GreenMark Public Relations®, Inc.

Jim Broccolo receives honor from Green Profit magazine

He’s young. He knows about all things green. He’s garden-wise beyond his 30 years.

Meet Jim Broccolo, nursery manager and annuals buyer for Chalet, Wilmette, Ill., recently named 2010 “Young Retailer of the Year” by Green Profit magazine, a trade publication for the garden center industry. Broccolo, chosen from dozens of garden retail professionals under age 35, will be featured on the magazine’s cover in September.

The announcement was made this month during the Ohio Flower Growers’ and Retailers Association (OFA) Short Course, considered one of the largest and most important horticulture industry events in the world. Chris Beytes, Green Profit editor and publisher, said the magazine’s panel of expert judges was impressed with Broccolo’s vision for the future of garden centers, and his belief in contributions to the local community and the earth.

“The criteria for this award are knowledge, education, experience, travel, involvement in their own business and the industry, as well as their community and an expression of passion and enthusiasm for their chosen trade,” said Beytes. “This can be a tough industry and the award recognizes hard-working young people who spend a lot of long hours and weekends at their job.”

Broccolo also impressed the judges with his entry’s essay on customer service.

“Servicing the customer of 2020 begins by establishing a trusting relationship with today’s customer, working with growers to improve our environmental impact and using technology as an avenue for education and outreach,” he wrote. “We must view our customer as multi-generational: the gardeners tending to their property for several decades, the first-time homebuyers excited about the opportunity to maintain their own yards, and the young children in a classroom or shopping with a parent.”

Broccolo also wrote that he and his colleagues are able to meet customers’ needs by building relationships and providing service that is knowledgeable as it is friendly. They do this through interactions with longtime and new shoppers, and as a result of Chalet’s regular presentations at local garden clubs and schools.

To view Green Profit online, please visit www.ballpublishing/GreenProfit. For more information about the award-winning Chalet, visit www.chaletnursery.com.

Father’s Day is around the corner on June 20, and since Dad is more lunch than brunch and more backyard than corsage, Chalet is featuring several plants and home and garden items that will help him chill out on his special day, and, for that matter, all year long:

• The outdoor version of the favorite TV room recliner may just be the Adirondack chair. Through Father’s Day on June 20, buy two or more Poly Lumber Adirondack chairs, made from 100% recycled materials, for $599 at Chalet — more than $50 savings per chair. Just like dear old Dad, these chairs are both handsome and durable.

• What’s green all over, a kid-friendly project and a gift sure to become a conversation piece? Living walls, often used commercially for green roofs, are now available in home-sized kits exclusively at Chalet and are perfect for a display at home or in his office. Pick up a “canvas”, plants and instructions for a project that’s as quick and easy to assemble as it is a thoughtful gesture of love for Dad - and all things green.

• His lawn will be the envy of the neighborhood if you hand Dad or Grandpa some Big Daddy Hostas from Chalet. As their name implies, bigger is better with this variety of the hearty hosta plant ($24.99 for an extra-large plant).

• For snoozing, reading or just plain lying around, nothing beats a hammock. He’s no ordinary Dad, so only an extraordinary hammock will do, like Chalet’s line of hand-crafted Hatteras Hammocks, featuring top-notch all-weather fabrics, heavy rope for strength and comfort, charming decorative pillows and cypress stands. These durable, beautiful hammocks start at $209.

• Add more thrill to the grill with top-of-the-line Charcoal Champion barbecue tools and accessories, including a handy 4-in-1 All Purpose Grill Spatula complete with a cutting edge, tenderizer, grill cleaner and bottle opener in one handsome, high quality durable tool with rosewood handles ($12.99). For the catch of the day, try the Big Fish Spatula, with wide head, incredible construction and rosewood handles ($16.99)

• Keep the fire going well into the night with a fire pit, perfect for rousing get togethers as well as family s’more making night or even a quiet, solitary respite.

What’s red-hot now at Chalet: a solid copper fire pit that’s perfect for heating outdoors, grilling your favorite meats or simply adding an ambient fire to your outdoor parties. It features the deepest bowl on the marketplace and, because it’s made with 100% solid copper, offers greater durability and heat conductivity without the waste and pollution associated with other types of copper. This distinctive fire pit, which includes a cover screen, poker, and a non-toxic coated steel charcoal grate, starts at $299.

• Dads love tools - and that includes garden tools. Check out Chalet’s line of DeWit tools featuring modern designs with old-fashioned craftsmanship that tackle special problem areas, ranging from rockery trowels to patio knives to disc weeders and seeding rakes. Tools start at $12.99.

For these and other great Father’s Day gifts, visit Chalet at 3132 Lake Street in Wilmette and get a preview at www.ChaletNursery.com. Call 847.256.0561 or email info@ChaletNursery for more details.