Shortages and Price Increases and Bears, oh my!

Ok, there's actually no bears. But in this episode we're tackling some tough stuff. The floral industry (along with many others) has been fighting what feels like an uphill battle when it comes to price increases, shipment delays,  and shortages. What can we do to  soften the blows a bit and navigate this? Kelsey shares strategies for change and inventory management. 

Transcript

Hi there! Kelsey from Profits and Petals back with you again on the Retail Florist podcast and we’re going to take a short detour away from our little series of customer focused episodes. 

I just wanted to chat for a few minutes about some of the challenges that we’re facing in the flower industry right now. I’ve gotten a lot of messages and emails lately about flower shortages, and the supply chain and future recession and all that. Now these aren’t new challenges or things we haven’t hurtled before, it just sometimes feels like they are all coming at once. And we’re going on year 3 of navigating big quick changes and I get it, it can be exhausting. It’s like we’re Ross in the stairway yelling Pivot, but we’re on our 283rd trip up the stairs with that same. Dang. couch.   

So I feel you and know it’s tough to keep a positive mindset, but I think that's the first thing that we have to really look at. So OK, let's recognize that this is a challenge, but know that we're capable of facing it. The phrase iron sharpens iron comes to mind. For me, at least, I feel like the strongest businesses are really built and thrive during the toughest times. So don't give up. Don't be defeated. Just know that you're gonna have to just kind of buckle down and focus here. You’re going to have to really watch your numbers and be creative. Luckily florists are just about the most creative people I know. So I wanted to throw that out there that the first thing is just having a positive mindset and demonstrating that to your team. You set the tone for your shop. 

Ok, I’ll step off my soapbox and move onto practical things There’s a few ideas I can offer you as ideas to help navigate and mitigate some of the issues that we're having, I obviously wish I could fix all the problems. If I could, I’d be on a beach somewhere right now! You may be doing many of these things in your shop right now or there may be something I say that sparks an idea. But we really want to strategize on how we put these things together as a cohesive plan and move forward. 

So the first thing to talk about is the hard good supply shortage and price increases. I know it's hard when you can't get your standard product in. One thing I’d recommend is to take a look at what you can edit on your website. If you haven’t been able to get an easel form in for 4 months and your website has a bunch of easels on it, you’re asking to be put in a pickle. Take those suckers off. Or if you are paying out the nose for colored glass right now, disable designs that feature colored glass or add a clear disclaimer on that listing that the design will be in clear glass. Just take away the possibility of customer - and designer - frustration. If possible, replace it with something at a similar price point that you can achieve easily. P.S. if you haven’t reviewed your online substitution policy or event contracts lately, do it today and make sure you’re crystal clear on how you’ll handle substitutions.   

Another step is to re-evaluate your vendors. Really strengthen your relationship with the vendors that you do have that are working hard for you. I have some great sales reps that give me a call or shoot me an e-mail when they know that there's a price increase coming down the line or some sort of special buy that they know that I would like to take advantage of. So if you have some good standing vendors, leaning into those personal relationships and let them know what you want to be communicated to you. And if you don't have those good relationships, now’s the time to explore new other vendors or product lines. 

Do you have local makers that can fill some gaps for you? There may be some hobby or home based businesses in your area (or online at a shop like Etsy) that can step in and replace or complement your current products. I have recently stopped carrying memorial lanterns that were coming from overseas. They were overpriced for the quality and caused me more stress than necessary. A local woodworker is now making me beautiful hand made wood lanterns to my exact specs, along with custom sympathy tags that I can sell as an add on. My customers love that I am supporting another local small business, and I love that I have more control over my inventory and quality. Many florists host other creators in their store. Check out regional craft shows or Facebook marketplace to see if there’s anyone near you that you could buy wholesale from, or just offer them a space in your shop for a percentage of the sale or small rental fee.    

Speaking of local, source some flowers locally if you can. Small flower farms are popping up with more and more frequency, which is amazing! If using local grown fresh product, consider including a small tag naming which farm the specific blooms came from. I have a couple of reasons for this… One is that some garden flowers just aren't bred to have the vase life of mass produced products. Another is that some varieties may have a higher pollen count or be stronger scented than what your customers are used to, and I like to give people a heads up on what flowers they are receiving. The third reason is that it’s just good PR! Our consumers love to know the stories and origins of our flowers, and giving a shout out to the local farm you sourced the blooms from is pretty special. 

Let’s say you don’t have access to this kind of product. Can you use permanent botanicals or plants to fill the gaps in your fresh inventory? As long as you are clear in your product description, many customers enjoy getting a mix. One of our best sellers features a green plant and a small fresh bouquet in a box. Another has faux succulents and hydrangea accented with fresh roses and greenery. Bill it as a type of keepsake gift or include a small coupon with the delivery to entice the recipient to come back in and have you design something completely permanent for their home using those items. 

You may need to play around with different design types too. If you currently favor lush round bouquets with lots of blooms, try to add a few formalinear style designs to your catalog. This design style features strong line flowers and focals and lots of negative space. It’s a high-end look (that allows you to charge a premium price) but uses less flowers. If this would be new to your market, make it part of an engaging social media campaign. Introduce this “new style” and post a few pictures and have your followers vote on their favorite one or help you name them for your website. This puts a positive spin on it. Instead of thinking  I can’t get flowers in so I guess I have to make stone soup with these 8 flowers. This is - the soup de jour features 8 different precious earth minerals and crystals! Ok, that was a goofy way to say it but you know what I mean.    

