Tell the Allied florists
you found them on
AlliedFloristsofHouston.org!

Allied Florists of Houston

The Association of Professional Florists

...When only the best will do.

Focus on Design
Father's Day Floral Designs
by Alex Torres AIFD TMF

Welcome to the newest edition of my column dedicated to the advancement of floral design. I hope your Mother's Day sales exceeded all your expectations. I was fortunate enough to do some marketing research during the holiday and I believe that people's awareness of our work as professional florists is pretty high. I witnessed many shops doing a brisk business all week long.

Kudos to shops who employ savvy staff. Education on our product is essential to good business. Extra kudos to shops that are AFH members and who employ AFH members, for you are truly committed to our beloved industry. I can not stress enough how important it is for us to make ourselves visible through smart marketing strategies and advertising. I believe that attention to detail and strong design will make us all successful.

Father's Day can be a great time to experiment with what I like to refer to as “Masculine Offerings”. Dads love our products and services just as much as everyone else. There are many options available for us to offer our customers on this holiday often overlooked by florists. The key is to stick to bold colors and strong designs that convey a decidedly masculine feel.

Consider designs utilizing exotic flowers such as birds of paradise, ginger, protea, anthurium, and dendrobium orchids. The key is to think “less is more”.  You want to encourage tasteful, bold placement of flowers, accessorize with curly willow, birch, mosses and other “earthy” masculine product.

Perhaps you may offer your customers potted bromeliad plants.  Bromeliads are very striking as well as long-lasting. Most are available in grower pots you can simply drop in a rustic wicker basket and would not require more than Spanish moss to cover their soil. Think low-key as far as the frills (minimal ribbon treatments etc.) Also, bromeliad plants look great at the office!!  Consider removing the plant from the grower pot and placing it in a terra cotta pot. For those customers who want to splurge, you might offer bromeliad plants that are mounted on driftwood. These require no further embellishment and in doing so provide a better profit since there is no labor involved.

Another good option is potted green plants.  Think rubber trees, schefflera, dracaenas, and pothos ivy that don't require too much fuss of special care.

Be careful however, not to dissuade or discourage customers from sending larger floral arrangements. We can advise customers, but they are the ones that know the recipient after all. There is absolutely nothing wrong with wanting to send dear old dad a big arrangement of gorgeous blooms to show him that he is special!!  Advise bold, showy colors to make a great statement.

Another popular suggestion is the “lucky bamboo” that seems to be quite popular still. Find a reputable source that provides you with different options and makes the bamboo available in cool oriental inspired containers which are sure to be a great conversation piece. 

Ditto for bonsai trees that come with tiny figurines that range from animals, to fishermen, to simple river rocks or interesting stones or driftwood. Again, these offerings are great because they are straightforward and require no further labor on your part.

Gift baskets are another viable possibility. Imagine a gift basket loaded with goodies for the big game. Think canned or bottle drinks, chips, nuts, crackers, cheeses, summer sausage etc., all in a big basket wrapped in cellophane tied with raffia an accented with a stem or two of fresh or silk flowers. The key again is to keep it masculine looking and customized to the recipient..

We have reached the end of this months column, I hope these simple ideas will inspire you to diversify your June offerings and increase your bottom line.  Next month's column will focus on wedding design and simple ideas at various budget points.

Please direct any comments, questions, or ideas regarding this column and it's content to alextorrestmf@aol.com.

When you look for a florist, look for the Allied Florist logo - your assurance of Professional Quality and Service.