Aug. 31, 2009 (PR Newswire) -- MARYSVILLE, Ohio, Aug. 31 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company (NYSE: SMG), the world's leading marketer of branded consumer lawn and garden products, announced today it has named the leaders of its regional operating offices in Florida, Texas and California. The offices have been formed as part of a strategy to drive long-term growth in its core consumer business.

To be located in West Palm Beach, Houston and Orange County, the offices will house cross-functional teams focused on driving market share by improving local consumer intimacy. The offices will be responsible for developing and implementing sales and marketing strategies for the Southeast, Southwest and West Coast respectively. Currently, the Company's market share in these regions is roughly 40 percent, more than 10 points lower than the rest of the United States. By improving market share in these regions to a level that is consistent with the rest of the country, ScottsMiracle-Gro believes it can drive incremental sales of $300 to $500 million over the next several years.

"We are not simply opening sales offices, but beginning a fundamental shift in how we operate our core consumer business," said Mark Baker, president and chief operating office. "Historically, a centralized approach to operating our business was appropriate as our largest retailers were aggressively growing their store base. As the growth of new retail stores has declined, we must more proactively drive category growth, which requires us to further improve our intimacy with the consumer.

"The establishment of these regional teams allows our business to better meet the local needs of lawn and garden consumers. From demographics, to product needs to the length of the growing season, our business varies greatly across the United States. We are now better positioned to leverage local market opportunities, and I am confident the leaders of each of our operating offices will succeed in driving a new level of profitable growth."

The Company has named the following executives to lead the regional operating offices, each of whom will report directly to Barry Sanders, executive vice president of North American operations:

Mike Lukemire, Southeast Region, is a 14-year veteran of the Company with more than 30 years of operational experience. He was most recently executive vice president of Global Technologies and Operations for ScottsMiracle-Gro and previously senior vice president of Supply Chain. He will be responsible for Florida, Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi, Tennessee and the Carolinas.

Jim Tates, Southwest Region, joined ScottsMiracle-Gro in 2005 and most recently was vice president of store operations, overseeing the Company's in-store field sales force.