FAQ’s On OPENING A FLOWER SHOP!
“Build your own dreams or someone will hire you to build theirs.” Farrah Grey
Perhaps you have just recently thought about jumping into opening a flower shop, either way, now you want to know where to begin or get answers to your questions.
Well, you have come to the right place to find out.
If you are reading this, I want to applaud you for choosing a career that started back in 2,500 BCE, selling and caring for flowers.
We thought that compiling a list of 10 Frequently Asked Questions when opening a flower shop would help you in your quest to fulfill your dream and enrich your customer’s lives.
Curious about what florist tools and supplies to start with? Click Here For Must-Have Florist Tools & Supplies!
1. DO I NEED TO KNOW HOW TO DESIGN FLOWERS?
Yes, floral design knowledge is essential to know before opening a flower shop.
Floral designing is not as easy as it looks. It takes a creative person and experience.
To better your knowledge, you should try taking floral design classes as well as a mentorship with a local flower shop. Doing either or both of these will help you make your dreams of owning a flower shop come true.
2. WHAT ARE THE COSTS INVOLVED TO OPENING A FLOWER SHOP?
The startup costs can vary based on whether you open a flower shop from scratch or you buy an established floral shop.
Your needs will be common starting a flower shop necessities such as
- Basic Floral Supplies
- Floral POS/Website Software
- Computer Hardware
- Furniture
- Delivery Vehicle
- Floral Coolers
The cost can vary based on several factors, as discussed -the total can range from $3,000-$65,000.
One of the most significant cost factors for this is location, as a retail location will obviously cost more than a home-based studio.
3. SHOULD I PURCHASE AN EXISTING FLOWER SHOP?
Definitely! This will save you a ton in costs.
This is a great choice for your flower business as it will likely already have a steady flow of clients.
- Costs Fit Your Budget.
- Existing Flower Shop Free From Debt.
- Great Location.
4. CAN I START A FLOWER SHOP At HOME?
Yes, you can, but it will be difficult to build your floral brand from your home.
The good news is that thanks to the boom in e-commerce running a flower business from home are much more doable.
- Be Dedicated To A Floral Home Bussiness.
- Market To Your Customers.
- Have Floral Website.
- Be On All Social Media Communities.
- Attend Seminars.
If you’re going to build an everyday floral business you need to be aware that this takes a good amount of time and dedication and is not a job to attempt to build for part-time work, unless you do not want to make much of an income.
5. SHOULD I JOIN A FLORAL WIRE SERVICE?
The answer to this question will vary based on who you ask as it is often based on opinions.
A floral wire service, which is also known as a flower relay service is a company that has been established mainly for order exchanging and fulfilling between the local florists and/or the third party agents for floral products.
It is much smarter to build your reputation on your own and market your business through a website to advertise your products.
Beware that if you purchase floral hardware from a flower wire service this is a monthly obligation with a pay off time ranging 3-5 years on average- unless of course, you pay the floral wire service hardware in full .
6. WHERE DO I PURCHASE MY FLOWERS/ SUPPLIES?
No matter where you are, there should be ample floral flower/supply wholesalers that you can purchase from.
You will need a resale certificate or Tax Id to be able to buy from floral wholesalers at cost.
You should try to buy from a variety of wholesalers as some may carry certain flowers and supply at a time and others may not.
You also want to make sure you are not subjected to purchase large quantities of merchandise when first starting out before you do not know how your products will move.
Your floral arrangements also speak volumes for your floral business, so, make sure the product you purchase is quality, and your floral wholesalers stand behind their products 100%.
7. WHAT TEMPERATURE SHOULD MY FLORAL COOLER BE SET AT?
Floral coolers should be set to 1.112- 1.7 degrees Celsius or 34- 35 degrees Fahrenheit. Flowers need to be kept cool to put them in a sleep state which keeps them longer lasting.
Make sure your cooler does not fluctuate above 1.7°C/ 35°F these changes in temperature will shorten the longevity of your flowers.
Good To Know: Tropical flowers require a much warmer temperature 12° C/54° F.
8. HOW MUCH DO I MARK-UP MY FLOWERS/SUPPLIES?
Flower markup on cut flowers should be three times or 300% of the price you paid.
On floral supplies, hardgoods, such as vases ribbon and so, on the markup should be double the price you paid or more (2x) depending on if the item was purchased at a discount.
Labor markup should be 20% although many floral professionals in the past did not calculate a labor price into their floral arrangement sales there is a new up rise on florists that do as you should if your competition warrants it.
9. DO I NEED A FLORIST POS /WEBSITE & WEDDING/EVENT SOFTWARE?
Yes, you do! This is a definite necessity, you will need both a floral POS and Floral Website.
