It’s easy to think of landscape fabric in terms of simple 3′ x 50′ rolls of a “good, better, best” offering, or maybe a 3′ x 300′, 4′ x 300′ or 6′ x 300′ roll for your contractor customers. Many dealers will also offer bulk rolls as either a full roll purchase, or price it per running foot and cut off the customer’s desired length. In most cases, the majority of those sales are presumed to be going to a traditional landscape setting involving flowers, shrubs, mulch and/or decorative stone coverings.
A trend that has been gaining popularity with no end in sight is “bringing the indoors out.” An article in Total Landscape Care recently quoted Ken Noll with The Garden Kingdom in Glen Carbon IL: “People want more hardscaping, kitchens, fire pits, seating areas, covered porches,” he said. “They’re looking to expand their outdoor living, so I think in my opinion that’s where the money is going. People are thinking ‘I want more outdoor living space,’ not ‘I want more flowers and gardens and maintenance.’”
It is impossible to ignore the tremendous growth this part of the industry has seen over the last several years. There are entire shows on channels such as HGTV and DIY dedicated to outdoor living spaces. However, you may not realize that landscape fabrics (in a commercial grade) can play an important role in this market as well. Whether it is DeWitt Pro 5 Weed Barrier, DeWitt Weed Barrier Pro, or TYPAR Landscape Fabric, professional grade fabrics can be used for underneath pavers for weed growth protection between the pavers and soil stabilization. DeWitt also has a full line of geotextiles (think landscape fabrics in a heavier form) for soil separation or stabilization in heavier duty requirements.
Another product that is still gaining popularity in the Midwest and Eastern United States is artificial grass. The Western U.S. is the largest market for this product due to water restrictions and the difficulty in growing a traditional lawn, but the Midwest and Eastern regions are beginning to see demand for this product as well.
Whether it is a small putting green, an area around the backyard pool, or an entire section of lawn being converted to artificial grass, weed barrier is needed underneath the turf to keep weeds from growing through the turf – ruining the look of the “perfect” artificial grass. TYPAR and DeWitt Weed Barrier Pro are very popular products for use underneath synthetic grass due to the easy installation and superior weed control capabilities.
Most likely you are already selling hardscape products in some capacity, and maybe you are also even carrying the artificial grass as well. Some simple cross promotion of landscape fabric as an add-on sale to both of these product categories can add significant dollars to your bottom line at the end of the season.
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