Horticulturalist

Job title

Horticulturist

Location

Callan Co-op Garden Centre, Callan, Co. Kilkenny

Reports to

Retail Operations Manager

Contract

Permanent

Hours

Full time, 5 days over 7, including weekends

Salary

Remuneration based on experience

Interviews

Immediate interviews available

Apply to

[email protected]

About us

Callan Co-op is a long-established co-operative based in Co. Kilkenny with a growing retail business. Our group includes three service stations with SPAR stores in Callan, Tullow and Kilkenny, a Supermac's franchise, a Homevalue store and our newly opened garden centre in Callan. We employ almost 100 colleagues across the group.

We are a people-first business. Our colleagues are the reason our customers come back, and we invest in them accordingly — with training, with support, and with real opportunities to progress.

The opportunity

Our garden centre in Callan has just opened, and we are looking for a Horticulturist to take a leading hand in shaping it.

This is a role for someone who knows plants properly — what they are, what they need, and how to keep them in first-class condition — and who also understands the commercial side of a garden centre: buying well, presenting well, pricing sensibly, managing seasonality and controlling losses.

Reporting to the Operations Manager, you will be the plant expert on site. You will look after the living stock, guide our customers with real authority, build the range season by season, and help establish the garden centre as a destination in this part of Kilkenny. Because we are at the very start, you will have genuine influence over how the offer develops.

Key responsibilitiesPlant care and quality

• Take responsibility for the health, condition and presentation of all living stock across the site, indoors and outdoors.
• Manage watering, feeding, potting on, pruning, hardening off and general plant husbandry, and set the routines the wider team follows.
• Monitor for pests, disease and plant stress, and take prompt, appropriate action.
• Manage plant losses and shrinkage, and keep quality standards high through every season.
• Ensure correct handling, storage and rotation of stock on delivery and on display.

Commercial and buying

• Work with the Operations Manager on the plant range — what we buy, in what quantity, and when.
• Manage relationships with nurseries, growers and suppliers, and monitor the quality of what arrives.
• Plan for seasonality, so that we have the right stock at the right time and are not left carrying it afterwards.
• Support pricing, margin and waste control, and understand how the plant area is performing commercially.
• Contribute to promotions, seasonal events and campaigns that bring customers through the door.

Customer service and advice

• Give expert, practical advice to customers on plant selection, planting, aftercare and problem-solving.
• Build relationships with regular customers and gardening groups in the local area.
• Handle customer queries and complaints professionally and to a satisfactory conclusion.
• Support add-on sales naturally, matching customers with the compost, feed, tools and containers they will actually need.

Merchandising and site presentation

• Lay out and merchandise the plant areas so they are attractive, logical to shop and easy to maintain.
• Keep signage, labelling and plant care information accurate and up to date.
• Refresh displays through the season and keep the site tidy, safe and welcoming.

Our team

• Share your plant knowledge and train colleagues so that standards are maintained on every shift.
• Lead by example, supporting a positive, respectful and inclusive working environment.
• Work closely with the Operations Manager and with colleagues across the Homevalue store and the wider group.

Compliance and safety

• Ensure safe working practices at all times, including safe handling and application of plant protection products, fertilisers and chemicals in line with legislation.
• Comply with plant health, plant passporting and biosecurity requirements.
• Follow manual handling, machinery and equipment safety procedures, and report accidents, incidents and hazards promptly.
• Maintain accurate records where required.

Essential criteria

The following are essential and applications will be assessed against them:

• A horticultural qualification, or extensive professional experience in horticulture, covering both strong plant knowledge and a clear understanding of the commercial side of the business. This is a non-negotiable requirement for this role.
• Full flexibility to work 5 days over 7, including weekends. Weekend working is a core part of this role, as this is when our customers shop.
• Confident, practical plant knowledge across a broad range — bedding, herbaceous, shrubs, trees, houseplants and seasonal lines.
• Commercial awareness, with an understanding of ordering, seasonality, margin and waste.
• Strong communication skills and a genuine ability to advise and engage customers.
• Ability to work on your own initiative, prioritise sensibly and stay organised during busy trading periods.
• Physical capability for an active, outdoor role in all weather.
• Entitlement to work in the Republic of Ireland.

Desirable criteria

• Previous experience in a garden centre, nursery or retail horticulture environment.
• Experience of buying, ordering or supplier management.
• Experience of merchandising and seasonal display.
• Full clean driving licence.
• Manual handling, machinery or safe use of chemicals training.

What we offer

• Remuneration based on experience.
• A full-time, permanent position in a stable, well-established local business.
• The opportunity to shape a brand new garden centre from the very beginning.
• Training and development, and genuine progression opportunities across the Callan Co-op group.
• Employee Assistance Programme, available to you and to your family, offering confidential support 24/7.
• A supportive management team who will back you and invest in your development.
• The chance to be part of a co-operative that is rooted in, and committed to, its local community.

How to apply

Please send your CV, together with a short cover note outlining your horticultural background and your availability, to [email protected], quoting “Horticulturist — Callan Garden Centre” in the subject line.

Applications will be reviewed on receipt and immediate interviews are available for suitable candidates.

Callan Co-op is an equal opportunities employer. We welcome applications from all suitably qualified candidates and we are committed to a recruitment process that is fair, consistent and free from discrimination. If you require any reasonable accommodation during the recruitment process, please let us know when you apply.

All applications are treated in confidence and personal data is processed in line with our privacy notice and applicable data protection law.

Benefits:

• Employee assistance program
• On-site parking

Work Location: In person