The Great Debate: Grocery Store Flowers vs Floral Shop
Ah, yes. The age old debate. I’ll try to convince you to spend your hard earned dollar with your local florist every time. Let’s dive right in.
The most obvious drawback for going to your local florist over the grocery store is price. Local florists are going to be more expensive than the chain grocery store. Here’s why. Have you ever noticed that the floral section at the grocery store is right in the front right when you walk in? That's because they want you to impulse purchase your flowers right out of the gate when your cart is still empty. They hope those flowers will put you in a good mood to impulse purchase more things that are not on your list. The floral section of your grocery store is not making any money off of the florals they have. In fact, they are actually losing money over those flowers. It is simply a mind game to put you in a good mood while shopping at their store.
That being said, if they aren’t making money on the floral arrangements in their store, then why would the grocery stores care what quality they are? I can tell you that the grocery store across the street from me and myself have the same supplier. What I can’t tell you is how they processed the flowers after receiving them or how long they have been sitting in their cooler. What I can tell you is that at Sweet Pea (and most florists), we go to great lengths to rehydrate and care for the flowers once they come to us. The flowers go through a resting period and hydration period before we even take the plastic off. This is to ensure they are at their best condition to last the longest for our customers. At Sweet Pea, we will also dispose of any old flowers. We don’t try to make a quick buck or pull one over on our customers. Does it stink having to throw things out? Of course. But to me, what would be worse is someone getting flowers that molded or died a day or 2 after they got them. This process, labor and supplies is a factor in a higher price tag on local florists flower arrangements.
Your local florist, myself included, is also trying to make a living with a perishable product. Your local florist pours a lot into each arrangement to make it special for the receivers birthday/anniversary/get well soon/sympathy/thank you/fill in the blank. There is always a time crunch and busy times are always clumped together. We don’t have the rest of the grocery store to rely on to make money, so for us personally, we don’t turn many orders away. We understand that we are not a necessary stop like the grocery store is. We highly value when you stop in because we know you went out of your way to do so. That being said, we want to return the favor by providing the best product.
My last argument for shopping local for your flowers this Valentines day (and everytime you need flowers) is that our suppliers also sell premade wrap bouquets. Typically, they are those bouquets you see right in front at the grocery store. The growers have people who arrange the blooms and sell them for a pretty dang good deal. They are a very popular (and tempting) push when it comes to large flower holidays like Valentines day and Mothers day. It takes some things off the florist’s to do list by saving them time because the product is already done. Sounds like a good deal right? Not really, at least in my opinion. If the supplier in Colombia or Ecuador is selling the premade flowers cheap, are they giving you the freshest blooms? Probably not. If the old blooms look okay when they start their journey to us, how do you think they are going to look when they get to me 2,500 miles later? They also may just be thrown together as quickly as possible to get every last penny out of them that they can, so the design may look sloppy and thrown together. Again, your local florist is going to take the time to put together a beautiful design for you. Not just an afterthought. Not just a quick way to get rid of old blooms.
I know the grocery store is convenient. I know that it is cheaper. I know that some days, it is fighting a losing battle on the cost of florals in comparison to the grocery store. But I also know how hard we work to get to the best possible stage for our customers to enjoy for as long as possible. We have heard at Sweet Pea that our arrangements last upwards of 2 to 3 weeks for our customers. Can you say the same for the grocery store flowers? So I encourage you to try your local florist for Valentines Day. Whether it is Sweet Pea or another local florist, try them out and see the difference for yourself while also making a difference for that small business.
Talk soon,
NK
