Proven Selections Partners with Bodger Botanicals

The Proven Winners group and Bodger Botanicals have created a partnership to market many of the exclusive Bodger Botanicals varieties under the Proven Selections brand. Proven Selections varieties from Bodger Botanicals will be available exclusively through Four Star Greenhouse for the 2003-2004 season. All Bodger Botanicals varieties will also continue to be available through their current distribution channel.

With the addition of Bodger Botanicals, the Proven Selections brand will offer one of the industry's widest selections of vegetative produced flowering annuals and perennials. Highlights of the program include the Double Up series of double impatiens, the Gum Drop series of double begonias, Tiny Tunia petunias, Diva and Windchimes fuchsia, the Darling and Angel shasta daisy series and many of the 200 other varieties in the Bodger Botanicals program.

The full list of varieties sold under the Proven Selections brand will be available from your Michell's representative (1-800-422-4678). Michell's will continue to be the exclusive US broker for Bodger Botanicals varieties, including those sold under the Proven Selections name.

"Our product line will now be available to retailers and merchandised to consumers as part of the highly successful Proven Selections and Proven Winners retail destination" said Steve Jones of Bodger. "Proven Selections has excellent sell through at retail and allows retailers to provide quality products and useful information in retail displays."

"Our product lines are a great fit," said Tom Smith, President of Four Star Greenhouses and founding member of Proven Winners. "The addition of Bodger Botanicals to the Proven Selections brand gives our customers a full range of products to choose from and allows them to leverage the consumer recognition of Proven Winners and Proven Selections to create excellent product sell through."

About Proven Winners:
Proven Winners is an international marketing cooperative comprised of some of the world's best propagators. As a group, they are dedicated to developing new hybrid color varieties that will perform well for both the grower and consumer. Proven Winners plants are found in garden centers nationwide.

About Bodger Botanicals:
Bodger Botanicals was founded in 1998 by Bodger Seeds. Since that time, the program has become a consortium of some of the world's leading flower breeders, including Kieft Seeds, Benary, Floranova, Takii and Sakata. Bodger Botanicals also draws on a number of specialty breeders that have exhibit excellence within their flower classes. Bodger Botanicals are available exclusively through the Henry F. Michell's Company in the United States, Jack Van Klavern in Canada, and other brokers around the world.

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EDITOR'S NOTE: A complete collection of print-quality Proven Winners images are available online at http://www.pwcertified.com/photolib. To request images immediately, contact Kerry Strope at (573) 635-2877 or . To request images from Bodger Botanicals, contact Steve Jones at sjones@bodger.com.