Tom Bowling 2009

Never Too Early To Give Thanks!

With Thanksgiving less than a month away, it is time to figure out what is going to decorate the Thanksgiving table besides the turkey! Designing your prototypes in advance gives you many positive results and makes for a much smoother holiday. First off, you will want to design perhaps 3 to 5 different looks and price points to allow your customer to be able to choose what works best for their needs. It might be a basket featuring multiple candles with an arrangement that is meant to be left on the table during the dinner. Or, it might be a vase filled with glorious fall flowers to be placed on a sideboard or in another part of the house. Perhaps a pumpkin overflowing with the autumn harvest for the season. Whatever the container, be sure to make it available in multiple price points that can reflect either size or flower differences. Usually 15.00 dollar price increments work well to allow for a noticeable difference. Second, by designing these in advance, it will allow you to photograph your selections and post them on your web site for customer review. Adding a short verbal description and size reference will help your customers make the appropriate choice. Remember, only the basic key information is needed; most customers are visual shoppers. You can save the more elaborate script for the sales people when your customers call. Lastly, by advanced planning, it will allow you to recipe your designs and you will be able to place your flower and foliage order in advance with your Account Representative at Florabundance and not have to scramble at the last minute. Plan how many stylings you are going to complete in advance and then buy accordingly. Plan the work and work the plan is the best way to insure a successful holiday! For those of you who are local, take a look at all the beautiful selections when you visit Florabundance for their Open House and review your selections with your Account Representative then, otherwise look at the website.

Pumpkins are the ubiquitous symbol for the autumn season. Although mostly associated with Halloween, these vegetables can provide a harvest feel well past October 31st.
One way to keep the spirit of the season alive is to use a smaller form of pumpkin on a vine. These pumpkin vines provide colorful accents in fall arrangements that can be used all the way through Thanksgiving. While they are mainly decorative, these small pumpkins can actually be eaten in salads and stir-fry. They add an accent of color and a contrast of shape to fall arrangements. When working with Pumpkin Vine, watch out for the sharp thorns that are located where the pumpkins are positioned on the vine. Pumpkin Vine is mostly packed in 5 stem bunches and is available from California this time of year. Continuing with our vegetable theme, also available this time of year are Artichokes and Cabbage rosettes. Both add a feeling of the harvest season. Possessing a longer shelf life allows floral designs with these featured components to be made further in advance than those with shorter shelf life components. The interest in form and texture provide the viewer a focal flower or feature that keeps the interest level at an all time high. When working with these components in floral foam, it is important to remember to chisel point the stem for easier insertion. This also creates a sharp point for greater tension with the floral foam. Ornamental peppers also provide an accent to fall arrangements. Their vibrant orange or red color work well to spice up or brighten up autumn stylings that feature more muted bronze or darker flowers. These long lasting accents can also dry and be used in combination with permanent botanicals or other dried materials. What a great time to enjoy these harvest additions. Get them while you can!

THEY’RE CREEPY, KOOKY, MYSTERIOUS AND SPOOKY!

Believe it or not Halloween is the number one adult holiday. While the kids Trick-or-Treat, moms and dads have their own social events as well. The average spent on Halloween decorations this year is estimated at $65.40, just slightly down from past years. This shows that people are still ready and willing to spend some discretionary income for holiday decor. While the average floral decoration may not be as grand as at Thanksgiving or Christmas, you can still garner some additional sales by having Spook-tacular designs ready for the weekend.

Think of all the fun and unusual form flowers that could work in creating these ghostly delights. Protea, Kangaroo Paw, Liatris, and Leucaspermum all are unusual and interesting form flowers. Hanging Amaranthus and Lichen Branch create a haunting Halloween effect when used in combination with other low based interest materials. Remember to include some unusual form foliage as well for a distinctive presentation. Add a few pieces of curly willow and you have all the makings for a Boo-tiful floral decoration. Take two pieces of Styrofoam, spread a little hot glue in between and pull the two pieces apart to make cobwebs to drape around your creation.

If a more traditional Halloween centerpiece is more desired, try using a small pumpkin for a container. After cutting out the top and removing the seeds and pulp, drop a small plastic liner filled with floral foam into the pumpkin. If extended shelf life is a consideration for the open pumpkin, brush the inside and lid of the pumpkin with Fruit Fresh which is available at your local food store in the canning aisle. This will help slow down the maturation level of the exposed pumpkin. Fill the pumpkin with an assortment of fall Chrysanthemums, Cattails, Safflower, Solidago and Statice for a harvest collection. Don’t forget that bright orange Carnations, Roses and Spray Roses work in this component mix as well. Consider a modified look for a Thanksgiving table as well. Add a little scarecrow, or other seasonal trim for the look of the season.

