Coletta & Tyson

What Coletta & Tyson does

Coletta & Tyson Ltd is a privately-held, family-owned wholesale ornamental plant grower headquartered in Woodmansey, Beverley, East Yorkshire. The company operates over 400 acres (162 ha) of nurseries across multiple East Yorkshire sites — including Low Farm (housing the Advanced Business Unit, ABU), Poplar Nursery (Cottingham), Millbeck Nursery (South Cave) and the 2-acre Woodmansey Garden Centre — and produces over 100 million ornamental plants annually across more than 1,000 varieties spanning alpines, herbaceous perennials, shrubs, climbing plants, bedding, trees, fruit and vegetable plants, forced bulbs and houseplants.

The core technology asset is the Advanced Business Unit (ABU), opened in 2004 and billed as world-leading automation: a reservoir for 23,000 cubic metres of water, over 70 miles of integrated pipework and rails, over 60,000 carrying stillages, and 55,238 m² of thermal screens enable a transplanting and handling capacity of over 2 million plants per day and up to 14 million plants on the floor at any one time. This sits alongside traditional outdoor and protected nurseries, giving the firm a hybrid automated-plus-traditional growing model. Proprietary brand easyecoplantTM (launched 2014) provides a differentiated consumer-facing label.

The business model is wholesale-led: B2B distribution of ornamental plants to major UK retailers (named customers include B&Q and B&M Stores) and garden centre chains, supplemented by direct-to-consumer sales through the wholly-owned Garden Centre, which also functions as a trial facility for new varieties. Revenue is generated via transaction-based per-plant pricing negotiated by volume; pricing is not publicly disclosed. Coletta & Tyson is run by second-generation owners John and Paul Tyson, employs 180+ permanent staff across specialised functions, and supplements this with seasonal labour via partnerships with Concordia and Staff Finders during the March-June peak.

Name

Coletta & Tyson

Legal name

Coletta & Tyson Ltd

Website

https://coletta.co.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

1964

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Coletta & Tyson is a UK wholesale ornamental plant grower operating 400+ acres of East Yorkshire nurseries, producing over 100 million plants annually across 1,000+ varieties for major retailers such as B&Q and B&M, supplemented by a retail Garden Centre and proprietary brand easyecoplantTM.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Ornamental Plant Nursery / Wholesale Horticulture

NAICS

Nursery and Tree Production (111421), Nursery and Floriculture Production (11142), Greenhouse, Nursery, and Floriculture Production (1114), Nursery, Garden Center, and Farm Supply Retailers (444240)

SIC

Agricultural Production-Crops (100), Retail-Building Materials, Hardware, Garden Supply (5200)

akta.pro primary industry

Nursery Production (Woody Ornamentals: Trees, Shrubs, Roses) (AFAGAHAF)

akta.pro secondary industry

Seedling & Sapling Production (Bare-Root) (AFAMADAC)

Keywords

• Ornamental plant growing
• Wholesale horticultural nursery
• Garden centre retail
• Ornamental plant supply
• Plant production nurseries

Headquarters

HQ city

Beverley

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices4 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Supply Chain, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Wholesale Ornamental Plant Sales: B2B wholesale distribution of ornamental plants to retailers, garden centres, and horticultural organisations across the UK market. The company grows and sells over 100 million ornamental plants annually across over 1,000 different varieties.
2. Garden Centre Retail Sales: Direct-to-consumer retail sales through the Coletta & Tyson Garden Centre located at Woodmansey, spanning approximately 2 acres. Also serves as a trial facility for new plant varieties.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Coletta & Tyson grows and sells ornamental plants at wholesale scale across more than 400 acres of nurseries in East Yorkshire, producing over 100 million plants per year across 1,000+ varieties, supplying major UK retailers and garden centres. The company also operates its own Coletta & Tyson Garden Centre at Woodmansey for direct consumer sales and as a trial facility for new varieties, and sells the proprietary easyecoplantTM plant brand launched in 2014.

