WHEN Derrick Dyer and Alison Stone became the new owners of Eggesford Garden Centre on July 11, 2006, it was a big adventure for both as neither partner has a background in horticulture or retail.

“We often joked that we should contact Channel 4 and ask if they wanted to film us for a documentary,” said Derrick, “It would have made a great show!”

The couple decided to have a major career change and had been looking for a suitable business venture for several years before seeing Eggesford Gardens for sale on an internet site.

“We felt it was right for us as soon as we saw it in February 2006 and things happened fairly quickly after that. We were also lucky that there was a great team of staff already working here, that made a big difference,” said Derrick.

With a run of wet summers and hard winters, record fuel prices and a global recession the last few years have not been without their challenges but trade at the garden centre and restaurant has been growing steadily since 2006.

Alison commented: “We are a traditional garden centre at heart and that seems to appeal to our customers. However, consumer trends and shopping habits change so we have to keep the business moving forward by coming up with new products and ideas.

“There are many different elements to the business but they all depend on each other. For example, our Gardens Restaurant is extremely popular and attracts many regular customers of its own along with holiday makers visiting this beautiful part of Devon.”

Derrick added: “We have certainly learnt a lot over the last 10 years. The key thing that keeps people coming back is good old fashioned customer service. We would like to take this opportunity to thank all our customers for supporting us over the last decade.”

As part of the 10th anniversary celebrations there will be a free to enter prize draw with 10 great prizes. Any customer making a purchase at Eggesford Gardens from July 11 to 17 will have the chance to enter the competition.

Prizes include a three-course Sunday lunch for two in the Gardens Restaurant, £60 worth of glazed garden pots, a bird table, 10 bags of compost, seeds to the value of £25, toiletry gift sets and a selection of gardening tools and accessories.