Garden nursery in east of city blooming with £1m expansion
A GARDEN nursery in Co Down which supplies Tesco and Spar stores has announced a £1m expansion after increasing its workforce from three to 60 over the last five years.
Dundonald Nurseries has increased the size of its garden centre and warehouse and opened a new gift shop.
The family business has also expanded its wholesale nursery offering after investing in new planting technology, as well as buying land off-site for a glasshouse.
Wholesale customers include Tesco, Spar and VivoExtra owner the Henderson Group — as well as independent outlets and florists in Northern Ireland.
Dundonald Nurseries was founded by the McCully family in 1963, diversifying into growing plants and cut flowers.
There is also a 125-seat restaurant, while its gift shop was expanded by 3,000 sq ft to add a children’s shop, adult’s clothing as well as gifts and homeware.
Malcolm McCully, who owns the business with his wife Anne after her father Robert set it up, said: “Having started out with one small van, the wholesale nursery aspect of our business now requires four large lorries to service our wholesale customers across the country, reflecting the focus we have placed on a high-quality service and products.
“Over the past 55 years, the business has expanded steadily because we are continuously innovating to keep up with changing consumer requirements.”
He added: “We are proud of our growth and recently purchased additional land off-site to build a new-state-of the-art glasshouse complex, equipped with the latest growing technology for plants.
“This is just the latest stage in our investment programme and with the support of First Trust Bank, we have additional growth plans in place to renovate the basement of our restaurant into a function room to offer a new private space for hire.”
Catherine O’Keefe, business manager at First Trust Bank, said: “With a focus on quality, provenance and innovation, Dundonald Nurseries continues to thrive, and we are delighted to support Malcolm and his wife Anne through the expansion.”