A York business which has welcomed generations of gardeners through its doors has been sold after 56 years of trading.
Dean’s Garden Centre was founded in 1968 on a four acre site at Stockton-on-the-Forest by Ken and Margaret Dean. Another branch was opened in Scarborough in 1987.
Now both have been sold to the Bradford-based Yorkshire Garden Centres.
Both will continue trading under the new management.
The business now employs more than 100 people and all the roles will transfer with the sale. Richard, Helen and Sarah, who are the second generation of the Dean family to run the business, will all enjoy a very well-earned retirement.
Mark Farnsworth, managing director of Yorkshire Garden Centres, said: “We are delighted to welcome the Dean’s sites into the Yorkshire Garden Centres group in partnership with Altia Estates.
“We are grateful to the Dean family for letting us take the business forward, and we intend to continue to use the Dean’s name, which has become so well respected over the years.
“Whilst several members of the family retire, we are also really pleased that others have agreed to stay on and continue to work in the business.”
Richard Dean, a partner at Dean’s Garden Centre, said: “We are pleased our centres are joining the Yorkshire Garden Centre group.
“We have followed their progress with interest and feel that we have many shared values. Having grown up living on the York site, we’ve been involved in the business in some capacity or other from a very young age.
“Now though is the right time for my sisters and I to retire, something that I personally was aiming to do in 2021, before Covid hit.
“The business can now move forward and provide, what will no doubt be an enhanced shopping experience for our customers. We wish the group the very best of luck as they move forward.”
Mr Farnsworth added: “We set out our ambitions five years ago to grow the group and our four current centres employ nearly 450 people.
“Planning was approved for a new site at Thorp Arch in the middle of last year but, very sadly, the delays due to the Covid pandemic and gaining planning permission meant that the scheme was no longer viable which was a real blow as we felt Thorp Arch was a great site.
“Having established a strong management team, when the Dean’s opportunity came up we recognised it was a great way to continue our growth journey.”
“We are also incredibly grateful to Antony Harker of Altia Estates for the financial support and faith he has shown in us,” added Mr Farnsworth.
Mr Harker commented: “We are delighted to support this opportunity and we wish the whole team at Yorkshire Garden Centres the very best. I look forward to seeing the sites continue to grow and flourish under their management.”
Yorkshire Garden Centres began with the acquisition of Tong Garden Centre by Mark Farnsworth and Tom Megginson in 2015. They invested £9m to turn Tong from an ailing centre with a disenfranchised team to one of Yorkshire’s leading garden centres. The Group’s strategy is to operate destination garden centres with a compelling mix of retail, food and play for all the family.