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Meet The Team

About Hayes

Plants, planting and landscaping has been our life for almost 200 years, as a consequence our depth of knowledge is vast. We now also have aquarium staff who are able to offer advice in fresh water, tropical and marine fish keeping, ponds, pond plants and water features. Across our business we employ over 100 people, with several having over 50 years experience in each of their fields. Perhaps you’d like to meet a few

Catherine Slater

Administrator

Catherine works behind the scenes and is often the person you first speak to when you call the store. She is methodical and diligent so perfect for doing all those back office tasks that enable the store to run smoothly. She is also involved with the Landscape Maintenance department enabling these customers to enjoy their well tended outdoor spaces. 

Dallas Klein

Director

Dallas has been with the company for over 20 years and started out with our sister company Suncoast sourcing the best quality garden furniture for the store and internet. He has worked his way up to being Director being responsible for all the background essentials which are vital for the smooth running of the company.

Martin Capell Watson

Owner, Retail Manager

As a member of the Hayes family Martin has worked his way around the departments over the years. On leaving college he worked for multinational retail outlets to gain the experience needed to run a large successful garden centre. He is responsible for the day to day running of the centre from making sure the staff are in place to customer satisfaction to making sure the store is an attractive destination.

Angela Slater

Internet Administrator

Having worked for Hayes Garden World for over 35 years she has worked closely with customers for the majority of that time in several departments so has an intimate knowledge of the products and quality which Hayes strives to achieve. For the past several years she has worked on the Internet side of the business writing the in-house blogs and also for national newspapers, magazines and web sites.

Keith Laird

Director

Keith has spent almost all his career, from being a teenager, working at Hayes Garden World. As such he has profound knowledge of Hayes customers and can always predict the latest garden trends and which garden furniture our customers will find the most appealing. 

Ian Hodgett

Furniture and Barbecue Team Leader and Buyer

Ian came to Hayes straight from school and worked his way up to be the Team Leader of the Furniture and Barbecue Departments. He travels the UK, Europe and the US sourcing the very best in outdoor furniture and barbecues with the result that we have one of the largest BBQ outlets in the north of England. When not working he enjoys being with his family and cooking on his range of barbecues and grills.

Tina Woodend

Gifts Team Member

Tina is responsible for our Clothing and Footwear department and loves helping customers find that special piece. She started her working life in the shipyard at Barrow and has had various jobs including a stint on London Transport. Her spare time is spent just chilling and appreciating the beauty of the countryside surrounding her home. She also enjoys socialising and crafting.

Caroline Young

Store Merchandiser

Caroline is born and bred Cumbrian from a farming family, now living in the beautiful Lyth Valley. She trained as a florist and is responsible for the gorgeous displays seen around the store. In her spare time she creates spectacular floral arrangements and bridal bouquets for family, friends and neighbours special occasions. Her creativity doesn’t stop there as she spends many hours on her various craft projects.

Pat Calvert-Thompson

Checkout Operator

The oldest staff member of Hayes, and one of the longest serving, Pat originally came from Liverpool. Throughout her long working life Pat has had an interesting variety of jobs from working in a building society to restaurant supervisor at Hayes. When not working Pat loves to relax with a good book and enjoys coffee with friends and of course following Liverpool FC.

Lyndan Orvis

E-commerce Manager

Lyndan is in charge of all digital marketing and oversees the website. He started at Hayes in 1996 working in the garden furniture department, but found his niche when he launched the Hayes Ecommerce site in 2006. He has grown the department to the present where it provides employment for over 30 local people. When not at work he loves being with his wife and daughter and walking his Golden Retriever Archie.  

Paul Crossland

Outdoor Plant Team Leader and Buyer

Paul has worked at Hayes since leaving school, working up through the ranks to his present position. He regularly travels to Europe as well as UK nurseries and growers to source the very best plants for our customer’s gardens. He also sources the very best Gold Standard Christmas trees to make sure that needle drop is minimal. In his spare time, he loves bowling and belongs to the Kendal Victoria Bowling Club.

Richard Clark

Internet sales and customer services manager

After attending catering college Richard spent the major part of his career in the hospitality industry, working for top hotel chain Best Western. He ran his own B&B in Windermere for several years before joining Hayes, so total customer satisfaction has always been at the core of his working ethic. When not at work he loves nothing more than spending time with his family and training new pup Ralph.

Griff

Security

Griff regularly patrols the store in his capacity as Store Security however instead of rooting out wrongdoers he gets sidetracked by the smell and offer of a treat or another dog to play with. His training is on-going but the signs of a vast improvement in his success rate are not encouraging.