Greetings to all:
Valentine’s 2020 is done all except for all of the payments that must be made and received.
I reached out to some wholesalers and retailers for some feedback and based on these it appears that most, if not all, segments did better than expected for a Friday holiday.
Wholesaler #1
Overall good holiday with a minimal amount of Product Quality issues, with the exception of some Ecuadorian farms holding early production Roses for holiday sales. Sending us old Roses that we have to then replace for customers really tarnishes the brands we represent year around. It’s a dilemma I know for the farms when production comes early, but shipping aged Roses through the system is not good.Colombian Rose Quality for the holiday wad good in general with the inevitable smaller Freedom head sizes causing some issues, but not too many.Logistics via Air into Miami were good for the holiday and shout out to AFIF who do a great job in ensuring extra CBD inspections during the busy holidays.Our customers in the North East seemed busy and sales on the 13th for the 14th delivery matched other good years where demand is strong at the end. The Red Rose market price did not drop in Miami as it has in the past five years, maybe as a result of the earlier production from Ecuador
Wholesaler #2
Overall sales up through 2/15/20. Overall quality was very good with only a few small issues. Pre-book prices held for the most part, some competitors were discounting in some markets last few days but no big issues.Majority of customers report they had a good holiday. Many report they had to turn off wire services because either they were maxed on ability to fulfill or the quoted selling price was too low for them to make $.Shipping had very few delays or problems.Weather was good (for our locations) so no problems there.Ending inventory levels good so no big after holiday dump.We are happy with our results.Retailer #1
Since we operate in 10 states, we typically get a good impression of how both individual markets perform as well as the flower industry nationally. We were estimating a modest 5-10% increase on average across the board for Valentine’s Day sales from last year due to it falling on Friday. In past experience, Fridays often are “softer” Valentine’s Days due to a larger number of couples dining out in the evening or going out of town and forgoing flowers altogether, etc. We were pleasantly surprised to find that we had vastly underestimated the demand and strength in the economy. Not only did we find that all markets posted significant gains in total volume but also noted a sizable increase in average order value. Customers seemed more willing to spend this year than ever before. Although the entire week was busy, as usual, customers waited until the last minute for orders, with walk in especially busy in the late hours of Valentine’s Day. Add ons such as chocolates and plush were also more popular. Classic red roses were still the most popular choice among consumers. After speaking with several other florists, we have found that most have shared the same positive Valentine’s Day experience and we are very happy to see the industry performing better this holiday than expected.
More floral news:
*We learned that South American Gyp growers are having a hard time selling their dyed gyp to China due to the Virus.
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* Flowersandcents.com has new sponsor and but they are not selling flowers. This very clever company created a device that will track you vehicles, record temperatures/humidity and more using WiFi. Keep track of your stuff with this small device that has no monthly fee. For more info click on this banner.
I have a poll up on flowersandcents.com and would welcome your vote if you will be kind enough to click on this link to the poll.
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Finally the World Floral Expo 2020 is happening in NYC this March and I hope to see you there.
Williee Armellini
Editor: Flowersandcents.com
Williee@flowersandcents.com
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