Your floral POS will organize your floral business by keeping everything at your fingertips and accounted for.
There are floral wire services that provide POS software/hardware. I would stay away from purchasing POS software /hardware from wire services, it’s costly you are paying an excessive amount of money for hardware that takes years to pay off.
Look for an independent floral POS software/website provide.
- Take customer orders
- Store recipients
- Standing orders
- Delivery routing
- Event reminders
- Manage promotions
- House accounts billing
- Sales reports
- Product category
- Past orders
- Inventory and much more
Same goes for a floral website, the world is reliant on the internet, and it will only increase over time for you, there is no excuse, you must have a floral website to help build your SEO (search engine optimization).
- Purchase your own domain name.
- Have a clear phone & location with the map posted on your website.
- Make sure you have terms & delivery policy.
- Make sure your floral website is secure- https://.
- Have proper professional product images.
- Make sure you have delivery areas clearly posted.
- Have at least 2000 words-content increases SEO.
- Have a Responsive Website.
Some floral website companies will charge a monthly fee and per order charge which is a big NO NO – if you are paying a monthly fee there should be no reason to pay a per order charge as well.
Look for Floral technology providers that offer you-
- No Contract.
- No Per Order Charge.
- No Hidden Fees.
- Allows you to purchase your own hardware.
If you do over 5 weddings a year then you need a floral wedding software to keep your customers organized, you also need a wedding website as well.
Generally wedding florists do not offer wedding products for purchase from their wedding website, however, listen up times are changing.
Just look at your wedding DIY sites they are bringing in the big bucks with these sites.
I recommend adding a simple wedding collection to your wedding website or any floral website if you do weddings to market to customers that do not want to come in for a consultation.
10. HOW DO I MARKET TO CUSTOMERS?
Contrary to popular belief, people need flowers, which makes them a necessity.
At some point in their lives, everyone needs to purchase flowers for Proms, Wedding, Events, Sympathy, Gift, Graduation, Holidays and so on.
The key is marketing to customers so that when they need flowers or want to purchase flowers, they come to you.
A few ways you can manage this is to do some or all of the following:
- Join Social Media communities – Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, Twitter, will get your brand out there and also give advantages to search engines and increase your SEO.
- Sign up for Google Business and Yelp- This is a must do!
- Get listed in your local area and encourage reviews; people are obsessed with reading reviews.
- Get backlinks to build your brand.
- Person to Person marketing, go to your local businesses offer free floral arrangements to display on their counter with your business card/ tag strategically displayed so everyone can see.
- Run a contest or promotion.
- Sell gift items to get daily browsers in your flower shop.
- Join your community and offer free or discounted items to local schools, town hall and senior communities.
You want to start marketing even before your flower shop is due to open, subconsciously instill in social media the “Coming Soon” of your flower shop. All of this is important to get your flower shop running and keep you and your florists in business.
Hey There Florists, Have any advice for newbie florists or someone just looking to open a flower shop? Please share your feedback in the comment section below.
Tish says
That floral cooler temperature seems way too low from everything I’ve been taught…..
Idalina Bertone says
Most florists do leave the temporary higher than the recommended temperature.
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Arianna Jones says
One advantage if you would want to open your own flower shop is to look for another flower shop that’s being sold and buy it–because the place is already set up to the kind of business you want, then all you would have to do is make modifications here and there so you can make it into something that you can call your own. Another thing to consider is having a delivery service since this would allow you to reach a wider range of clients. If I had the chance to start a flower shop then I would definitely try to look for a small corner shop and start from there.
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Ashley Johnson says
I liked that you said that the florist will help you design your flowers. I would imagine that this would take creativity and experience. I would be sure to go to a professional for help regarding forming a bouquet of lowers.
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Ashley Johnson says
I thought that it was interesting that you said that floral shops need to remain at very cool temperatures of 34-35 degrees Fahrenheit to ensure to health and longevity of the floral lifespan. I would imagine that keeping flowers at greater temperatures would promote wilting and drying out. I would be sure to purchase flowers from a professional floral shop that knows how to maintain flowers properly os that they would last a long time.
James Borst says
My wife has been arranging flowers for her sisters and cousin’s weddings and I think she would be a really great florist. It is interesting that there are floral design classes and mentorship programs that will help you learn more. I may recommend that she starts a flower delivery company.
hawaii flower hope says
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Wow, what a beautiful flower arrangement. I love it so much. I had an experience too on making a flower bouquet. It is difficult at first but once you try it would be easy for you on making the second time. You must pick the best flower to your bouquet to make it more beautiful and special.
I want to get some nice flowers together so I can give them to my wife as a gift. I’ll be sure to find a florist that has all of the right equipment to take care of their flowers. That way, I can ensure that my flowers last a long time.