Remember to offer several price points for your holiday offerings whether they be creepy or kooky, mysterious or spooky! Contact your Account Manager for the best selection of Halloween Happenings.

Friday night football, festivals, craft fairs, and pumpkin patches are all signs that fall is in the air. One tradition that is still popular at most high school is the tradition of Homecoming. What a great tradition of reconnecting with past friends and sharing stories. While it is a time for reminiscing for some, it is also the time when high schools have their homecoming dance. While often not as formal in some areas as prom, it affords the retail florist an opportunity to gain additional business. Think of this as a shot in the cash flow arm.

High school students are fun loving and free. Most enjoy the social activities and are ready to make fun and funky choices for clothing and accessories. With their whole life in front of them, they often are not seeking the same styles and flowers as their parents chose. If you have not already done so, go to the stores that are selling prom dresses or pick up the latest copy of prom magazines. These dances have turned into a multi-billion industry! Ask yourself if you are getting your share of their business? If the answer is no, start looking internal as to why not.

Are you featuring the newest and latest colors and styles for floral selections? Traditional flowers still have a great recognition and appreciation, but think about how you can ‘kick it up a notch’ to attract the youth of America. BLING is the newest request. Bejeweled wrist bracelets, small lights, beads, decorative wires and keepsakes are all the rage! Does this mean that the flowers are not as important? Absolutely NOT! The flowers are even more important. Upscale flower selections of mini cymbidiums, miniature gerbera daisies, and rainbow roses offer the perfect compliment to these accessories.

Individual creations or personalization is the name of the game. Remember, it’s an all about me world these clients are use to. Invest the time to help make this a positive experience and you will build the return business for prom season. If you really want to be hip, send them a tweet message with a picture of their finished styling. This is a great way to get your name out to those last minute customers!

With the fall season in full swing, NOW is the time to take advantage of all the fantastic offerings the season brings to the table!  Capturing the harvest season is really quite easy with the broad selection available from Florabundance.

What a perfect time to showcase your design abilities in both water and floral foam based stylings. Glass vases allow the viewer to see what lies beneath the floral composition. With that said, it is important to consider the relationship the stems or other anchor material will have to the overall composition. For dramatic impact, add some curly willow tips down into the vase before the floral and foliage components are added. Another idea is to secure decorative grasses such as bear grass or steel grass to act as a stabilizer for your stem placement. If you choose to add materials into the water, it is imperative to ass a floral preservative that contains a water clarifier to keep the water free of bacteria.

Another upscale presentation mechanic is secure with clear tape an anchor material such as bittersweet vines to the opening of the container before adding the florals. By adding interest to the container, it allows you to give a customized presentation even though you are using a generic container. Decorative colored wire wrapped around a container ( or placed inside) is yet another way of giving more attention to the vase for a one of a kind look. Textural baskets, pottery, and opaque glass are also good considerations for the container when floral foam is needed to assist in the styling of the design.

Once the container has been secured and prepped, it is time to showcase natures bounty! Many of the season’s components are available in analogous colors. Reds, yellows (golds) and oranges are available for the fall. Working with the stronger colors of fall, a great way to unite these colors for even more visual impact is to add violet or lime green to the composition. Both colors have a melding or blending effect on mixed colors.

Visit the Florabunance web site for great fall offerings such as: Marigolds, Celosia, Ornamental Kale, Safflower, Pin Cushion Protea and Rose Hips to make the season full of Fall Fabulous!

‘Tis the season…. Well, maybe not THE season although it is not far off! However, autumn begins in most customers minds as soon as Labor Day is over. Depending in which area of the country one may reside, autumn brings a plethora of opportunities for great sales.

Many communities offer festivals and community events. These are fantastic opportunities to make your business visible and show your community support. Most people like to patronize businesses from their own cities. Capitalize on this community spirit for future sales opportunities.

Community organizations are always in need of speakers for Chamber of Commerce functions as well as church and other civic organizations. They are open for new and exciting presentations. A few phone calls could open many new doors for potential clients. Consider a short half hour program featuring the Celebrations of the Season featuring Florabundance product.

Beautiful orange Roses paired with Mango Callas, Safari Sunset Leucadendron and textural Millet for some interest would make a stunning combination for the home or office.

Spider Gerbera have that hairy look that is perfect for a Halloween styling. Gerbera, Kangaroo Paw, Hypericum and Curly Willow would be a perfect for a party celebration.

