Who art the little AutoPot-blue genies lighting up all corners of the north in UK hydro shops? That’d be Charlotte and Michaela, our APUK North Sales Rep and International Business Development Manager respectively, out and about, making dreams come true with AutoPot Store Days.
Trips to the hydro shop are great when you know what you need or you know the staff therein. Much has changed on the UK hydro scene and the vast majority of retailers have friendly, welcoming stores, often with a strong focus on hospitality. Living room vibe, breakout rooms, bars and demo set ups abound and mark a sea-change from the old world of pallets and battered offices. But let’s not pretend that the array of products on sale are always completely easy to grasp, especially for less experienced growers. If you don’t know where to start it can be tricky to know what questions to ask. Store days are such a boon in terms of getting people around and getting them excited about growing with no assumptions made. Plus its a great excuse for a bit of a party.
Thus far we’re two-fifths of the way through the northern shop tour. We’ve enjoyed visits to the superlative showroom stores of One Stop Grow Shop in Cannock and Stoke. It was great to see how professionally their shops are laid out and the fantastic job they’re doing in marketing and supporting our systems. Big thanks to Mark and the team for their help and extensive social media coverage.
Sale Hydro saw us at the heart of fun and festivities as the store laid on BBQ, decked the place out and drew in co-hosts in the shape of Moonshine, Ecothrive and Dutchpro. None of that would have been possible without the sterling hospitality and organisation of Sale’s very own Emma and Simon. A thousand thanks for the ever illuminating presence of Paul and Dan from Moonshine, Dutchpro’s Adam and Daniel – no grow without – and the never-less-than-beneficial, undoubtedly biological, Colin from Ecothrive.
Co-hosting is always a sweet thrill as, on Store Days, one question inevitably leads to another. Having a presence from other brands means that queries regarding nutrient compatibility or substrate choice can be answered lickety-split and everyone bounces off one another generating yet more terrific ambience! In that vein we copied the co-hosting co-operative blueprint for our visit to Natural Growth of Manchester. There we were joined by EasyGrow, showcasing Remo Nutrients – a seismic salute to Roy and Kayla for their participation – and we were delighted to welcome back Moonshine. Safe to say everybody had a lovely time tucking into some informal chat, samples, freebies and the delicious West Indian banquet lavished upon us, and the visitors. Our sincere thanks to Natural Growth’s incomparably hospitable Colin and Craig.
We continue with six more dates in the north this summer and some exciting co-host commotion currently in the pipeline. Stay tuned to @autopot_global on Instagram and @AutoPotSystems on Facebook for more news about these very special events!
