Garden centre (and soft play area) to re-open after sale

A GARDEN centre in Hare Hatch has been taken over by a new company.

Dobbies Garden Centre in Floral Mile has been bought by Squire’s Garden Centres and will be rebranded by the company.

Dobbies had previously announced that it would be closing the branch today (Friday) having failed to renegotiate a new rental agreement in a bid to cut costs. This will be the second site owned by Squire’s Garden Centres in Berkshire after it took over a centre in Heathlands Road, Wokingham, in 2019.

Sarah Squire, who chairs the company, said: “We are looking forward to getting to know the garden centre team and working with them, as well as building relationships with the local community. Our number one priority is getting the centre up and running and we look forward to bringing our new customers our wonderful selection of plants, many of which are homegrown and from our own nurseries as we head into the exciting spring season.

“We are working on this as quickly as we can and hope to announce an opening date very soon.”

Squire’s has said the centre’s soft play centre, which is currently closed, will open as soon as “practically possible” while the garden centre will re-open in the second half of February.

Squire’s is a family-run business founded in 1936. Next year will mark its 90th anniversary.