What Does a Florist Do?
Most people know that florists work with flowers. But we wanted to answer the question “What is it that florists do?”
Florists do more than just make pretty things and sell flowers. Florists also provide their creative services for wedding and event design. Whether it is your dinner table on Thanksgiving or a large corporate event with jaw-dropping floral installations, florists provide every level of flower-based services.
We have compiled a list of the most common services that florists provide. Take a look.
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Flowers for Your Home or Business.
Flowers for your home really brighten up a room. They bring life and color into the room. It is often said that the last part of decoration for a room is flowers. They are the final touch. You will be surprised by how much life they add.
That is what florists do. They help to add life to your home.
Florists can provide service for arrangements for the home. Some clients want weekly or monthly arrangements for their entryway or dining room table. While other clients may want an arrangement every few months.
Many florists have a storefront that you can simply walk in and buy an arrangement, or place an order. But some florists choose not to have a customer-facing storefront. We at Walden Floral LA and Nashville do not. We chose not to have one because we mostly work on events and shipping dried flower arrangements nationwide. The industry refers to this type of florist as a studio florist.
Another place where florists add their touch is to business and hotel reception areas. Florals in reception areas are very common. Can you remember the last time you were in a nice hotel and they didn’t have flowers at the front desk?
Florists Provide Flowers for Birthdays and Holidays.
Certain holidays have flowers associated with them. The most common of these holidays is Valentine’s Day and Mother’s Day. But some other holidays that a florist can add their touch to are Thanksgiving and Christmas.
It is a tradition for spouses and those who are dating to buy flowers for Valentine’s Day. Shades of red, pink, and white are the norm( but sometimes it’s fun to do something different). The most common type of arrangement given out is the hand-wrap bouquet. But full arrangements with vases are also given as gifts.
Mother’s Day is the biggest day of the year for florists. Mom’s love flowers, it’s a proven fact. When it comes to flowers, this day is not based on a traditional color like Valentine’s Day, but picking an arrangement in your mom’s favorite color is always a fun option.
Thanksgiving might not seem like a day when florists can contribute. But the truth is they can really make your thanksgiving dinner special! An Autumn themed tablescape with florals and different textures/candles running down your table is a dream.
Christmas is another great holiday for florists. Dried wreaths in the last couple years have been very popular and it won’t stop any time soon. This gives the florist more opportunity to customize it for their clients, and you can leave it up as long as you want since it’d dried.
Lastly, there is nothing like celebrating a big birthday with some epic flowers on your table. Normally florists provide either some table arrangements, a floral and greenery table runner, or both with some candles. This can really make a particular vision or theme come to life. Florists are expert decorators. One of our favorite things to design here at Walden Floral is creating unique florals for dinner parties.
Florists Provide Flowers for Weddings.
Florists are one of the main vendors at weddings. They provide the following floral services: bridal bouquets, bridesmaids bouquets, boutonnieres, corsages, centerpieces, arches, and floral installations. These are just some of the main services. The possibilities are endless. Florists are great at providing a vision for the floral design to compliment your venue, and really bring it to life using the florals.
The bridal bouquet is one of the most important pieces. It complements the bride’s dress and tells a story for the style of the wedding. Bridal bouquet styles change almost every year. It’s the florist’s job to stay on top of the trends and provide the bride with the best options. The boutonniere should be a little matching floral element that is pinned to the lapel of the groom’s suit.
Centerpieces can come in many shapes and sizes. Sometimes they are small and restrained, and other times they are large and floating on stands. The most important thing to remember about your table arrangements is that they should not be so large as people who are dining together can not talk with one another. They should be inviting conversation and a fun talking piece for your guests. Another fun option is to do a lot of small bud vases or multiple small arrangements, instead of one bigger arrangement. Depending on the size of the wedding, the table decor usually ends up being the bulk of the cost since there are multiple.
Arches or some type of altar installation are the backdrop of the wedding ceremony. For most couples, the arch is the second most important part of the wedding when it comes to the flowers. The arch will be in some of the most important photos of the day. Floral expertise lends itself well to executing this large undertaking on the day of the wedding. Often times there is not much time to design the arch, so having an experienced florist there to take care of it is a great idea.
Floral installations are large floral structures that are not the wedding ceremony arch. It could be decorating the entryway to the wedding venue, or maybe some cool floral work on a fireplace near the bar. The possibilities are endless and flower installations are a great way to turn the venue into your unique vision. They are the overarching visual themes that are unique to your special day.
Florists Provide Flowers for Corporate Events.
Corporate events like trade shows or large companies throwing events are another huge avenue of business for a florist. Sometimes they’ll want some centerpieces and/or some floral installations. Sometimes they’ll want to create a photo backdrop with florals for their guests. It’s a great way to compliment the brand and provide decor for either a product launch, or an employee holiday party for example.
Florists Have to Manage their Business.
On top of all of this fun and creative work, the florist must run their business as well. They are in charge of pricing their products in order to make a profit. They are in charge of marketing and acquiring work. They must start relationships with wholesalers so they can purchase flowers from them. A florist must also either be their own accountant and bookkeeper or hire one. Hiring and training the right florists to be a part of their team is also a big part of the job, and the only way to grow their business. The core of the florist’s business is writing quotes, creating mood boards, writing out flower recipes, placing flower orders, placing vase and candle orders, cleaning buckets/vases/candles, designing with the flowers, and staying on top of the bookkeeping. The business skills are just as important as the design skills.
As we can see, florists do quite a lot. There are many avenues that they can take to be successful. We hope you enjoyed this brief overview of what florists do.