Ok, let’s keep going. So this may also be the time to adjust how you order - in both frequency and quantity. If you normally get flowers in multiple times a week, can you cut it down to one or two and shift to larger order volumes? Or maybe it makes more sense for you right now to drop your standing order and just decide weekly what you want based on availability and pricing. This may take some number crunching but it’s worth it. I’d apply the same editing process to your cooler stock that you did to your website. What do you need in your cooler to fill your website and everyday orders? Can you streamline your Quote “ everyday catalog or menu”, making sure that you are utilizing the same mix of flowers in different bouquets and styles? This will decrease your fresh inventory and may help you order in box quantities. I did a free workshop about creating a limited choice menu and streamlining your ordering process; shoot me an email at kelsey@petalsandprofits.com and I’ll send it to you.

If you’re not able to move larger quantities of product, can you share a shipment with another florist or two? You can create a type of Co-op for better buying power. Personally, I have a few other floral friends that are within easy driving distance and a lot of times we'll share shipments of hard goods and sometimes even fresh products. We have different design styles and different customers; why not share a box of alstro or carnations. If you’re not friendly with your nearby competitors, bridge the gap or look a little further outside your delivery area for florists that may want to at least share hard good or container shipments. Everyone needs glassware or can share a case of baskets, that kind of non-perishable stuff. You may get bulk pricing and you’ll definitely save on shipping. The same applies to gift lines - if a shop outside your target market carries the same candles or decor as you do, stop in and open the lines of communication for possible future shared orders. It’s currently June but I’m finalizing my Valentine’s Day plush order right now with another shop, because I don’t want to worry about it. I may not have the newest 2023 stuffed animals on February 14th, but they are going to be well stocked, and I’m pretty sure my elementary school recipients aren’t going to know that I am carrying mostly last year's plush collection.  

Ok - let’s talk about doing a vase drive. This is such a good promotion for us. We simply put a call out on social media for customers to drop off their old vases at the shop instead of recycling them or letting them gather dust. You know that weird tiny cupboard over the refrigerator? I mean, no one really uses it anyway but they might as well get their vases out of there and bring them to you, right? We don’t offer any sort of incentive for the vases other than the goodwill of recycling them to be used instead of going to a landfill…. But I have floral friends that do. A small credit on the customer's account, a free flower or a little cash all works. Or you can tie it into a community even or local civic club’s cause. Maybe you donate X amount to the local Girl Scouts for every 10 vases dropped off, or you ask people to bring in a canned item for the food pantry when they bring you their vases. Making it part of a larger cause is going to help you get the word out. Plus it’s a win because it increases foot traffic in your shop. Whether you offer a small kick back or not, you’re still getting vases for much cheaper than new. 

This brings me to price increases. We’ve been seeing them across the board for a quite a while now, and yet it continues to pinch. You may need to do some gentle education with your customers on what they can expect. An example of this would be making up 3 different bouquets at the same price point - different colors, different styles but all the same retail cost. Post a collage of them and have your customers guess the price. Then update the post with the price (and the link to purchase them on your website or to call and order them). You may want to give one away as an incentive to comment. This is a low-key way to show customers what that price point will get them when they order. I also try to keep one super showy, high priced bouquet in the cooler. An $80 dollar bouquet looks pretty affordable next to a $225 bouquet, and I can recycle those long stemmed showstoppers into shorter arrangements at the end of the week. 

Make sure you have a system in place to accurately charge for everything that comes in your shop. We adjust our fresh flowers price board in the design room with every shipment that comes in - you may choose to average it out monthly. Just please please please make sure you are pricing for profit and passing the increases along to your customers instead of eating it all. They are paying more for everything else, the floral industry doesn’t need to be a price martyr. I’m not going to go down the pricing rabbit hole, we can save that for another day. But just be aware of what you’re paying and adjust. Same applies to fuel costs. If you’re not comfortable with permanently raising delivery prices, put a temporary surcharge in place. Customers are well aware of gas prices, they aren’t going to get wild about you increasing your delivery by a dollar or two. Honestly, most people won’t even know, especially if they are ordering over the phone. I’m not that I’m telling you to hide it because that would be shady.  But I’d venture to say that only your frequent flyers know what your standard fee is, and they are loyal customers and the most likely to be understanding. 

Well this bonus episode turned into a full episode! If you can’t tell, I can get a bit chatty about topics I’m passionate about. And helping other florists successfully navigate the supply chain storm is definitely one of them. Please know that my inbox and private messages are always open; whether you have a specific question or just need a friendly virtual face. You can find me on Instagram and Facebook at Petals and Profits. I also host a free Facebook group, Marketing for Florists and I’d love to see you in there sharing in social media content ideas and more. We have a whole thread about the vase drive topic that I know you’ll find helpful for sure! I appreciate you spending time with me, and would super appreciate a rating or review on your listening app. If you’ve found value in this podcast, share it with a flower friend! Until next time, keep creating with profits and purpose in mind.