Cardiff Shows RHS It's Capital For Shopping
Amongst the show gardens at this year’s RHS Show Cardiff in the parklands of
Cardiff Castle April 16-18 (www.rhs.org.uk/cardiff) is a design that first appeared
at last year’s RHS Chelsea Flower Show – attracting the attention of BAFTA award
winning actor Bill Nighy and Gavin and Stacey star Alison Steadman.
Cardiff: Capital for Shopping is a celebration of the city’s major new £675m St.
David’s retail development that opened in October as the largest shopping centre
development in Europe last year. The centre features a flagship, four storey John
Lewis department store, the firm’s largest outside London, that has propelled Cardiff
into the top five shopping destinations in the UK.
The Cardiff: Capital for Shopping display was created by Cardiff Council Landscape
Officer Mo Dorken and her team, and marked their third appearance at Chelsea. It
interprets the new centre, with the Grand Arcade as its centrepiece, while also
reflecting the proud heritage and character of Cardiff’s unique Victorian and Edwardian
arcades, which date back to 1886. At Chelsea it attracted the attention of HM The
Queen and received a Silver Gilt from the judges.
Themed ’shop window’ displays interpret a delicatessen, jewellers, green grocers
and children’s fashion in a garden setting together with a range of planted shopping
bags. Visitors to the show will be able to walk around the garden, looking down
the ‘arcades’ and into the ‘shop windows’. The central feature of the garden is
a large shopping bag set on a raised plinth and overflowing with a range of planting
types reflecting the variety of shopping. A long modern arcade complements the Victorian
& Edwardian arcades with timber arches and a more traditional building style.
RHS Cardiff Show Manager, Georgina Barter said: “Cardiff’s shopping display caused
a stir at Chelsea, and provides a key feature in this year’s Cardiff show where
Mo will be hoping to receive a best show garden award as she did for the Doctor
Who garden in 2008.”
The RHS Show Cardiff is a co-production with Cardiff Council and takes place in
the parklands of Cardiff Castle, featuring the best of the spring blooms from nurseries
across the UK, with ideas and inspiration for the growing season ahead.
There are show gardens created by the finest Welsh horticultural talent, the ever-popular
schools wheelbarrow competition supported by Legal & General, expert advice and
numerous plants and accessories for sale. The event has plenty of entertainment
at hand, with nature trails, street entertainers and live music throughout the weekend.
The beautiful parklands site also contains a Craft Village and a taste of Welsh
produce in the Café Quarter.
Councillor Nigel Howells, Executive Member for Sport, Leisure and Culture said:
“RHS Chelsea Flower Show gave Cardiff an excellent platform for marketing the city’s
shopping credentials to an international audience, and we’re now delighted to welcome
the display home for the RHS show in the parklands of Cardiff Castle, just a short
distance from the shopping centre.”
Cardiff: Capital for Shopping is the result of a public-private partnership involving
Cardiff Council, St David’s Partnership (a joint venture between Land Securities
and Capital Shopping Centres), John Lewis Partnership, Curzon Real Estate Partners,
and the Cardiff Retail Partnership.
St David’s has transformed the city centre, covering an area of 1.4 million square
feet (or 30 football pitches) and creating up to 4,000 future jobs. St David’s brings
to Cardiff a range of unique boutiques, specialist shops and familiar high street
retailers along with new cafes and restaurants and over 300 new homes.