At the end of each school year one of the key questions asked is, “what
has the floral industry to offer me now?” My reply is always, “as much
as you have to offer the floral industry.” But as I wished them all
good luck in their new careers I wondered – What exactly can today’s
industry offer this bright new talent? Things are not the same as they
were ten years ago or will be in ten year’s time.
Saying Goodbye to the Seneca College Retail Floral Program Class of 2005
 At the end of each school year one of the key questions asked is, “what has the floral industry to offer me now?” My reply is always, “as much as you have to offer the floral industry.” But as I wished them all good luck in their new careers I wondered – What exactly can today’s industry offer this bright new talent? Things are not the same as they were ten years ago or will be in ten year’s time.
Their options are always laid out for them during the course with the pros and cons of each decision. All the students want to be a designer, that’s why they take this course, and although they fully understand the importance of sales and marketing, display and managing the product and the money, design is their main focus. So option number one is to work full-time in a flower shop, generally a five-day week – any five of seven. Most of the students see the need to work on a Saturday, but some protest working on Sunday. This could be based on religious or family values – both very valid reasons. I don’t blame them; I have always opposed Sunday shopping. For those who cannot work Sundays, I suggest they apply to flower shops in business districts, which usually means the downtown core of the city where many stores only open Monday to Friday.
A part-time situation suits some of the students because they are not all teenage kids out of high school. We also have a group who has young children at home and others who are older who don’t need the riggers of a forty-hour week. For these people maybe the evenings and weekends would suit their schedule and a mall store or a mass merchandiser might be the answer. Some students take on a couple of part-time jobs so that they can have flexible hours and a chance to experience more than one style of management and design. This is quite a sound strategy except when it comes to the major holidays when everyone wants more of you.
Then there is the freelance route. The students all think that this is a wonderful idea because on the surface it looks more lucrative. It needs to be painted out that in order to earn that money you have to have the job and you might have to prove yourself a little before the phone starts ringing. As for the issue of more money than a full-time employee, the payment of taxes, no paid holidays or unemployment benefits, and not much work at certain times of the year, all need to be taken into consideration. It doesn’t take long for the students to decide that they can’t pay the rent this way – at least not yet, this is an option for later.
A few plan to open a store of their own immediately after completion of the course. I don’t recommend this option although I do applaud them for at least taking the course before they sign the lease. It is not that I think them incapable of running a store but I do believe a lot more experience is needed. By working for someone else for at least two years, they would more fully understand the major holidays, the weddings, and the highs and lows of the floral year. If the student has some business experience. there will be a better chance for success, having a great deal of money could be an asset too!
It is always interesting to follow the progress of past students after graduation. How many of the original class of thirty remain in the industry? A few leave before the course has finished for personal and financial reasons or because the course was harder or not really what that expected. Some finish the course but do not enter the industry for some of the same reasons. Of those that stay, some are leaders and some are followers and the industry needs them both.
Upon graduation most of the students are employed. Many in the same stores where they spent their one-day a week for work placement, a requirement of the course. A few students decide to take the summer off after a pretty intense year of school life and seek employment in the fall in time for the Christmas season. The very few who will be the future movers and shakers of our industry pound the pavement long before graduation to be sure they land a place in one of the high-end progressive stores.
One thing I do tell them all that probably doesn’t go down well with the employers is, “don’t stay in your first job too long.” Even if you think you have been lucky enough to have landed the best job in the industry, you need to experience more. There are flower shops everywhere, in high-end neighborhoods, there are mall stores and those in mass merchandising, places that actually have no storefront but deal exclusively with large functions and weddings. Each has something unique to offer.
This industry is in a constant state of change, who knows what it will look like in ten years. The more our new people can experience early in their career, the more able they will be to adapt to those changes.
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