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Take a pair of comfy leather chairs, some cheeky messages printed on colored toilet paper, artist nights and a willingness to be a little silly at work and you have just some of the ingredients that savvy florists use to make under-30 shoppers feel right at home in their shops. Sound formulaic? It better not, because there’s no standard way of resonating with a generation that prides itself on not being pigeon-holed.
Try as they might to shirk the label, Generation Y is collectively known for their zeal for personalization and their ability to make themselves at home on the comfy couches of Starbucks — facts that Floral Management learned from talking to Gen Y florists (and florists with Gen Y customers) and by reading the results of SAF’s Generations of Flowers study.
While the study covers Gen Y, Gen X and the Baby Boomers, the July issue of Floral Management zooms in on Y, as it presents the most challenges to the floral industry. The seven florists featured, however, have found ways to reach out and pull in this generation by making their shops and product accessible, their designs specific to the customer and their attitude youthful. Oh, and they don’t dare treat Gen Y like a bunch of kids.
Try this
Be social. But lose the corporate speak and mission statements on Facebook and Twitter. Be sure to show off your work here so this data-hungry crowd can see for themselves if you’re worth their time. Let your Gen Y hires handle your social media outreach.
Don’t be a Fuddy Dud Know-it-All. Gen Y has money and the access to all kinds of crowd-sourced reviews (Yelp, YahooLocal, etc) to find out where to use it. If you talk down to them, they’ll go elsewhere and tell all their friends what a jerk you were.
Be G — as in green, genuine and good. Be ready to tell young customers how you sourced your product. When you buy from local growers, make it abundantly obvious. Don’t preach and don’t greenwash – if you have to drive a van for deliveries, own up to it. Also, volunteer your time, not just your money. Be seen doing good things in your community.
Don’t Forget the Rest of Us: For more ideas on how to target Baby Boomers, Gen X and Gen Y, go here.
— Amanda Long along@safnow.org
Free bag of Seattle chocolates ($10 value) will be send with each order you place. Mention “blog” to get it
Nurturing flowers
Arrangements in pastel shades and the softest yellows, peaches, warm pinks, creamy whites and subtle greens make us feel safe, snug and loved. Consider a nurturing floral arrangement for a new mother, a sick friend or a grieving loved one – anyone who would benefit from a caring, loving embrace. See five emotional color palettes and the flowers that bring them to life.
HYDRANGEAS
The hydrangea originated from Japan, and we introduced into UK in 1788. Hydrangea means ‘water barrel’ and refers to the shape of the fruit after it has sprung open, but what it essentially means that hydrangeas need lots of water, so be sure to keep your vase topped up. In today’s flower market, hydrangeas have become explosively popular as cut flowers, especially when used in wedding work. The massed, spherical form and supple texture of hydrangea blooms makes them a preferred choice in upscale floral arrangements. Rare indeed is the ‘home interior’ magazine these days that doesn’t show a picture or two of a bouquet of hydrangeas among its pages.
-arenaflowers.com
how to hire the Perfect Florist for Your Wedding
One area of planning a wedding which is often times overlooked is choosing a florist. The perfect combination of flowers and colors can be the difference between a nice wedding and a beautiful one. They can compliment you, as well as, make the ceremony and reception something to take your breath away. Fortunately, choosing the right florist doesn’t need to be difficult.
You can ask a florist to help you out but are you sure which florist you can trust or who you can use? Here are a few tips from leading wedding professionals to make the job of finding the perfect wedding florist easier than ever:
Before you make any kind of decision about which florist you are going to use, you better be sure that you have lots and lots swatches of all of the colors you are thinking about for your wedding. carpet upholstery cleaning some pictures of floral arrangements you think you’ll like too, as well as of the wedding and reception sites. Make a small list of everyone in your wedding party that will have flowers.
wedding-flowers-arrangement
Put together another list but make this one of potential places to use. You can find the names of florists either online or in microfiber upholstery cleaning yellow pages. The internet is much easier since you can also do a search of reviews for any place you find. As you are compiling your list, compare prices and services with one another.
After you trim down you list, start making some calls to schedule meetings and interviews with the businesses. You remember all those items you were collecting earlier like the swatches? You are going to bring all of them with you to the upholstery cleaning methods to help give them a more clear idea of what you are looking for and the theme you want at your wedding. Don’t be afraid to ask questions or negotiate on pricing since they are looking for YOUR business and should be trying to sell you their services.
Is the florist considered a wedding specialist? Your potential floral designer should provide a portfolio of previous jobs if they have done any work with weddings before. You can also ask for a list of previous clients if you that would make you feel more comfortable.
If you are faced with making a decision between a florist whose only job is your wedding to get ready for or another one with several, then it is best that you go with the one who has less to do and can focus all of their efforts into your needs.
Do you know what is all included in the price? Before you go paying for flowers, you better be sure you are also paying for the containers and fixtures as well and not just the flowers. Some florists do charge extra for items like vases.
After everything is said and done, establish with the florist a time and place that you want everything delivered. Always make sure the florist is delivering everything personally and early to avoid any potential issues or worse yet disasters.
In the five years between 2002 and 2007, the number of retail florist shops fell about 14 percent, as sales per shop rose 10 percent, according to the most recent figures from the U.S. Economic Census. In 2007, there were 19,609 retail florist shops, compared to 22,750 in 2002. The loss of 3,141 establishments puts the number of florist businesses at about the same level as in 1977.
