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Canadian wholesalers talk holiday trends |
As is the case with the European fashion industry, it often takes about a year for floral and holiday trends to migrate to North America. To get a snapshot of the hot seasonal colours and materials from this side of the pond, we talked with wholesalers to see what products they are offering Canadian fl orists this fall and Christmas season.
An earth-toned harvest
Florists Supply design consultant Derrick Hollar, AIFD, CAFA says that for fall, colours remain traditional with browns, earth tones and copper dominating. He sees fresh material like fall garlands and greens mixing with permanent botanicals to create a variety. “Some of the material is real – textures are great and wonderful and then you’re adding in the pretty accurate fall botanicals,” says Hollar.
Jean-Francois Marsolais of Marsolais reinforced this trend towards natural colours and permanent botanical. The wholesaler is carrying earth tones in ribbons and materials, along with traditional colours, as well as a new line of permanent and dried botanicals.
Michelle Lekkerkerker, vice-president at Action Imports, says they are offering more natural materials for the autumn months. “We are seeing a lot of interest in consumers in all things eco and natural. As a result there is a renewed emphasis on our lines of natural materials including water hyacinth and bamboo.” Lekkerkerker says the fall hues are inspired by these organic materials and their lines feature colours like wheat, basil and a grey-tinged brown, treated with an antiqued finish.
At Hofland, Rodney Hofland says the company is offering retailers three main colour looks for the coming months. The first is a Cappuccino theme, which features white, chocolate brown and silver. White dominates the look and is highlighted with chocolate accents, vintage silvers and natural materials like branches, pinecones and birch. The second trend theme, Woodland, uses colours like spiced orange, saffron, black and burgundy. The hues and materials behind this look are inspired by a winter night spent in a leather armchair, next to a crackling fire. The third colour scheme, Glamour, features gold, ivory, over the top candelabras, honey- and skin-toned colours and materials like velvet and shiny gold satin. These three looks are available for both the fall and winter, making it versatile for customers looking to transition their fall colours and décor into November and December.
Hollar predicts this will be a big selling point for consumers, especially those in Western Canada where the fall season is shorter. “If it’s something that can carry into the winter season, they can still enjoy and be comfortable in their homes after October, it is also something that’s very desirable. If you have a nice earth-toned piece that you can add some glitter material in later, it can fit right into your Christmas theme without making a lot of changes,” says Hollar.
Decking the halls with tradition
When it comes to the holiday season, Hollar says Florists Supply is banking on tradition. They are offering lots of holly, poinsettias and bright berries and ensuring that these materials can be used outdoors. “A lot of people want to put up more outdoor decorations,” says Hollar. For those consumers who want something more than red and green, Florists Supply is offering holiday décor in fall hues. “A lot of homes are still being painted in those kind of coffee colours and people don’t just want a Christmas tree in the middle of their house anymore. They want to design a tree that blends in with their year round choice of colours,” says Hollar.
Lekkerkerker says at Action Imports, they are also preparing for a more classic holiday season. “Based on our booking orders to date it looks like traditional colour schemes such as rich reds, golds and silvers presented in modern shapes and finishes are selling extremely well.” This extends to the company’s hard goods offerings, which feature rich, metallic paint finishes that act as a great complement to Christmas designs and arrangements.
One or two hot colour combinations have dominated the Christmas palette in previous years but Marsolais is forecasting that this year will differ. “This year we are offering the traditional gold and red, but we feel there is a trend in mixing some colours. Apart from the traditional look, we saw this mix of colours in all the showrooms of the large importers from the Orient. A sign of the times? Probably,” says Marsolais.
With some shoppers still watching their wallet and others loosening the grip, the key to the upcoming holiday season will be working with your customers to offer them both a mix of something traditional and something new when they begin to deck their holiday halls.
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