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Working with CUPID
Tips for the industry’s biggest day |
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Written by Rebecca Schwarz
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Tips for the industry’s biggest day
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We asked florists across Canada to share tips and advice on how they survive Cupid’s day on Feb. 14.
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The holiday season has come and gone and now’s the time when many florists start seeing red – red roses, of course. We spoke with florists from across the country to talk about how they plan to get their customers in the flower-sending mood this Valentine’s Day. We also asked how they cope with last-minute disasters on what can be the busiest day of the year.
Theresa Chalus, owner of Nipawin Florists, Inc. in Nipawin, Sask., says in the days leading up to Valentine’s Day, she “super-saturates” her display window with anything and everything red, plus lots of glitter and sparkle. For Chalus, preparation begins immediately after Christmas. She’s managed to turn her shop’s take on Valentine’s Day into a local event. “A local radio station comes in and we do live on location. The DJ comes in about 8:30, and he spends the day. It adds to the level of intensity. For the week before Valentine’s Day, we do radio ads. Our radio rep does our spots, and I try to get all the girls to talk about a favourite rose or a favourite design.”
As you might expect, Chalus sees more men than women rushing into her store.
“Men leave it to the last minute. That’s the way guys are. So we keep copious amounts of notes. We know our staffing and flower needs; we are ready. It’s such a big day – it’s immediate.”
On Valentine’s Day, Chalus needs twice her usual employees and she aims to keep everyone comfortably on their toes. “You have to be mentally and physically ready,” she explains. “Comfortable clothes and shoes. I always bring food; I try to have food around. It’s probably a 12-hour day. And the previous week, you’re working 10, 12 hours a day.”
So what is it her customers want on the day of hearts and flowers? “A dozen red roses is the classic. If they are older they might ask for an arrangement, but guys have it ingrained in them that’s what’s expected.”
Wendy Maber, owner of Galbraith Florist in Saint John, N.B., offers her customers the option of a drive-thru service: “We have the first drive-thru flower shop in New Brunswick. We started the drive-thru last year and it was quite the hit. On Valentine’s, anyone who comes through the drive-thru, they get their item tax-free, cash and carry. It saves time for us and the customer.”
Maber says most of her orders are last minute, and the store stays open as late as 10 at night to accommodate them. Maber usually starts her Valentine’s Day at two in the morning, and her staff comes in at six. Like Chalus, she does try to suggest alternatives to the classic red rose, particularly when they run low. “We give them a song and dance about carnations, they last longer, are much more special. We also give little incentives to pre-order. We do draws for Valentine’s Day. On the 13th we draw the names and we include the gift with the order if they won, as a surprise.”
Marilyn Rollason, owner of Rollason Flowers, Ltd. in Thunder Bay, Ont., keep prices low to compete with the local grocery store. But she’s not too concerned that men will throw a bouquet of roses in the cart with their quart of milk. “If you go and buy a gift from a florist, it’s much more personal delivered, wrapped up with a box. You put a little more thought into it than something you bought at the grocery store. Because you went into the flower shop you had to think about what you wanted to buy.”
Rollason also teams up with the local radio station to promote her business. “The radio station will offer campaigns to win a dozen roses. People like to win things. Be the fourth caller, your sweetheart will get half a dozen roses.”
Angela Gazzola is the designer at Heywood Flowers, in Coquitlam, B.C. Although a relatively new business, Valentine’s Day is already hectic. Like Chalus, Gazzola says mostly men come in for the dozen red roses, and sometimes, the shop runs low on the flower of choice. When that happens, the staff will try to steer customers to more contemporary or unusual choices. Special arrangements with teddy bears are another offering. “We try to sell different arrangements, near the end of the day, like gerbera daisies, lilies, orchids. Some guys are okay, but others, if they can’t get roses they leave.”
With Valentine’s Day, Gazzola says it’s all about planning ahead. “That day, it’s usually getting the dozen roses out, we do designs a day or two before. It’s about a 10-hour day. The night before is a late night, we get all the orders ready. We don’t really get stressed out, we prepare. We water pick the roses and put them in a bucket with water, and in the morning we wrap them. The next day we start at 8:30 a.m. Guys are coming in all day long, but the afternoon is the biggest, between four and five you get a big rush of people!”
Gazzola works surrounded by red hearts and “anything that has to do with Valentine’s Day.” The store is decorated two weeks in advance of the big day. But Gazzola says she’s never been on the receiving end of a Valentine’s bouquet. “My boyfriend doesn’t get me flowers,” she laughs. “I get chocolates and teddy bears, and I got a ring last year. I get him plants.”
Eve Brealey, owner of Billie’s Bouquet in Squamish, B.C., hires extra help for the big day, but admits it eats up some of her revenue. “We’re in a small town, so that day, it’s not a huge revenue maker. There are only two flower shops in our town.”
Brealey does have female customers, but mostly men stop by for the dozen red roses and usually at the last minute. She has been known to run out of red roses. “We’ll come up with an arrangement, or a different idea. Some people like a nice mix, hand-tied bouquet. I would like to promote tulips, but in our town, most people are fairly traditional. We have come close to running out!” If somebody wants to throw in chocolate with their dozen red roses, Brealey calls the chocolate shop down the street.
So with a little over a month left until Valentine’s Day, be sure to take these tips and pieces of advice to heart so you can be prepared and ready for business on the industry’s biggest holiday of the year. And don’t forget to celebrate Valentine’s Day in your own way on Feb. 15 – perhaps with a nap?
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