Blossoming house plant market sees a flowering in growth

The house plant market has been spurred by locked-down consumers investing in their living spaces and looking to reap purported health benefits. Pretty Green Plants

The house-plant market is undergoing new growth as the result of several contributing factors, ranging from the purported mental and physical benefits of living amid plants, to a housebound population’s need to bring the outside inside. The sector has indeed turned a new leaf. “The global indoor plant market could see an estimated growth rate of 10.24 percent, reaching a market size of nearly $7.268 billion by 2025, according to a market watch study by Advance Market Analytics (AMA),

In 2019, the AMA said the Asia-Pacific region held the largest market share, with online sales set to boost the indoor plant market in particular. Additionally, the rising demand from small and medium enterprises (SMEs) and various industry verticals gives enough cushion to market growth, it added.

In Cambodia, local SMEs are capitalising on house-plant growth, offering regional favourites such as pothos, sansevieria (snake plant) and philodendron.

Popular local plant retailer and delivery service, Pretty Green Plants, said it started its family business in 2016 after seeing a gap in the market.

“One of our initial visions was to promote a green city, but we realised that’s not easy. Therefore, we switched the focus to house plants so we could help make people’s indoors green instead. Before us, expats would need to search for the locations of the shops, visit those places in person and then [deal with] the issues of language, bargaining culture and transporting the plants back home.” To counter that, the family shifted its services online, allowing customers the ability to shop at their fingertips, with plants arriving at their door shortly thereafter.“It was a bit weird at the beginning to choose something from photos but trust was built and now we get repeat clients because of our friendly and honest services. Sales keep growing year-on-year even though we have done very little online marketing,” the family said.

Indeed, during the pandemic, sales increased because many people were working from home and investing in their living spaces, as well as being exposed increasingly to online influencers who also had caught the indoor plant bug.

“In 2020, some plants became big hits when famous actors and actresses posted them on their personal social media accounts, sparking a trend. With most people living in condos, residence buildings, villas and apartments in Phnom Penh, more and more people are looking into home decor,” they added.

Vuth Heang, founder of SongSar Plant, sells a variety of home-grown plants in clay pots made in Kampong Chhang.

“I have seen a big growth in demand for house plants. I think it’s because there are lots of benefits and many different types offering a range of ones to suit the owner.” He added improving the look and feel of a room is one of the main reasons people keep plants. Many also improve air quality and remove toxins from the environment.

“I read up on studies which showed a list of plants that remove large quantities of benzene, formaldehyde, and trichloroethylene from the atmosphere. After researching air pollutants further, I also found many of the poisonous toxins that plants help eradicate are produced by furniture, carpets and building materials used indoors.”

Floral expert site Flower Card says retailers should be looking at which plants to supply. “The top three are the fishbone cactus, the bunny ear cactus and the blue star fern, which enjoyed 2,280 percent, 1,985 percent and 1,795 percent increases in interest respectively.