I set out to write this post, and got sidetracked during my morning blog 'must reads'. I came across Nancy Liu Chin's blog and she too has tackled this issue on educating clients. I think she is spot on - so without further ado, I give you a post from the talented Nancy Liu Chin.....
This entry is in response to many of our potential clients and vendors who ask the proverbial question...
{"Can you give me a price list for flowers for my wedding?"}
Or….
{"What should I budget for wedding flowers?"}
These are the most frequently asked questions and I'm not at all surprised because information is not as easy to find as you might think.
- Why aren't many wedding floral designers and florist able to provide a price sheet on their website?
- Why is it so hard to determine how to budget for wedding flowers?
The answer is not so simple. As consumers, we are accustomed to seeing flowers at our local grocery stores like Trader Joe's, Whole Foods, or the local Stop and Shop. We often see "bucket shops" with pre-made flowers with clear pricing. We can buy flowers at BULK warehouses like Costco. However, in those instances, flowers are sold as COMMODITIES or PRODUCTS not as a custom designed ARRANGEMENT. A floral arrangement is a hand crafted, custom product and it varies in price.
What are the components in pricing wedding flowers?
- Creativity
- Quantity and Quality
- Seasonality of flowers
- Color of the flowers
- Holidays - supply of certain flowers during peak holidays increase
- Fixed Costs of a Business
- Labor and Design Costs
- Delivery and Setup
- Materials
- Props, Rentals, Containers, Supplies
- - Customer Service
- - Exclusivity of a Designer
- - Travel Costs
- - Location
I'm sure I've missed a few but in general you get the message...right?
What is the salesperson at a floral shop thinking when you ask how much wedding flowers costs?
1) When is the wedding? i.e. Weekday? Holidays weekend?
2) What color is the wedding?
3) How many floral pieces do they need? i.e. Ceremony? Reception? Bouquets? Boutonnieres? Food Stations?
4) What containers? What props? What rental items do they need?
5) What is their style? i.e. Modern? Simple relaxed? Country rustic? Formal, Black Tie?
6) Is this a complex setup? How many floral installers will it take? What is the distance between ceremony site and reception site?
7) What flowers do they like? Is there additional cost to import? Can we source locally?
8) When is the breakdown of this event?
9) How much lead time will we have to create this wedding?
Do you see why it's a very difficult question to ask any floral designer or florist
about pricing? It is almost as general as asking how much is a car? (Do you want a
sports car? A sedan? What are the options? A/C, navigation, leather seats? Do you
want a luxury brand? Is it a 2 door, 4 door? What year? What make?)
Remember, when you research, these are single arrangements and all florals have added delivery costs so DO NOT be surprised that for wedding flowers, you too should also expect DELIVERY, SETUP, BREAKDOWN, DESIGN costs. This is industry standards and completely justified.