June 24, 2022 by Cherry Lane
21 Years of Community – Our Proudest Moments
By Rachael – Content Editor
Published June 2022
The UK’s only value garden centre group, Cherry Lane was established in 2001 by parent company QD Group.
At the QD group, we have always seen our teams as one big family. We not only work together, but we support one another and our local communities. Over the last 21 years, our teams have continuously made us proud with their achievements and fundraising across all of the stores, offices and distribution centres.
The team at Cherry Lane have done so much over the last 21 years, so choosing the highlights was no easy task. Here are 21 of our proudest moments:
1. Smashing the Fundraising Target for EACH.
QD Group pledged to raise £25,000 for The Nook Appeal at EACH. However, thanks to the efforts of our teams across the board, we managed to raise a grand total of £169,258. Our teams put a tremendous effort into fundraising through events and sponsors, and we are so proud of how much they raised with the help of local communities.
As well as supporting one main charity, Cherry Lane garden centres also fundraise to support charities and causes that are local to their stores.
2. Cherry Lane South View Supporting East Anglian Air Ambulance
Our team at Cherry Lane South View worked hard to raise £1952 for the East Anglian Air Ambulance, we are grateful to everyone who took part in the fundraising and for all those who donated.
3. The Mad Hatters!
Every year, our teams take part in the “Wear A Hat Day” to raise money for Brain Tumour Research. In the picture above we have our Cherry Lane Braintree team looking dashing as ever in their handsome headwear!
4. Supporting Rainbows Hospice for Children and Young People
Our lovely team at Cherry Lane Bradmore raised an impressive £224.55 for a local hospice, Rainbows Hospice for Children and Young People in the East Midlands.
5. Fantastic Fireworks!
Our team over at Cherry Lane Glebe hosted a fantastic firework display, attended by over 3,750 people. All funds raised were donated to the local 109th Countesthorpe Scout Troop, which helped to host the event.
6. Wear it. Beat it.
Stores came together to support the British Heart Foundation by wearing red for the day and donating to the charity. Here we have our brilliant team at Cherry Lane Long Melford looking very reddy for a great day at work!
7. Fundraising for Bluebell Wood Children’s Hospice
Our tremendous team over at Cherry Lane Tickhill raised £199.13 for their local children’s hospice in Sheffield. The store continues to support Bluebell Wood Children’s Hospice along with Firefly Cancer Awareness & Support, we are grateful to all our lovely customers who help us with fundraising.
8. The 3 Peaks Challenge
15 brave members of staff across the business joined together to take part in the 24-Hour 3 Peaks Challenge. Together they climbed Ben Nevis, Scafell Pike and Snowdon, raising £9000. The money raised was split between the Nook Appeal for Each, and the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit at the Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital. Fantastic job guys!
9. Some Good Old Fashioned FUN
We love to host fun days for our local communities and invite them for a day of free entertainment and good old-fashioned fun. Here we have our Cherry Lane David’s Garden Centre looking dressed up and ready to celebrate with its wonderful team.
10. Spreading Joy at Christmas
When we had to cancel our Santa’s Grottos in 2020, our stores donated the grotto presents to be distributed amongst the community. Here is our terrific team at Pulham Market making sure their presents help to put a smile on little ones’ faces after a very challenging year.
11. Overcoming Obstacles for EACH
A group of marvellous colleagues from our Norwich office tackled a rigorous obstacle course at Old Buckenham Airfield to raise money for EACH. Those obstacles were no match for this tough bunch!
12. Supporting Yorkshire Cancer Research
Our fabulous team over at Cherry Lane Beverley worked hard to fundraise £199.44 for their local Yorkshire Cancer Research group, based in Harrogate. A big well done to all the staff and customers for contributing!
13. Winning a Top National Garden Centre Award
The Garden Trade News (GTN) Greatest Christmas Awards recognise people behind garden centre retailing during the busy festive period, showcasing great new ideas alongside talent, teamwork and retailing excellence. More than 50 garden centres were nominated, with Cherry Lane Podington being awarded silver in The Greatest Christmas Community or Charity Initiative category. The Cherry Lane Podington team were recognised for their Sensory Santa initiative for children with special needs.
Claire, manager at Cherry Lane Podington, said; “We are absolutely delighted to have won this prestigious industry award. Sensory Santa is something we all felt passionate about as a team. These events are important to enable everyone to make memories and share the magic of Christmas together with an experience that is enjoyable for all. We’re already looking ahead and planning for Christmas 2022!”
14. Walking the Coast in Aid of EACH
A magnificent group of volunteers from our offices took part in a special walking challenge along the Norfolk coast to fundraise for the EACH nook appeal. As the carers at EACH work 24/7 and 365 days a year, the team decided to walk 247,365 steps between them, raising £1,500! Great job guys!
15. Supporting Brain Tumour Research
Cherry Lane Roman Way managed to raise an impressive £220.49 for Brain Tumour Research, using collection tins at their till points. A job very well done by both the staff and the customers – thank you, guys!
16. Festive Spirit at Early Dawn
Every year our teams like to embrace the festive spirit and join in for Christmas Jumper Day. Here we have the seasonally sensational team from Cherry Lane Early Dawn rocking some classic festive looks. All money raised goes to the store’s chosen charity.
17. Our Distribution Team are Always Good Sports
The hardworking team over at our distribution centre had a great turnout for “Wear Your Sports Shirt To Work” day. Everyone who took part made a donation to our current chosen charity, BREAK. Go, Team!
18. Supporting Local Foodbanks
We have foodbank donation points set up in selected Cherry Lane garden centres to support the local communities, with the hope of having more available in future. When Cherry Lane Barnett Hill had to cancel their Santa’sGrotto in 2020, they donated all the toys to their local organisation, Wyre Forest Foodbank.
19. Teaming Up for Fantastic Events
Our stores work hard to host some amazing public events throughout the year. Jamie, the manager at Cherry Lane The Barn says “In terms of what we are proud of, team spirit! Our café team are amazing and every event we hold always seems to be a winner, each and every year we seem to grow and add a new level to it. The Café and Store team work in perfect harmony conducting all the events and the feedback is always great.”.
You can find out more about our exciting events here.
20. A Greener Future
In 2021, we launched Value Our Planet, a new campaign which highlighted the changes we are making as part of our commitment to caring for the environment.
We have seen the introduction of recycling stations at Cherry Lane for customers to bring or take away used plant pots and compost bags, as well as providing free used coffee grounds from the QD and Cherry Lane Cafés which can be mixed into the soil as a natural enricher. Since Christmas, the stores have also been stocking more 100% recyclable wrapping paper, gift tags, bows and bags, all made from sustainable resources. We continuously strive to make changes for a more sustainable future, you can find out more here.
21. The Start of a Great Partnership
Our first donation to our new chosen charity partner, BREAK. We have donated all the money charged for 10p plastic bags across our stores and garden centres, along with much-appreciated customer donations from collection tubs on the tills.
Karl Ottolangui, operations director for the QD Group, said: “We are delighted to make this first donation to Break, which is a great way to kick off our new charity partnership. Thank you to our customers who have helped us to raise this brilliant first amount of £23,205. We are all looking forward to really getting behind the charity this year to raise some more much-needed funds for a fantastic local cause.” A big thanks to all of our staff and customers for supporting us with these amazing achievements. We can’t wait to see what the next 21 years will bring. < Back to Home
