Bachman’s

Let’s get one thing straight from the start: I am not a gardener. I joke that I have a brown thumb because with the exception of the cactus a friend gave me that literally needs 2 oz of water every two weeks, every other plant I’ve ever tried to grow has died a miserable and painful death. Ergo, I do not very often set foot in a garden center type of store.
But I did have a reason to visit Bachman’s the other day, when on a Sunday I got the idea to see if I could get a last-​minute wrist corsage for my friend whose birthday dinner was that evening. I started looking for an open florist at like 1 p.m., not expecting very much. But soon enough, search results spit out Bachman’s and I thought maybe… I called and spoke with a young lady whose name I think was Sarah. I really hope I got that right because most of my five stars is for her. Sarah was super accommodating, putting me on hold, consulting with the designer, acting as the messenger back and forth for me. She said that yes, they could do a last-​minute corsage but they could only do it with roses. She said yes, they could be pink, since that’s my friend’s favorite color. She asked about ribbon, time I needed to pick up, etc. She took my name and number and promised it would be ready to pick up within an hour. (Holy fast service!)
When I got to the store, I could see it was divided into kind of one half garden center for those who actually garden and one half for people wanting floral arrangements, etc. Another greatly helpful employee not only pointed me in the right direction but took the time to walk me straight to the counter to pick up the corsage. When I arrived, Sarah was behind the counter and lit up like a Christmas tree when I said my name. She exclaimed, «I talked to you on the phone!» and seemed really happy to see me. Not only were the flowers beautiful and had the effect of surprising my friend the way I envisioned but I was really impressed with the service here and the willingness to help of the employees. Well done.

I received amazing service here! I purchased a simple bouquet and vase, and intended to buy shears because the flowers were tall (I was on my way to an event). The woman at the counter saved me the expense by cutting them, arranging them, and putting them in a box to help keep them upright for travel. Incredibly thoughtful for such a small expense. You’ve earned a life customer.

This is a smaller location than the Richfield one, but still fits the bill. The assortment of plants seems to be similar, maybe a bit smaller, but just not rows and rows of the same plant like the Richfield location — so still pretty wide just not as deep. Convenient location right off ⁵⁵⁄₁₆₉.

It’s expensive. That’s been covered by others, so I won’t revisit.
The selection for vegetable gardening is small. I went there thinking that as a «garden center» they’d have more selection than Home Depot (at least for pest control), but I was sadly mistaken.
However, the worst was wandering around the store trying to find 2 items and not being able to find anyone to help. I saw one person on the phone (answering a customer, so that was good) but that didn’t help me much. I was there for 10 minutes when I finally saw where all the «help» was — up at the front registers in a huge group, chatting. When I saw one of them glance over at me, it was obvious that they (or at least she) knew that I was there and needed help — they just couldn’t be bothered to do it.
Not coming back.

This is the Bachman’s closest to my home.
Last week’s storm took quite a toll on my garden… well it’s been a week so decided it was time to restore the very sad looking spots that used to make up a garden. especially after losing a beloved tree.
Love that Bachman’s has everything I need to help revive my garden — strolling through all the lush variety of plants offered here makes me happy.
Needless to say everyone else had the same thing in mind as Bachman’s was crowded yesterday and today.

Bachman’s often has its plants at a full dollar over the cost of some other garden centers.
Bachman’s has really healthy, impeccably cared for plants and a LOT of great variety.
So it all balances out, you see. The plants are a little more expensive, but I find that you don’t have to rifle through a flat to find that ONE ⁴⁄₆ pack that looks like all plants are reasonably healthy or might, at the least, have a fighting chance. The perennials are well-​spaced and well cared for and they have a lot of unique varieties. This was also the only place in the cities where I found curly parsley late in the season – saving me a lot of hassle and grandmother-​scolding.
Bachman’s is also a pleasure to walk through. They’ve devoted a large amount of space to garden knick-​knacks and décor, special houseplant pots, etc. It’s a great place to get a gift for a garden-​lover.

Simple story: I left my wallet in the cart after I unloaded my purchases and an employee saw it — picked it up, tracked me down, and called me. When they reached me (it took a couple calls), it was after hours so they put it in the safe for the night. By the time I got there the next day, every single dollar was still in it and every card/​business card/​receipt/​etc. was still in the exact order. No one had even rutzed through my things. I was so relieved.
Booyah. Good people rule. Bachman’s hires good people.
End of story.