Royal Botanic Gardens VictoriaBusiness proposal for Heat GroupStrictly Confidential

The best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago. The second best time is now. –Chinese Proverb

The PROPOSAL

Dear Gillian,

Let’s turn up the Heat and start 2017 by building on your strategic four pillars, 2 pillars specifically:

1.Domestic Business2.Acquiring and developing brands

I represent the Royal Botanic Gardens Victoria and as part of my role I look to open up dialogue with Australian businesses that might partner with the Royal Botanic Gardens Victoria in licensing the Royal Botanic Gardens Victoria brand in a commercial wholesale or retail capacity.

Our partner must be the right fit as the RBGV brand is steeped in history and has a very strong cultural and scientific reputation globally.

The Royal Botanic Gardens Victoria (RBGV) are a not for profit cultural institution who have 170 years of history. Two garden locations, the Melbourne Garden (South Yarra) and the Australian Garden (Cranbourne) a multi award winning garden. With multiple international awards and a global reputation of being one of the best, obviously we like to think the best garden in the world, with over 1.8 million visitors a year, there might be something worth considering when I suggest a licensing opportunity.

The BRAND2016 was a very busy year not only did the Royal Botanic Gardens Victoria unveil the Cato Brand Partners designed branding across both corporate and commercial.

2016 was also year of analysing categories within our retail/licensing business, outlining which ones would offer the most ROI for us in the forms of both volume sales and brand positioning, designing how our brand worked commercially and developing product.

The PRODUCTSOne of the first categories highlighted as worth the investment was bath and body. Starting with a logo soap working with a current branded supplier we produced 6 fragrances in a clear wrapped soap bar retailing at $5.95.

The success of this line gave us the confidence to develop a gardeners range with our own unique formula.

The range consists of hand moisturiser, balm and soap with natural roughage.

Moisturiser RRP $26.95 Balm $24.95 Agave pouch Soap $16.95 Paper wrap soap $9.95

The PRODUCTS

The CONCEPT

So where to for 2017, well I am hoping that you might see acquiring a license to further develop the Royal Botanic Gardens Victoria brand within the bath and body market as a great opportunity.

As you have said “acquisitions are an important part of your strategy for the next five years. The Australian retail market is very competitive and having your own brands being more in control of your own destiny. This allows you to choose how much you invest and there are export opportunities.”

I know that you are looking to grow the domestic business and this range not only has the opportunity to allow you to add to your current accounts offer, but also gives you the opportunity to approach the 1200 or so independent hardware stores that now are part of the Metcash organisation or any of the 542 listed nursery’s in Victoria alone.

A quick sales forecast for the soap bar by gaining 80% of the Victorian nursery market at a retail price of $6.95 with a wholesale price $2.87 giving the retailer a 55% margin (my cost per bar shrink wrapped is $2.10 for 180gm). A min order initially could be 6 units across 6 fragrances total order $103.32 across 433 stores is $44,737.50 in additional revenue in one state with ongoing re-orders.

The Royal Botanic Gardens Victoria commercial brand also offers recognition in over 93 countries globally, with Germany being the second largest importer outside of Australia for one of our current licensee’s. Making setting up an export market a lot easier when you already have brand recognition.

The CONCEPTTake Cath Kidston business as a model, the private company’s revenue in 2014 was $114 million pounds with a net profit after tax of $20 million pounds. They sell a lot of hand creams purely based on textile patterns designed by Cath Kidston and have more recently looked at an aggressive international expansion starting in Asia.

The OPPORTUNITIESThe Royal Botanic Gardens Victoria has an archive of historical and botanical illustrated artwork not to mention over 1.8 million dried specimens that will take any designers breath away. I get goose bumps every time I visit the collection for inspiration, there is always something new to discover, not to mention the history that is connected to each discovery.

Flower painter Euphemia Henderson c1847

The OPPORTUNITIES

Dried specimen collected 1965 Royal Botanic Gardens Victoria Toile designed by Tamara Schneider

I have included a copy of our new Retail Strategy and also the Corporate plan, so that you can get a better understanding of who we are and what we are about.

If you would like to see our annual report please let me know and I can email it to you.

I have also provided some samples, of what we have done and where we are going.

Please use, the only good product is a used one.

The soap dish is handmade by Samantha Robinson. Samantha is a current licensee and has used the Wehl sisters flower paintings as inspiration for the flower decal. Each piece is unique as each flower decal is placed on by hand and each time a different flower and position.

I really hope that this has brought some happiness to the start of 2017 and you can envision the potential of the Royal Botanic Gardens Victoria brand.

I look forward to shouting you a coffee, tea or ice cream and a walk through our South Yarra garden to further discuss this opportunity.

Kind Regards   

Rachel O’BrienCo-ordinator, Product Planning & DevelopmentRoyal Botanic Gardens VictoriaBirdwood Avenue, Melbourne Victoria 3004

The BEGINNING

Thank you

Rachel O’BrienBirdwood AvenueMelbourne Victoria 3004AustraliaT +61 (03) 9252 2443F +61 (03) 9252 2442E robrien@rbg.vic.gov.auwww.rbg.vic.gov.au