Product overview

Coletta & Tyson operates as a wholesale ornamental plant grower with multiple interconnected offerings. The core business is wholesale ornamental plants grown across 400+ acres, producing 100+ million plants annually across 1,000+ varieties. The company also operates a retail Garden Centre (2 acres) which serves as a testing ground for new varieties. In 2014, the company launched easyecoplantTM as a branded plant product. All offerings are supported by traditional nurseries and the Advanced Business Unit (ABU) facility for controlled-environment growing.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Wholesale Ornamental Plants Grower-supplied ornamental plants across 1,000+ varieties — alpines, herbaceous perennials, shrubs, climbing plants, pot and pack bedding, trees, fruit and vegetable plants, forced bulbs, and houseplants — supplied wholesale to UK retailers and garden centres year-round.
• Coletta & Tyson Garden Centre Approximately 2-acre retail garden centre at the Woodmansey main site, supplied directly by Coletta & Tyson's nurseries, providing consumer retail plant sales and serving as a trial facility for new plant varieties before wholesale release.
• easyecoplantTM Proprietary plant brand/trademark launched in 2014 representing Coletta & Tyson's branded ornamental plant offering within their wholesale and retail product range.

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 100 million ornamental plants sold annually
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers2 records

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered minor.

• Concordia FarmsminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with the Concordia charity to provide seasonal employment opportunities for students. Concordia is a charity that provides overseas and UK seasonal workers to agricultural and horticultural businesses. Coletta & Tyson uses this partnership to assist with seasonal working requirements.
• Staff FindersminorOthersEmployment agency used by Coletta & Tyson to help fulfil seasonal staffing requirements. Workers can register with the agency for seasonal positions.
• BPOA (British Protected Ornamentals Association)minorOthersIndustry association membership for British ornamental plant growers. BPOA represents and supports the protected ornamental horticulture sector in the UK.
• HTA (Horticultural Trades Association)minorOthersIndustry association membership representing UK horticultural trades. HTA supports growers, retailers, and other horticultural businesses with resources, standards, and industry representation.
• HDC (Horticultural Development Company)minorOthersIndustry development organization supporting horticultural research and development in the UK. HDC funds research projects to benefit growers and the wider horticulture industry.
• BOPP (British Ornamental Plant Producers)minorOthersTrade association for British ornamental plant producers, providing industry standards, certification, and networking opportunities for members.
• NFU (National Farmers Union)minorOthersIndustry association representing farmers and growers in England and Wales. NFU provides advocacy, support, and resources for agricultural and horticultural businesses.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Wyevale Nurseries: Historically one of the UK's largest wholesale growers of ornamental plants, supplying garden centres across the country. Direct comparable as a UK wholesale ornamental nursery with overlapping customer types.
• Bordon Hill Nurseries: UK wholesale nursery producing container-grown shrubs, trees, and ornamental plants for the garden-centre trade. Comparable as a UK-based wholesale ornamental grower with similar customer types.
• John Woods Nurseries: UK wholesale grower of ornamental plants supplying garden centres and multiple retailers. Directly comparable product range and B2B wholesale model in the UK ornamental horticulture market.
• Lovania Nurseries: UK wholesale nursery growing ornamental plants and supplying garden centres and retailers across Britain. Comparable wholesale product range and customer base in the UK ornamental market.
• Notcutts Nurseries: UK garden centre chain with own plant growing heritage supplying a wide range of ornamental plants. Comparable as a UK ornamental-grower-and-retailer combination serving similar customers.
• Farplants: UK-based cooperative of specialist ornamental plant growers supplying garden centres and retailers with bedding, perennials, and shrubs. Closely comparable as a wholesale nursery collective serving the same UK retail channel as Coletta & Tyson.
• Darby Nursery Stock: UK wholesale supplier of nursery stock to garden centres, landscapers, and retailers. Direct comparable as a UK wholesale ornamental nursery serving the same end markets.
• Hillier Nurseries: Long-established UK nursery and garden centre group growing and retailing a wide range of ornamental plants. Comparable through its integrated wholesale-grower and garden-centre retail model.

Broad incumbents

• Blue Diamond Garden Centres: UK and Channel Islands garden centre group with broad plant assortments across many sites. Comparable as a large UK retail buyer of ornamental plants, representing a customer type for Coletta & Tyson.
• Dobbies Garden Centres: UK's largest garden centre chain, with a significant plant offering across multiple sites. Comparable as a major UK buyer/retailer of ornamental plants and a key customer-type for wholesale growers like Coletta & Tyson.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/colettaandtyson
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/coletta

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Coletta & Tyson