Interiorscape.com, once the “go-to” site for the Interiorscape and Indoor Plantscape industry, roared back to life last month as a free and open forum site.

As of today, more than 630 Interiorscapers, Vendors, Suppliers, Florists, Interior Designers, Special Event Planners, Educators and Students have joined the free forum. Dozens of questions, discussions, responses, opinions and project photographs from veterans and “newbies” alike have already been posted.

There are links to industry organizations and upcoming nationwide events. Informative articles discussing current trends and issues in the industry is a future possibility.

NewPro Corp. provided the funds to purchase the Interiorscape.com domain name. The highly popular forum was the first thing we wanted to put up as an easy way to re-introduce it to the public. This is our attempt to bring back something the industry really seemed to miss.

Have you registered as a member yet? If not please do. As we are in the formative stages of re-introductions, we are looking for any and all suggestions to make this site a resource center that helps all members succeed in their business.

Feel free to or use the reply area below if you have a comment or idea.

Interiorscape.com is back and registration is free

We here at NewPro Corp. received a tall cardboard box from Lechuza the other day and when we opened it up we couldn’t decide if the German company sent us their newest container or a work of art. I’m going to be diplomatic and say “both.”

Lechuza's "Diamante"

The 30-inch tall “Diamante” looks like a jewel – and I’m not just picking a flowery adjective. As you can tell by the photo, its surface design is reminiscent of a polished diamond. In fact the word “diamante” originated about 100 years ago in France and means “set with diamonds.”

Similar in size and shape to its “Rondo” cousin, the Diamante is 16 inches in diameter and features an interchangeable plant liner with a recessed frame handle and overflow function along with the familiar Lechuza sub-irrigation system. NewPro is currently evaluating if or when we will carry it – it depends heavily on customer requests and somewhat on industry buzz.

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Interiorscapers who will be knee-deep in garland and Christmas trees late in November and December sometimes earn a chunk of their annual income during the week or two of holiday installations.

Veterans who profit from “Holidayscaping” know pulling off a successful installation means planning for it months in advance. After all, the 200 poinsettias you will be placing in your clients’ lobbies are taking root at the growers right now.

Fred Scott, Vice President of NewPro Corp., is a former purchaser and manager of installations at one of the largest exterior and interior landscape supply companies in the US. He’s seen the good, the bad and the ugly the holidays can bring to Interiorscapers.

“People who install artificial Christmas trees, wreaths, garlands and poinsettias are beginning now to plan for Christmas” Fred said. “The first step is just diagraming what each client needs and then taking a simple inventory of what you have on hand and what you will need to match or expand your service for what client.”

That service includes the non-living – lights. It is safe to assume not every bulb survived the off-season or will survive this year’s installation rush. Many interiorscapers just purchase a set percentage – say 20, 30 or even 40 percent of their light inventory lighting so they don’t have to count every bulb or go shopping for them at the last minute.

While there are many ways to store and transport artificial Christmas trees, wreaths and garlands, one method is preparing the display in advance at your location. This is accomplished by decorating and then shrink-wrapping the pieces at your location before transport and installation at the client site.

“That way, once the tree is placed in the location, all the (Interiorscaper) needs to do is unfurl the shrink-wrap and fluff the tree,” Fred said. (more…)

With Father’s Day just three days away, I find myself reflecting upon family relationships. I am a father of three awesome kids and husband to a wife who loves me (most of the time). I am also thankful for the example my own dad has provided and still try to follow (again, most of the time).

Family is a concept we all have experienced on a personal level, but is it really possible in the often-impersonal world of business? We here at NewPro believe it is, and our loyal customers remind us of that every day.

I’ve lost count of the number of times Tamara, our customer service rep., has asked a customer “What kind of project do you have going on this week?” or hearing Prish, also in customer service, laugh out loud (and trust me it’s loud) at a humorous story someone shared from three time zones away.
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