Where Do Florist Buy Their Flowers
So where do florists buy their flowers? The answer is a bit complicated as there is a range of options a florist can have: Grow the flowers themselves, buy them directly from growers, get them via one of the large auctions or from wholesalers. This may seem obvious, but when you consider that the flower trade is an ancient business and that flowers are better traveled nowadays then people who buy them, it starts to look like this topic needs a bit of explanation.
where do florist buy their flowers
Growing your own flowers may look like a crazy idea, but it works for several UK based florists. For example, the garden gate flower company is famous for growing their own flowers. Though this business model has its own drawbacks like the inability to source flowers out of season and long quiet times. This company overcomes those issues using their entrepreneurial spirit: bridal consultations, blogging, tutoring and by being ready to take an opportunity when such arises. If you want to learn more about them check out their blog.
Last but not the least the wholesales. If you are based in London there are several options you can chose from. You can go for an online wholesaler which can provide a great range of flowers at your fingertips, day or night. But it is not the same experience as picking flowers yourself.In London the best place to get flowers in great amounts is the New Covent Garden Flower Market. Which is simply the biggest and best wholesale flower market in the UK. Though beware the fact that is place caters to the need of florists and operates at night time, so if you plan a visit be ready to wake up early. If you want to know more about New Covent Garden Flower Market check out my post about it or enjoy the video below.
If you're asking yourself "where can I find the best wholesale flowers online?" the answer is BloomsByTheBox.com. That's because we have the best selection of beautiful flowers and professional floral supplies shipped anywhere in the U.S., with same day shipping and no reseller ID required. We have a huge selection of the cheapest bulk flowers, but these are NOT the flowers that you'll see in the supermarket. We offer gorgeous flowers that include roses, peonies, calla lilies, hydrangea, ranunculus, sunflowers, lilies, carnations, chrysanthemums, tulips, gerbera daisies, greens and more. These are the same flowers, greens and floral supplies found in the finest retail florists and used by professional floral designers. When you order your wholesale flowers online from Blooms By The Box, they'll arrive looking fresh and beautiful. If you're looking for the most beautiful roses (wholesale prices) or virtually any other flower you can imagine, you've come to the right place!
We offer our large selection of wholesale flowers, flower petals, succulents and floral supplies at a fraction of the retail price, and if needed right away, they can be shipped TODAY. Unlike other wholesale flower sellers that require large minimum quantities for party and wedding flowers, Blooms offers the smallest minimum quantities for our flowers, fillers and greens. Order only what you need, while still enjoying our low wholesale prices! We cater to both professional florists and DIY enthusiasts!
The humble bodega flower is one of New York City's most under-appreciated small luxuries. There is perhaps no other city in the country where it's as easy to find a cheap bouquet, but should New Yorkers be suspicious of the roses, chrysanthemums, and carnations sold outside their local bodega? How can they be so cheap when flowers from a florist are so expensive?
Surprisingly, Metropolitan Wholesale, like many flower wholesalers, does not specialize in what we might call "cheap garbage flowers." The company imports a wide range of cut flowers and sells to high-end florists, wedding planners, and restaurants, as well as to bodegas and gas stations. The flowers all come from the same sources.
But most of your bodega flowers are coming from somewhere closer. "From my perspective, South America is a great place to buy roses, hydrangeas, baby's breath, chrysanthemums," says Nick Valenti, the owner of Metropolitan Wholesale. "I go to Holland when I want beautiful exquisite lilies, tulips, varieties that you don't see often."
Bodegas are high-volume businesses, so their needs are a bit different. You're unlikely to find especially delicate or niche flowers in a bodega; a bodega florist wants to sell lots of flowers, and likely doesn't have a refrigerator to keep flowers fresh for very long, so it's preferable to get stock in and out the door as fast as possible. But that doesn't mean bodega flowers don't make for a worthy bouquet.
Some of the qualities that make a cut flower valuable in the industry would appear, to the average consumer, quite arbitrary. Is a rose with a shorter stem any less a rose? Of course not, but some higher-end florists will only buy the most expensive grades, even if their customers don't notice or know why their prices are so high. A short-stemmed rose will not, Valenti tells me, wilt any faster than a long-stemmed rose. The grades do not purport to say anything about the amount of time a flower will remain fresh; that solely depends on how long ago the flower was cut and how well it's been stored.
A florist like Shepherd has a cooler and a controlled environment to keep flowers pristine for a longer period; a bodega probably doesn't, and bodega flowers may be exposed to wind, heat, rain, and the grubby hands of prospective buyers.
Bodegas can keep prices down because their overhead is low, and flowers are only one product they sell. Many bodegas don't even own their flower stands. Instead, an independent flower seller will rent or lease the space in front of the shop, which is why sometimes you pay outside. For these independent sellers, costs are far lower than for a retailer who has to rent an actual storefront. And the NYC area's three major airports, as well as its endless appetite for flowers, allow wholesalers like Valenti to ship directly from South America to New York City, keeping wholesale prices low.
It's worth noting that there's a dark side to this flower economy. For all the efficiencies that have been introduced, the industry is still built on cheap labor. Some wholesalers will buy from farms in Colombia or Ecuador with abhorrent human rights records. Many countries have instituted regulations since the mid-1990s to try to crack down on problems like child labor and dangerous pesticide use, but abuses are still commonplace. If you're buying flowers, whether from your corner bodega or a fancy florist, there's a chance their origins are ignoble.
Probably not as much as you think. While flowers can be expensive, the florist is the last person in the supply chain before you receive flowers. There are growers, flower markets, shippers, wholesalers and distributors that all tack on their fees before a florist ever marks up those flowers to sell to you. Florists also incur high electric bills to run floral coolers, fees to keep delivery vehicles in service, rent, flower loss, association fees, business licenses, taxes and liability insurance. According to NerdWallet.com the average florist in the USA can expect to pay themselves 10% of their annual gross profit INCLUDING taxes and benefits. They also state that most independent florists gross less than $200,000 annually. The math is pretty simple, floristry is not a lavish lifestyle. You have to love flowers and interacting with people that love flowers, and accept that as part of your compensation.
The short answer is, whatever they ask. Florists aren't normally in the habit of haggling over their prices. The price of flowers in a shop is dependent on how much the florist paid for those flowers to begin with. They are marked up to cover expenses and to make a profit. If you are concerned about the price of flowers at a shop, call around to a few other florists in the same town to check pricing.
Flowers will ALWAYS be cheaper at Wal-Mart, Kroger and the like, and they should be. Grocery stores and discount stores buy in bulk and they aren't as particular about the quality of the flowers as a florist would be. Even grocery stores with a dedicated floral department often carry only the cheapest and easiest to grow flowers. A good florist finds their niche and provides quality floral design at a reasonable rate.
Just about anyone that designs floral arrangements and sells flowers. Florist is not a highly specialized title like Doctor or Lawyer. In most states you do not need to go to school to be a florist, it's a career that's best learned by doing, and the experience of a florist should show in their work.
That would depend on the florist and the caliber of their work. It could be argued that a florist in a big box store or grocery store that's simply copying designs from a book or from a teleflorist network might not be considered an artist as much as an independent florist that designs all of their own flower arrangements. There is certainly the potential for artistry in floral design. 041b061a72