Play Hide-and-Seek in the Fairy Garden

If you’re looking through the plants and yard decor display at B&B Do it Center in Carmarillo, California, you might stumble across a tiny house or a miniature garden with brightly colored stepping stones. Owner Randy Collins has intermingled fairy garden vignettes within the live goods in the outdoor garden department as a better way to sell both categories.

“We noticed that the fairy garden items do a lot better when we put the pieces together and place them among the plants on display, instead of having them separate somewhere else in the store,” Collins says. “This setup lets customers visualize what they can do in their own gardens.”

Once they have started their own fairy gardens at home, returning customers are more likely to buy separate pieces to add to their collection later, he adds. But getting started requires some inspiration.

The outdoor garden area at B&B is open year-round. Collins and his staff change out the plants according to what’s popular during a particular season or to coincide with a holiday. And when the plants change, so do the fairy gardens to keep up with the seasonal theme.

“We try to find plants that are different from what our competitors are carrying and display them in such a way that the colors or climate zone complements one another,” he says. “The better the display, the more likely customers are to stop and shop for a while.”

Click here for pointers on how to set up your own fairy garden.