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Ready for Romance
What to expect when Valentine’s hits on a Tuesday |
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Written by Carol Neshevich
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When love is in the air on Feb. 14, one thing is certain: there will be people looking to buy floral arrangements for their sweethearts. That said, most Canadian florists agree that sales are far better when Valentine’s Day falls on a weekday rather than a weekend. “Last year, Valentine’s Day fell on a Monday and our sales were up 20 per cent over the previous year when it fell on a Sunday,” says Lynn Freeman, owner of Martin’s, the Flower People, in Toronto.
Generally speaking, weekends aren’t optimal for Valentine’s Day flower sales because people often choose to do other things to mark the occasion. If Feb. 14 falls on a Saturday or Sunday, many prefer to forgo the flowers and spend their money on a romantic dinner out instead. Office culture also has a lot to do with it. According to Terry Galbraith of Carriage House Florists in Saskatoon, “that first wave of deliveries goes through the offices when Valentine’s is on a weekday.” The second wave occurs when people see floral arrangements arriving on their co-workers’ desks and they realize they’ve forgotten Valentine’s Day, which reminds them to pick up the phone and order last-minute flowers for their significant others as well. Because of this office dynamic, Galbraith says a weekday Valentine’s Day has always been considerably better for sales.
As for 2012, “I expect it will be even better, just because it’s a Tuesday,” says Galbraith, noting that Tuesday gives people one more weekday to get prepared and remember to order their Valentine’s flowers. John Frecker, co-owner of Holland Nurseries in St. John’s, Nfld., agrees. “We’re looking forward to it being even better in 2012,” he says. “Historically, Tuesday is one of the better days for Valentine’s Day.”
But while a high volume of sales is great for a florist’s bottom line, Valentine’s Day can be one of the most stressful days of the year for a busy florist. “It’s just that one day, so it’s a lot more intense than the other holidays because you can’t spread it out,” says Ernest Cholakis, owner of Winnipeg’s Broadway Florists. At Christmas or Easter, for instance, flowers don’t necessarily all need to be delivered on the exact same day. But with Valentine’s Day, there’s no leeway – the flowers must be there on the 14th.
In order to make it through that busy day without losing your mind, most florists agree that preparation is key. As many arrangements as possible must be prepared beforehand, and you have to be ready for the inevitable influx of people who forgot to order ahead of time. “It’s all about being organized and prepared,” says Carriage House’s Galbraith. “If you’re behind before you start, then you’re lost.” Galbraith says he always brings on more staff starting about five days before Valentine’s Day. He typically doubles his staff – going from the usual four or five to nine or 10 – and he has five drivers on hand for Valentine’s deliveries. “The biggest thing for me is to make sure we have extra staff so we can handle everything that comes our way.”
While it’s inevitable that you will have those last-minute Valentine’s customers, it’s helpful to remind regular clientele to order ahead of time so that you’re not stuck with an overwhelming number of people racing in at the last minute to pick up arrangements for their sweethearts. That’s why a number of florists will engage in some sort of marketing campaign to encourage early ordering. “We send an e-mail to our existing customer base reminding them that Valentine’s Day is Feb. 14,” says Broadway Florists’ Cholakis. “That helps a little with preparations because it encourages them to order early.”
And interestingly, at Martin’s, the Flower People, in Toronto, Freeman says they will offer people a box of Lindt chocolates with their arrangement if they schedule their arrangement to be delivered prior to Valentine’s Day, on the 10th, 11th, 12th or 13th of February. “With Valentine’s, it’s all about the day, but a lot of people are mature and they know that if they can get better service if it’s not being delivered the same day as everybody else, it’s worthwhile” she explains. Although most people will still opt for delivery on the 14th anyway, there are enough customers who do take advantage of her early delivery offer that it takes at least a little bit of the pressure off on the actual day.
No matter how prepared and proactive you are, however, bad weather can always throw a monkey wrench into Valentine’s Day. February can get pretty cold and messy, especially in certain areas of the country. As Holland Nurseries’ Frecker explains, another reason sales were so good for him on Valentine’s Day in 2011 was that there weren’t any weather challenges. “We’ve had years where our shipments had frozen and we’ve had a mad scramble at the last minute, and we’ve had years where the whole city’s been shut down because of stormy weather. So anytime the weather is good, it’s greatly appreciated,” he says. Carriage House’s Galbraith adds that in Saskatoon, the temperature can drop so low in February that the arrangements really need to be wrapped well in order to avoid being severely damaged by the cold. All this wrapping must be accounted for in the planning, both in terms of time and supplies.
When planning for Valentine’s Day, it’s also important to prepare for what the customers are most likely to request in the way of flowers. And it seems, across the country, that Valentine’s Day is still all about the red roses. “The majority of our customers still like the red roses, whether it’s one, six or a dozen,” says Broadway Florists’ Cholakis. This is the consensus among Canadian florists, although other arrangements are starting to become a little more popular for Valentine’s. “More and more people are looking for the more exotic arrangements,” says Cholakis, noting that different varieties of orchids are in higher demand, as are mixed arrangements of tropical flowers, gerberas and “nice, colourful mixed bunches” in general. Freeman of Martin’s, the Flower People, adds that tulips are becoming more popular for Valentine’s Day, and notes that “we do a lot of mixed arrangements that have two or three roses and other spring flowers mixed in.” Holland Nurseries’ Frecker concurs with Freeman, adding that wrap bouquets are becoming more popular. “We try to market arrangements that aren’t rose-based because prices are more civilized,” he says. “Rose prices spike terribly at Valentine’s.”
Interestingly, Freeman has found that her customers often prefer to spend the extra on the red roses, even in the face of less expensive but still attractive alternatives. “One special that we’ve tried for a couple of years has been a dozen mixed-colour roses, which may or may not include red. They’re in a cubed vase, and they’re the 40-centimetre roses, so it’s a way of using up two of this and two of that,” she says. “But it’s funny, a lot of our customers think that’s too cheap. So while we sell that for $55, they would rather spend the $80 and get a dozen red roses. We do sell a few though, and we’ll offer it again this year.”
As always, add-ons continue to be popular, with most florists agreeing that chocolates are the most popular add-on at Valentine’s Day. Smart florists would be wise to have a good selection of high-quality chocolate in stock in February for those customers who want to include sweet treats with their floral arrangements. “The nicest add-on is still the chocolate,” says Cholakis. “We also sell the occasional plush bear, but it’s mostly chocolates.” Balloons are also relatively popular for those who want their Valentine’s gifts to make a big visual splash, says Freeman. “And every year we sell at least a couple of singing and dancing toys,” she laughs.
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