Florist Life

We feel like we plan down to the second for the wedding day of THEIR dreams. Then the inevitable happens.... a lost linen, a rain storm, no Dahlias! It is ultra stressful when you have promised something to a couple, and your/their dreams are vanquished.  Tired of the stress and sleepless nights over these events? We all are. Be prepared and be ready for ANYTHING. Get in the buffer zone and alleviate some of your stress of wedding day.

We must take the time to respect our flowers. As a florist, we take so much time convincing our customers of the quality and longevity of our flowers we sell, but do we spend enough time respecting those very blooms that we sell?  I have spent a lot of time researching, learning & studying the nuances of each flower I sell, and how the vase life is affected by the care I give them. A cut flower is a flower in the final stage of its life, by our knife... respect them, and they will return the favor.

Looking forward to a new season of Florist Life Podcast... It's coming in late summer... keep an eye out!

The floral industry has developed so many incredible tools to help us design with more convenience and ease over the last few decades. Often, I find that designers seem to be unaware of the origins of how floral design came to be. In the modern day floral world, we have gotten so used to design conveniences, that the origins of technique in design have been lost. In that loss, we have created a problem, which is our use of an endless supply of non-sustainable materials. What is your role as a florist in the implementation of sustainability in your every day floral designs. Will you contribute, or keep things convenient?

I hear so often, "what should I charge for that?".  There is no real mystery of the markups and margins of the retail world.  If we examine closely how we can use our intuition, creativity, and logic... we will find new ways to price our products and services that make more sense in the modern world. Throw away old thinking and dated retail practices. Now is the time to get what you need while exploring new ideas in the weird world of floristry.

Creating and curating your own niche doesn't need to be complicated.  The simple way to create your own is to identify the client you are interested in serving and identifying your own strengths.  By combining these simple ideas, you can truly create a niche that works for both you, and your client.

We dread the moments at weddings when we realize we have either bought way too much product or not enough product for our event we are working on.... We feel so vulnerable or even like we have lost our mojo. The panic settles in and we usually can figure out what to do, but wouldn't it be nice if we had a better plan... and a recipe that told us what we need? Here are some tips and trick on how you can become better at your wedding formulas and how to buy correctly for them. I also discuss how to "shoot the moon"...and throw away your fears of selling high priced items and events. Stop selling as if YOU'RE buying.  You'll thank yourself in the end.

We all have been through it... Covid 19 took the industry for a wild ride. The effects are still lingering, and they will be for a while, but we will persevere. The idea that we have constant control over what happens in our floral life is a bit of a farce. You and I have the strength to push though, and be aware of our true ability to adapt to what we are not able to control. Awareness of our own ability and skill will help us continue to break through to the other side, and will prove to be the necessary tool to complete our metamorphosis. Spread your wings. This is a new beginning.

Sympathy work is somewhat of an art form. As a florist, you must blend, with grace, the consultation with the implementation of the design in a short period of time. The consultation is often the most difficult part, being that you are faced with a bereaved client and the constraints of time. How will you cope, while your client is coping with loss? There is a nuance there, and you will achieve it with some effort... and in the end, you will save the day. Remember, "You can listen as well as you hear".

As a florist, do you help support your industry?  Think of how many people you know in the floral world. Would it not make sense to think of them as allies or colleagues, rather than competitors? Don't miss out on the opportunity to make more friends and less enemies in our industry. Be an advocate for the floral industry! Be part of the big picture that is your industry, and support it. No one is so rich as to throw away a friend.