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On the Level with Neville: October 2009
Pass the Fruitcake! |
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Written by Neville MacKay
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I know, this title doesn’t really have a lot to do with the topic, which is all about getting ready for Christmas, but I remember when fruitcake was an essential part of the holiday preparations. I used to help my Mum cut up cherries for the cake (what I didn’t eat) and if you didn’t get it done early enough, you’d be in trouble! I guess it’s the same sort of thing in our flower shops…get things ready before the rush starts! Hurry before you’re in a hurry, so to speak. We live in a crazy world!
There are many things that we can do to better prepare for the holiday cash grab, (oops, I mean celebrations!) and with a little planning, life can be a lot easier. We can have open houses, which can be a success provided the weather is good and that you don’t forget to invite someone. I remember having one that was a total writeoff because of a storm. This meant we were eating mini quiches for a week! An open house is a great way to show off your new product and give your customers a preview of what’s to come. Offer samples, prizes, discounts and demonstrations if possible. You don’t have to get too fancy either with a demo; one of the most successful ones I had was on making bows, of all things!
Get in touch with your local media, charity groups that are having events, and other businesses that may be holding open houses or functions, to offer your product for sale, a freebie, a sample, a gift certificate or maybe even a demo. I do several of these at this time of year for charities, and find that it is a great way to show a product that perhaps you bought a little too much of and are afraid you may be stuck with.
Really though, the best marketing you can do in your store is actually in your store! This is a time when we can hang, drape, glitz and cascade beautiful things throughout the store. We really must show where we can what can be done with all our lovely goodies! We carry simanay (that wide mesh nylon, you know what I mean) and I make a bow with a whole roll and hang it above the ribbon display. We have to do another one almost daily during the holiday season as someone just has to have it. We will also sell many rolls because of what they see, and especially if they get to actually see us make this miracle called a bow! I guess not everyone has the visionary sense that we all possess – shocking as that sounds! Thank goodness for that!
Displays during the holidays can start to look tired very quickly when we start having to pick and pull from them as we need the garland, pick, cone or whatever in it, so it is imperative that we keep things fresh and lovely. You know there will always be someone in your store for the first time and you need to make the right impression every time. I remember a person I worked with some years ago that had done quite a pretty display in the window with garlands, ribbons – the whole lot. It was lovely! The thing was though, she had used one-off’s for the whole thing, so people were coming in for “that ribbon” and “this garland” and we had none for sale. Nothing will frost a Christmas cookie faster than that, my petals! Please be sure that whatever you have in the window or in a display you have stock to sell or are willing to take it out for the customer.
In our store we like to create transitional window displays, as realistically we have little or no time to redo a window in December (the nerves are pretty much rubbed raw by then!) By working with a good base, which includes a lot of lights and greenery, we’re able to remove certain features and focuses in the windows, and by the end of it all (when we are getting a lot of people in the store) we start using vases of lovely fresh flowers, which makes for a stunning decadent look that is always so well received and remembered.
The most important thing is to keep your shop looking fresh and new the whole way through the season. I get tired of a window or other display (including a Christmas tree) that has been sitting there, looking the same on Dec. 19 as it did on Nov. 1, so your regular customers as well as your co-workers do, too. You’ll sell a lot more by moving things around, even if it’s just the same old poop but just in different piles, as “they” say. (I’d love to meet “they” someday, wouldn’t you?)
Now, go get the garlands and baubles priced, out for sale and ready to shine, and before you get wound up like a three dollar watch this Christmas, make sure you have lots of Tylenol, water, Band Aids, and, oh, and don’t forget the fruitcake! Happy holidays, everyone!
Neville owns and operates My Mother’s Bloomers in Halifax and lives close to Peggy’s Cove with his partner, David, three cats and an overgrown garden. For more info on Neville or to book him for a show or talk, check out www.mymothersbloomers.com .
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