The average sales per shop rose 10 percent to $320,000, compared to $291,000 in 2002.
Total retail florist sales declined by more than 5 percent (unadjusted for inflation) to $6.275 billion, down from $6.625 billion five years previously. Employee counts reflect these numbers, falling by 18 percent to 93,683 employees compared to 114,186 in 2002. Payroll figures were down accordingly, declining by 6.7 percent. In 2007, the number of employees per shop averaged 4.78, the same as 10 years ago, but down from 5.02 at the time of the 2002 census.
“These are clearly challenging times,” said SAF President Rod Saline, AAF, of Engwall Florist & Greenhouses, Inc., in Duluth, Minn. “But, these are energizing times that need our laser concentration and a very clear direction to communicate to our fellow staff.”
The focus, Saline said, must be on the following:
* providing products and services that exceed customer expectations;
* exploring new models to sell flowers;
* partnering with other companies and organizations to market our services; and
* developing and/or finding new product lines to serve our customer base.
The contraction will likely continue “well into 2010 before we see stabilization,” said SAF CEO Peter Moran, noting that the retail contraction is not unique to the floral industry.
— Ira Silvergleit isilvergleit@safnow.org
Too Many Designers? Here’s How to Tell.
Ever wonder how much a designer should produce? Here’s what SAF convention speaker Dan McManus of TeamFloral recommends:
“Take four times your average sale and that will give you a per hour amount they should be able to produce at retail. This is based on the fact that they should be able to make four average size arrangements in an hour. If this rate is not met, it means that you are probably overstaffed, as a designer can only make as much work as you have available.”
6/23/2009
King Florist did all of the flowers for my wedding in April, and I couldn’t be happier. We were on a rather tight budget and didn’t think we could ever afford a florist like King. But, I faced the impending embarrassment and threw out a price. Instead of the gut laughs I was expecting, I got an, “okay, well let me show you what we can do.”
At first the centerpieces sounded like they were going to be too basic and simple for the setting (Shoreline Grill) but I had to keep reminding myself that I am not on Platinum Weddings and have to take what I can get. Well, I had no idea that what I was going to get would look like it actually cost a fortune.
Every piece had an amazing artistic touch to it that was unexpected. The centerpieces looked wonderful, the bridesmaids’ bouquets were so pretty, and the bridal bouquet was so perfect. The florist even incorporated a ribbon I had from when my fiance proposed!!
If you are looking for a florist for your wedding, without a doubt, visit King Florist. It will definitely be worth your time!!
Anna
Give current offerings new life
Maybe your products are the best on the block and your customers already know it. But what about those who have not yet been introduced to your outstanding product line? Focusing your energy on reaching these people may involve looking at your products and services from a new angle. Is your inventory in need of a packaging makeover? Are your prices on target? Is there another selling approach you have been missing that could penetrate new markets?
Sometimes, you don’t need to come up with completely new idea – it only needs to look like something fresh to alter a customer’s perception and create more sales to be recorded by your retail management software.
Some business owners mistakenly turn to their marketing budget first when looking to cut costs. But although it may seem more expendable than, say, your internet connection, when you are trying to increase customer demand marketing may be your best friend.
A 2005 Penn State study actually found that firms which already have a strong emphasis on marketing can benefit from increasing their focus in this area when customer demand is lower. The researchers write that “proactive marketing includes both the sensing of the existence of the opportunity” and “an aggressive response” to the opportunity.
In some ways, there is no better time to get your message out there than when consumers are feeling particularly choosy about where they money, hunting around for ways to save cash. People may be more likely to switch to a new service in lean times.
Also work on honing your marketing message to convince potential customers that your product or service is a necessity, rather than a luxury. Consumers are spending less on luxuries and show a declining interest in paying for what they consider to be extras.
CALLA LILY or ZANTEDESCHIA
Commonly known as the beautifully elegant Calla Lily, its botanical name is Zantedeschia, pronounced zanter-DESK-ya or zanter-DEE-sha. It is also known as arum lilies which are much easier to say! Calla was the old Victorian name for them before they were renamed Zantedeschia.
They available all year round in shades of pinks, pale creams, and flesh tones, purple-black, yellow and terracotta oranges, and very popular as wedding flowers.
White arums are very popular with style gurus for their sculptural elegant shape. Their richly colored relatives are becoming better known; they have smaller, more elegant flower shape and lend themselves more easily to mixing with other flowers.
Even in a time when people are buying less, there are still customers who are making purchases – you just need to find them. How do you locate the type of people who might be interested in your products and services? By looking at your competition, of course!
Scrutinize your competitors’ approach and try to come up with some strategies for doing it better. Demonstrating why people should choose your business is crucial. Once you have figured out how to differentiate yourself, make this the center of your marketing efforts.
Resist the urge to chop prices
Businesses that reduce prices on all of their products or services in an attempt to woo new customers are likely to do more harm than good to their bottom line. Instead of making large-scale cuts, target particular items for reduction and focus your energy on luring people in with these special offers. They may even end up buying other products as well. Use retail management software to identify select products to discount that can boost your overall sales.
Maintaining consistent prices can also demonstrate to customers – and competitors – that you have not made any compromises on quality. Let quality and customer service be your hallmark – people will remember these characteristics over the long term.
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