvarna electric commercial lawn mowers will be installed at Kew Gardens, two Husqvarna Automower® 550 EPOS robotic mowers and one Husqvarna...

Greenwood Plants awarded £2.7m National Highways contract
Wholesale nursery Greenwood Plants has been awarded £2.7m in funding by National Highways to grow three million trees from seed over the coming five years. National Highways is targeting net zero by planting at least three million trees by 2030 with Greenwood signed as the sole supplier for the project. The tree whips will be cultivated from seed...

Green-tech: An official drop-off hub for Free Tubex Collection & Recycling Programme
Tubex has expanded the reach of its Tree Shelter Collection and Recycling Programme by providing new hubs around the UK where tree shelters can be dropped off to be recycled for free. The scheme is a joint initiative with charity Yorkshire Dales Millennium (YDMT), which opened a number of its own recycling hubs in 2021. There will be a total of...

Tivoli Group acquires Greenfingers Landscape
Tivoli Group Ltd has acquired Greenfingers Landscape Ltd as part of the company’s growth targets for this year and beyond. This marks the grounds maintenance provider’s second acquisition in two years following the purchase of Sodexo Horticultural Services in February of 2021. Based in the North West of England, Greenfingers was established in...

Nurture Group expands into east of England with its largest acquisition in five years
Following a £57m round investment by All Seas Capital, Nurture Landscapes Group, the nationwide green services provider, has completed the acquisition of Norfolk-based CGM Group in a deal that will considerably strengthen Nurture Group’s presence in the East of England. The acquisition - the eighth in the past twelve months alone - is the most...

Green-tech Specifier appoints new product specification manager
Seraya has worked in the water industry for the last seven years and has a wealth of experience and a thorough understanding of the importance of both blue and green infrastructure. Green-tech Specifier is the specification team of leading landscape supplier Green-tech that focuses on technical specification and creates landscape solutions for...

London Stone opens new Hampshire showroom
One of the UK’s market leading suppliers of natural stone paving, London Stone has opened its seventh signature showroom in Hampshire. Situated in Eastleigh, Hampshire, the new 450m2 showroom boasts inspirational hard landscaping material displays, including natural stone, porcelain, clay pavers, composite decking and pergolas and planters. The...

Green-tech opens new depot in Ireland
Landscaping supplier Green-tech has announced the opening of a new depot in Derry, Ireland. Green-tech is one of the UK’s largest supplier of landscape products and consumables, delivering professional grade materials, wholesale garden supplies for contractors, architects, landowners and designers nationwide. Green-tech’s sales director Richard...

UK Landscapes makes its third acquisition in two years
Grounds maintenance and arboricultural service provider UK Landscapes has acquired Wiltshire-based firm Cut N Clear (CNC) to further expand its presence in the South West. With more than 25 years’ experience in the landscaping sector, UK Landscapes provides services for several well-known clients including supermarket chains Marks & Spencer,...

“A valuable opportunity”: HTA joins government’s red diesel advisory group
The Horticultural Trades Association (HTA) has grasped a "valuable opportunity" to become a signatory of the HMRC's Memorandum of Agreement on rebated fuel. It follows the change in regulations governing the use of 'red diesel' in April 2022. "This establishes a formal route to engage on a policy change which has seen cost increases impacting HTA...

Hallstone relaunches as trade-only offering
Hallstone has been relaunched as a trade-only offering. The landscaping supplier, owned by Rolawn, said it is “taking steps to more effectively support the industry” by making products available only via stockists. “Having intentionally chosen to enhance its trade offering at a time when many in the industry are facing challenges, from supply...

UK Landscapes concludes Cut N Clear acquisition
UK Landscapes has completed its acquisition of woodland and arboricultural business Cut N Clear (CNC). The purchase, made possible by UK Landscapes’ investor Mercia, will “strengthen our footprint in and around the South West and integrate us into the local housing sector”, said managing director Leigh Preston. “With Mercia’s backing, we will...

LI “proud” as Landscape Character Assessment launches
The Landscape Character Assessment (LCA) database for the UK and Ireland is now available. The database, developed by the Landscape Institute (LI) with the support of Natural England, NatureScot, Natural Resources Wales, Transport Infrastructure Ireland and DAERA Northern Ireland Environment Agency (NIEA), includes over 500 LCAs from local to...

fabrik becomes employee-owned trust as Rath confirms sale
fabrik Limited is now a 100% employee-owned trust. Founding director Johnny Rath confirmed the sale this week after 20 years at the helm. In a LinkedIn post, Rath stated, “fabrik is changing and evolving. Key to me from day one of setting up fabrik was the emphasis we placed on the people within the business. At the top of our core values is, and...

idverde UK announces appointment of new CEO
idverde announced today that Doug Graham will step down as CEO of the UK company. He will be succeeded by Chris Pullen. Chris is an experienced leader who has worked in senior roles across the support services sector. Doug has led idverde through a strong growth phase. He joined the business in 2008 as Chief Financial Officer and has been CEO...

Why a website is essential for your business
Pro Landscaper finds out why its essential that a business has a website. With the rise of the internet, the number of possibilities in terms of finding jobs and opening new businesses has expanded broadly. Not only that, but the internet made our lives much easier. We can now shop online, pay the bills, book flights and hotels, read the news,...

DLA restructures to set clear path for succession
DLA Architecture has completed a restructure of the business with a re-brand and succession plan. The practice has evolved its brand from DLA Design to DLA Architecture, giving more clarity on its offering to commercial and public sector clients. It has also identified key people within the business to carry forward the succession strategy for...

Trades’ Coach reached finals of UK’s Best Business Women
The Trades’ Coach, Alison Warner, has reached the finals of the UK’s Best Business Women awards for her work supporting trade and construction businesses during the COVID-19 pandemic. A former troubleshooter for global brands such as Starbucks, Alison founded Evolve and Grow coaching company in 2010, and has since transformed the fortunes of...

How could coronavirus impact the commercial sector?
Phil Jones of ESL Landscape Contractors discusses the impact coronavirus could have on the commercial landscaping industry and how his company remains robust despite COVID-19 The current situation is worrying for all business owners and employees in the landscape industry. First and foremost, the responsibility we all feel for the health of our...

What help is available during the coronavirus crisis?
During these unprecedented times, it's important that we come together as an industry to support one another. It's often difficult to know where to turn, though, and what help is even on offer. Together with industry associations and charities, we have put together a list of useful resources to help get you through the coronavirus crisis. The...
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