Since many of fall colors tend to be found on the warm side of the color wheel, remember to contrast the reds, oranges and golds with lime green, blues and violet for exciting color contrast. Blue Hydrangeas, violet Liatris, violet Statice and Atriplex are but a few options for adding the color impact. Ornamental grasses and interesting foliages also provide contrast and visual interest. Fresh Wheat adds a fall feel when bundled and displayed either upright or horizontal.

Cattails, Lilies Sunflowers, Solidago and Pin Cushion’s are always a welcome addition to Autumn arrangements. With so many choices, it’s best to get started now before the season runs out and there are still many flowers and foliages to enjoy!

When you go into restaurant and the server tells you about the specials for the evening, what is your first thought? Are they pushing something in the kitchen that has a limited appeal so they are stuck with it or is the suggested item something that is close to its expiration date and they need to move it? The word special has lost most of its positive meaning in today’s society. We are constantly bombarded with so many specials that very little seem special anymore.

Now, same restaurant, this time the server comes out to tell you what the chef is featuring for this evenings dining enjoyment. Totally different feeling. We think the chef has been working all day to come up with a palette pleasing presentation. The same can be said about selling flowers.

While most flowers can be on “special”, this usually means cheaper or discounted merchandise. The perceived value starts to decrease and the question of why comes to mind. There will always be some clients looking for a bargain on pricing, but most retail flowers buyers are looking to express an emotion. Whether love, sorrow, comfort, or joy, price is not the single most important part of the buying equation. Customers want to feel that their selection is going to the best interpretation for the monies spent. Avoiding customer and recipient disappointment can be a challenge if the sale is not properly executed. It is not uncommon for customers to be undersold when they are willing to spend more dollars on a “featured bouquet”.

So what is a features bouquet you ask? It is the one that your design staff has reciped in 3 price points and that your sales staff has been given the necessary list of the features and benefits of that week’s particular featured design to help identify during the sale. The advantages are that you can buy in quantity to create multiple designs, create multiple designs at once for future sales, and these serve as a great base to allow additional placements for a more customized look. Think once; execute in multiplicity.

In reality, it is just a play on words; the effects can make a huge difference in sales. Take advantage of Florabundance “Featured Flowers” this week to make your profits grow.

By Tom Bowling AIFD PFCI exclusively for Florabundance, Inc.

When asked the question, “What colors do you recommend for this time of year?” the answer is easy. Whatever you are most comfortable with. Summer is one of those times of the year when a less formal approach to our lifestyles takes over. Coats and ties often give way to open collared shirts, high heels are traded for open toed sandals and casual entertaining abounds! From picnics to patios to pool parties, this is the season for summertime chic by choosing colors to make a splash!

One of the hottest color influences is coral or shrimp paired with every color from tan to turquoise! Coral wakes up soft colors in the mid-range browns and gives just enough of an impact to let us know there is a presence of color. Think sand and pearl luster being woke up with vanilla and shrimp for a classic summer color harmony.

Coral also is being shown with turquoise, plum and lime green for an exciting display of flirty tropical colors. Just think how casual collections of garden type flowers could work in this festive floral harmony. The flower choices are very broad at this time of year making for an endless variety of choices. Weather displayed in the back yard or corporate boardroom, bright collections of seasonal flowers always make a happy statement. Keep in mind when working on interior projects, if the setting is busy with color, choose one or two colors being displayed and keep the floral styling more simplistic. When the setting is more subdued, then more color can be used effectively. As the amount of colors increase, the possibility of colors fighting or not harmonizing is a distinct possibility. One of the easiest solutions to making color work together is to include either violet or lime green to harmonize poly-chromatic color harmonies. These two colors along with gray (Dusty miller, gray-green eucalyptus) are blending colors that not only provide a mix but also vibrant contrast.

Whatever you choose for this summers color pallet, choose colors that make a splash!

By Tom Bowling AIFD PFCI exclusively for Florabundance, Inc.

Want to do something a little different and unique for a summer party or luncheon?

Try arranging fresh flowers directly into slices of watermelon or cantaloupe instead of floral foam. The fruit (that has been brushed with FruitFresh to slow the maturation process and reduce fruit flies) will provide a water (and natural sugar) source to the flowers. Experiment with fruits that work well for the summer and provide a splash of color!

By Tom Bowling AIFD PFCI exclusively for Florabundance, Inc.

With the busy spring behind and the dog days of summer staring you in the face, what should you do to make the summer more productive? One of the best investments of time and money is to take a look at your shops presentation to see where and what needs attention and to prepare for the busier times ahead with a summer make-over. Several key tips will help you look and be motivated to make those necessary changes. Minor updates do not have to be expensive to be effective. Paint, fabric and a few spot lights make a world of difference to your customers when they visit.

By Tom Bowling AIFD PFCI exclusively for Florabundance, Inc.