Hillier Garden Centres Appoints Carl Milton as New Retail Director

Hillier Garden Centres is pleased to announce the appointment of Carl Milton as Retail Director, joining the company this September.

Carl will bring a wealth of retail experience to Hillier, having held senior leadership positions in well-known British retail brands. He spent 16 years at Debenhams in various strategic roles, before joining Fenwick in 2014, where he held several positions, including Store Director of the group’s oldest, largest and flagship store in Newcastle.

George Hillier, Chairman of Hillier Garden Centres, said: "As we look forward to welcoming Carl Milton into the role of Retail Director, we are excited about the next chapter for Hillier. Carl’s deep knowledge of the retail sector, proven track record in managing complex operations, and passion for delivering excellence to customers make him an ideal fit to lead our garden centres into the future.”

Commenting on his appointment, Carl said: "I am absolutely thrilled to be joining Hillier Garden Centres, a company with such a rich heritage in horticulture and an exceptional reputation for quality, expertise, and customer service. I’m looking forward to working alongside the talented team and building on the strong foundations already in place. I see this as a great opportunity to continue growing the business, enhancing the customer experience, and ensuring Hillier remains a leading name in garden retail."

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Editors notes

“To inspire the creation of green living spaces for now and the future” Hillier is one of the leading names in the horticultural industry, with 160 years of growing and retail experience.

Founded in 1864 by Edwin Hillier, the company remains a family-run nursery with the fifth generation now actively involved in the family business as it continues to grow.

Not only is Hillier the largest producer of semi-mature trees in Europe and grower of over one million plants at its Hampshire nursery, but it also employs over 750 staff across its nursery, amenity trees and 22 garden centre divisions and is a flourishing multi-million pound company. It proudly holds the world record for the most consecutive gold medals awards at the world-famous RHS Chelsea Flower Show, with 74 wins.

As one of the leading growers in the UK, Hillier is involved in many peat-free initiatives, including the RHS Peat-Free Fellowship, the largest peat-free collaborative research project globally. The company was amongst the first nurseries to become 100% peat-free across both its production nursery and retail garden centres, and all Hillier plants are grown in peat-free compost.

Recent successes for the company include the launch of its online shop, the substantial redevelopment of Hillier Garden Centre Newbury and the acquisition of the Rosebourne Garden Centre Group in November 2022, as well as sponsorship of BBC Gardeners’ World Live and BBC Gardeners’ World Spring Fair, and the incredibly popular free ‘Hillier Gardening Club’ loyalty program which now has over half a million members.

Renowned for being a leading breeder of plants in the UK at its 100% peat-free nursery in Hampshire, each year Hillier introduces amazing new varieties. Many of these have become essentials in British gardens and the company continues with the tradition of innovation and the introduction of new garden plants in the present day.