Swallows Nurseries & Gardens, an established nursery, garden centre and café in Mixbury, has been put on the market with an asking price of £1.1 million.
The business, which sits on the Oxfordshire-Northamptonshire border near Brackley, was founded in 1989 as a wholesale nursery before evolving into a garden centre and visitor destination. It opened to the public in its current form in 2022.
The freehold property is being marketed by specialist business property adviser Christie & Co and includes the nursery and garden centre operation, covered retail areas, eight show gardens and a café.
A garden centre and destination
A central part of the business is The Nordic Kitchen, a Scandinavian-inspired café offering brunches, lunches, speciality coffee and cakes.
The café has 40 indoor covers, with a wood-burning stove and additional outdoor seating. The site also has customer parking for around 30 vehicles.
The nursery’s location gives it access to communities across Oxfordshire, Buckinghamshire and Northamptonshire, with Brackley, Buckingham, Milton Keynes, Northampton and Oxford all within reach.
Anna Allen, who is behind the business, said the nursery had been a “passion project” and that she was proud of what had been created, from growing plants and developing the gardens to establishing the café.
“We look forward to finding the right buyer to take the business forward and build on everything that has been achieved to date,” she said.
Sale offers opportunity for new owner
Tom Glanvill, head of leisure brokerage at Christie & Co, said the business combined its horticultural operation with a café and destination appeal through its gardens.
He said the property offered multiple income streams, an established customer base and opportunities for future growth, with interest expected from garden centre operators as well as potential new entrants to the sector.
Swallows Nurseries & Gardens is being offered freehold for £1.1 million.
The sale means the future of an established horticultural and visitor business in this part of Oxfordshire will now depend on its next owner.
