6/29/2015
Accessorizing With Plants
Katie Elzer-Peters
In an already crowded marketplace every new plant has to fight for a share of the same dollars as every other plant. Unless, that is, the producer decides to go after a completely different type of consumer. Ball Ornamentals’ exclusive trademarked L.A. Dreamin’ Hydrangea is a new mophead variety hitting the market in full force this summer. But forget about garden magazines. L.A. Dreamin’ is starring in its own campaign with digital advertising in, among other places, lifestyle and décor publications.
That’s right. L.A. Dreamin’ isn’t just a plant. It’s an accessory, sandwiched somewhere between throw pillows made from Sunbrella fabric and Kate Spade handbags.
The name L.A. Dreamin’ conjures images of movie star glamour and palm trees, oversized sunglasses and valet parking. It’s a looker, certainly. L.A. Dreamin’ blooms in shades of blue, pink, purple, mauve and every variation in between, on the same plant at the same time—regardless of soil pH. It’s a bigleaf, mophead type that reblooms throughout the growing season. It was discovered by Michigan Evergreen nurserymen John Bakale and John Bakale, Jr. The full name is
Hydrangea macrophylla Lindsey Ann (the source of the L.A.). It isn’t movie stars that inspired John Sr.; the shrub is named in honor of his late daughter.
“Seven years ago, the Bakales saw a hydrangea growing in the yard of a neighbor near the nursery. It had multiple colors of flowers—mauve, pink, blue, purple—on the same shrub,” said Joey Wiseman, brand manager for L.A. Dreamin’. “It turns out that they went to the same church as the gardener. She allowed them to cut pieces from the plant and propagate them. They selected and grew shrubs from the original cuttings and the different colors persisted.” John McDonough, Supply Chain Manager saw the plants growing on the nursery bench and approached the Bakales about distributing it.
“They are great plantsmen, so they are always collecting things and finding things. They named it, applied for a patent and started selling it locally, but were interested in working with someone to license it for wider distribution,” said Joey.
When Ball Ornamentals introduces a new plant, “We assume the burden of cost of producing a lot of plants for the first season. We have to hit everything at once,” said Joey. When their marketing collateral deploys, the plant is available en masse for consumption. “We essentially speculate on young plant production—talking to growers to get them excited. We’re seeing that L.A. Dreamin’ is an easy hydrangea to grow—uniform, good habit and good disease resistance. When finished for sale they’re covered in flower buds,” Joey says. Strong retail support is always part of the plan—bench cards, flyers and other info to help boots on the ground get plants out the door.
“Mother’s Day was amazing,” Joey adds. “Any plant in the store on Mother’s Day got sold.” They’re aiming for six million impressions on their digital ads that direct consumers to the L.A. Dreamin’ website,
www.ladreaminhydrangea.com, which is simple, optimized for mobile and emphasizes the ease of growing and designing with the plant to ward off any intimidation factor. The three main menu items are “Decorating Ideas,” “Easy Care” and “Where to Buy.” They’re positioning it as a designer-type plant, highlighting style and fashion aspects, as opposed to just gardening.
By positioning L.A. Dreamin’ less as something buyers have to try not to kill and more like an essential item of décor paramount to personal comfort and style, Ball Ornamentals has created a sense of need in consumers. The plant is a high-performer, but the story is also selling it. And the fashion-forward are lining up.
GP
Katie Elzer-Peters is a garden writer and owner of The Garden of Words, LLC, a marketing and PR firm handing mostly green-industry clients. Contact her at Katie@thegardenofwords.com or at www.thegardenofwords.com.